The Dan Andrews Labor Government is proposing to make free university and specialist training for in nursing and midwifery.
In a statement, Premier Daniel Andrews said that Year 12 students who are thinking about studying nursing or midwifery will have their HECS fees covered. He added:
“Every health system in the country is under enormous pressure due to the pandemic. The best thing we can do to support our hardworking staff is give them more support on the ground – that’s why this package will train and hire more nurses than ever before.”
Through this $270 million boost to Victoria’s health system, more than 17,000 nurses and midwives will be recruited and trained as part of a massive hiring and upskilling initiative.
Further, more than 10,000 students will have the cost of their nursing or midwifery undergraduate studies paid for by the Victorian government. This will also include scholarships for thousands more students who plan to complete postgraduate studies in areas of need including intensive care, cancer care, paediatrics and nurse practitioner specialities.
All new domestic students enrolling in a professional-entry nursing or midwifery course in 2023 and 2024 will receive a scholarship of up to $16,500 to cover course costs.
Students will receive $9,000 while they study and the remaining $7,500 if they work in Victorian public health services for two years.
Victoria’s Minister for Training and Skills and Higher Education Gayle Tierney said that by providing more pathways and incentives to education, the government is “giving our nurses and midwives the practical support that they need to continue caring for Victorians.”
The Andrews government is confident that with this initiative more midwives will join the workforce through an expanded postgraduate midwifery incentive program.
The initiative, together with the $12 billion Pandemic Repair Plan brings the number of nurses and midwives being supported to more than 20,000, including funding 13,000 nursing and midwifery positions and scholarships, and funding the upskilling of 8,500 nurses.
Minister for Health Mary-Anne Thomas said that this step is important in investing in hardworking nurses and midwives. She observed:
“You can’t deliver a health system with empty hospitals, which is why we are investing in hardworking nurses and midwives that are helping Victorian patients every single day.”
The package also includes:
- Scholarships for postgraduate nurses to complete studies in specialty areas such as intensive care, emergency, paediatrics and cancer care – worth an average of $10,000
- $11,000 scholarships for enrolled nurses to become registered nurses, covering course costs and boosting the number of registered nurses
- $12,000 scholarships to support training and employment of 100 new Nurse Practitioners in both acute and community settings
- More than $20 million to provide more support to the growing numbers of graduates and postgraduates as they transition to working in our hospitals – ensuring they have access to the clincial educators, preceptors and study time they need.
In the past eight years, the number of nurses in the public system has risen by more than 26 per cent – increasing by 9,400 to more than 45,000 nurses. The Labor Government has overseen a net increase of more than 22,000 healthcare workers in the system since 2014 – up by 27.6 per cent.
