The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) is welcoming yesterday’s announcement from the Minister of Health, that the governments newly formed Clinical Training Agency Board will have nurses represented on it.

The new national board has been formed with the goal of unifying the health workforce planning in New Zealand.

The board will consist of seven health sector experts, including Helen Pocknall, director of nursing at Wairarapa DHB, and Karen Roach, CEO Northland DHB, who will bring a nursing perspective to the group.

“Nurses are the biggest workforce within the health sector. It is both necessary and appropriate that our voice is included in any workforce planning and strategy agency,” NZNO President Nano Tunnicliff said.

“A key area which we will be expecting the board to deliver on is funding to support and encourage people into the nursing profession. We see this as a fundamental aspect of workforce unification and planning,” Tunnicliff said.

ENDS