Mrs Katie Pennington1, Dr Kim Clark, Professor Sabina Knight, Dr Fatima Yaqoot
1Edith Cowan University
Introduction: RNs play a critical role in enabling access to medicines in remote Australia and many nurses have long questioned the legally tenuous nature of their role with medicines. Registered Nurses in very remote Australia, medicines and the law was a mixed methods research project that commenced in 2018. Early results from the project highlighted that a significant proportion of participants, RNs who had worked in very remote Australia, were likely to have worked outside the law with regards to medications. This presentation details final project findings, project impact to date and summarises recommendations for future action.
What is happening in the Project: The project is now complete but the call to further action is strong. Final findings from the three major aspects of the project will be summarised; a comparative legislative review; a national survey of RNs in very remote Australia regarding their knowledge, attitudes and practices with regards to medication management and the law; and a systematic review of Australian literature regarding nurses, medication management and the law. Recommendations for individual, governmental, organisational and collective industry action will be presented.
Conclusion: RNs play a critical role in medication management and medication safety in very remote Australia where legislation impacts significantly on nurses and health service delivery. Little is formally known about the quality and safety of nurse-led medication management in very remote Australia. Legislative arrangements that are not fit-for-purpose continue to create vulnerabilities for patients and health professionals, contribute to workforce stress and perpetuate forms of systemic discrimination. A multi-faceted, nationally consistent approach is required to address the no-longer tenable status-quo.
Biography:
Katie is a Registered Nurse who currently works in primary health care settings in lutruwita and Tjuntjuntjara. She is committed to improving access to services and health outcomes in rural and remote Australia
Her experience in rural, remote and isolated health spans her entire career and she has worked in diverse healthcare environments from overseas military deployments, ICU, oncology, health research, immigration detention health services, remote Indigenous communities and small rural hospitals and multipurpose sites in beautiful Tasmania.
Katie holds a Bachelor of Nursing from the University of Tasmania, a Graduate Diploma in Remote Health Practice and a Graduate Certificate in Child and Family Health Nursing from Flinders University. This presentation reports findings from her recently completed Masters in Public Health (Research) project with Edith Cowan University.
E-mail: katieruthpennington@gmail.com