Agency nursing: The next big thing?
BY SARA TEMPLETON
 There
will always be a need for nurses. And at present, the demand
for nurses in Australia is increasing, and isn't likely to
drop as the population ages and the birthrate decreases.
While there will always be work for nurses, both nationally
and internationally, it's interesting to note that the boom
sector in the nursing industry is actually in contract nursing.
According to the ANF (Australian Nursing Federation) contract
nursing is essentially where a nurse will register or sign
up with an agency or similar group, leaving details such as
when they can work.
Nurses are then contacted and offered shift work, and while
this area of nursing used to be a niche pursuit, while full-time
nurses were in the majority, things are slowly starting to
change.
The architypal contract or agency nurse used to be women
and men who were after a second family income, or recent mothers
and fathers who wanted to spend more time with their family
but still wanted to work a little bit, and who made use of
the more casual, or flexible work that such agency jobs could
offer.
Casual nurses are now in high demand, particularly, for instance,
those with ICU experience. Some agencies are reportedly attracting
more vacancies than they can fill and, according to an article
written in the Brisbane-based Courier
Mail, Acclaim Recruitment boss Helen Bichel said: "Our
nurses let us know when they're available, which can be anything
from permanent to just one or two shifts per week.
"Casual nurses often have a high level of expertise
obtained through working in different environments and dealing
with a wide variety of situations. This makes them very adaptable
and attractive to employers."
While many employers are keen for the experience offered
by the growing number of agency-contracted nurses, the attraction
for the nurses themselves is also very appealing, with flexibility
being one of the more important aspects.
While hospitals are often traditionally associated with nurses,
there is also a burgeoning nursing sector in aged health care,
generally in retirement homes, and this isn't expected to
wane in future.
Moreover, the simple fact that registered nurses are among
the most highly sought after types of employee in Australia
means they have a lot of say in where they work, what hours
they work and what sort of duties they will be doing.
For more information on careers in nursing, see the links
below.
Links
Australian
Nursing Federation
Australian
Nursing Council
Nursing
Revew (independent publication)
Agencies
Nursing
Agency Australia
St. Judes
Nursing Agency
Australian
Nursing Agency
Critical
Care Nursing Agency
Overseas
Nurse (work/travel)
|
