Nationals Proposed Bonding Measures a Good Start for Nursing Graduates

19 September 2008

The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) is welcoming the announcement by National of a bonding scheme for graduate nurses but is concerned that the proposal will only benefit a very small group of nurses. Much more needs to be done to address the workforce recruitment and retention issues.

The chairperson of the NZNO National Student Unit, Michelle Wipiiti is concerned that the policy does not go far enough “Student debt is a tremendous concern to student nurses and to those recently graduated. There is some merit in what National has proposed but there needs to be more done to ensure that more young people are attracted to the nursing profession.”

“Nurses should not have to incur significant debt in order to deliver care to our communities. The fairest system would be free tertiary education. What National is suggesting would only benefit around 250 nurses a year – this is from a pool of approximately 1400 nurses who complete their training annually. What about the other 1150 graduate nurses?” Wipiiti said.

Professional Nursing Advisor Suzanne Rolls comments “Ensuring funding for the Nursing Entry (NETP) programmes is also an essential aspect to ensuring the safe practice of new graduates. National needs to go further to ensure that nurses are receiving all the training that they require when they first enter the workforce.”

ENDS