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Your Stories
This is where we tell your stories, cover topical issues and promote meaningful initiatives
Interested in sharing your experience of working in remote health? Perhaps there is a topic that you would like to see covered in the CRANAplus Magazine? Get in touch with your story or suggestion at communications@CRANAplus.org.au
Melioidosis – and its Wet Season connection
Dr Ella Meumann from Menzies School of Health Research discusses melioidosis, a predominantly wet season disease caused by the soil-dwelling bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei. Ella works with…
Empowering child nutrition
It’s not enough to tell parents to feed their children healthy food, says nutrition expert Anthea Brand. Primary health care nurses also need to look for ways to empower healthy eating – by targeting…
CRANAplus launches Mirii Course designed for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioners and Workers
Our brand new CRANAplus Mirii Course is designed to provide Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioners and Workers with the skills to effectively use clinical care manuals and…
Converse Culture Shock – Unaccustomed to the familiar
When you return from a stint in a remote community, home life can suddenly seem unfamiliar, write CRANAplus Members Ms M Press and Ms R Caine. Most of us recognise culture shock as a condition…
Remote child health: a later transition
Child Health nurse and long-time CRANAplus Member Dianne Paul, now 72, describes herself as a ‘late starter to remote’ and yet despite retiring from nursing almost a year ago, still regularly finds…
Celebrating our 2022 Aurora Award Winner Lynette Byers
2022 Aurora Award recipient, Lynette (Lyn) Byers, who works as a Clinical Nurse Consultant with Nganampa Health Council in the APY Lands and volunteers on various boards and committees related to…
Quality and safety superstar: Lorraine Harry
This year’s recipient of the Excellence in Remote and Isolated Health Practice Award is Quality & Safety Officer at Mala’la Aboriginal Health Service, Lorraine Harry. Here, she discusses…
2022 Ray Wyeth Early to Remote Practice Award recipient Lorraine Woods
The recipient of the Ray Wyeth Early to Remote Practice Award, Lorraine Woods, transitioned to remote health in 2021, joining the new Palm Cockatoo Midwifery Group Practice in Weipa, Cape York. She…
Addressing inequity in skin cancer detection
South Australian nurses will have the chance to lead skin cancer detection at numerous pop-up screening clinics across the state in 2023/2024, as part of Project Check Mate, a newly funded pilot…
Japanese Encephalitis Virus’ Australian arrival
Historically a condition of Asia and the Pacific, the mosquito-borne Japanese Encephalitis Virus (JEV) entered Australia’s consciousness in February 2021 with a fatal, locally acquired infection. In…
Your contraception questions answered
The new Australian Contraception and Abortion Primary Care Practitioner Community of Practice (AusCAPPS) is designed to support your clinical practice in women’s sexual and reproductive health care,…
From EN to RN — 3 stories
In 2022, CRANAplus administered Country Women’s Association Rural and Remote Nursing/Midwifery Professional Development grants. Three Enrolled Nurses who successfully applied relate here how the…
The case for place-based care as a remote area nurse
Unique personal and professional rewards await those who live and work in remote communities, says RN and CRANAplus Nursing and Midwifery Roundtable member, Katie Pennington. These include…
Self-collection HPV testing in remote Australia
Testing for HPV using self-collection can increase our ability to eradicate cervical cancer by 2035, writes Carina Brown RM, Clinical Workforce Educator, SHINE SA.
Kidney Transplant Yarning in Queensland
Gary Torrens, clinical nurse consultant at Princess Alexandra Hospital, has been part of a $1 million national initiative to counteract barriers for Indigenous dialysis patients getting on the kidney…
Introducing one of our newest Board Members, Danielle Causer
At the CRANAplus Annual General Meeting in October, Danielle Causer was voted in as one of two of CRANAplus’ newest Board Members, along with Ann Aitken. As Executive Director (ED) of Nursing for…
Facilitator spotlight: Sharon Gibbens
RN and RM Sharon Gibbens decided to facilitate courses for CRANAplus because of her passion for two-way learning and her recognition of the advanced skills required in pre-retrieval.
Student story: Learning, walking and living on Mparntwe Country
Occupational therapy student Annabelle Keynes recounts her dream placement at Purple House in Mparntwe, Alice Springs; an experience she describes as ‘immersive and affirming’. From small acts of…
Student story: Consolidating skills in ED
Edith Cowan University undergraduate nursing student Chris Mattiaccio escaped a cold wet winter to undertake an experience of a lifetime in WA’s northwest. There he found blowholes and breathtaking…
Bush Support Line team undertake SafeSide suicide prevention training
Our Bush Support Line team, consisting of both CRANAplus senior psychologists and out-of-hours psychologists, share a wealth of clinical experience from having lived and worked across rural and…
A new way to access support — CRANAcast: Supporting your Wellbeing
Kristy Hill, Manager Education and Resources Mental Health and Wellbeing Services at CRANAplus, introduces CRANAcast: Supporting your Wellbeing – a new free podcast designed to support the mental…
2022 CRANAplus Conference overview
Over 200 delegates from around the country gathered in Adelaide from 4–6 October for two and a half days of highly productive networking, knowledge-sharing and inspiration.
An exhibitor’s perspective — 2022 CRANAplus Conference
In October 2022, CareSearch returned to face-to-face conferences by attending the 39th CRANAplus Conference in Adelaide. Katrina Erny-Albrecht and Susan Gravier from CareSearch write about their…
The life and times of Credentialed Diabetes Educator, Kerri Rothery
Kerri Rothery was presented as a graduate at the 2022 CRANAplus Conference, for having completed a Master of Remote and Indigenous Health through Flinders University. We catch up with Kerri to…
2022 Gayle Woodford Scholarship recipient Emily Evans
Registered Nurse Emily Evans describes winning this year’s Gayle Woodford Memorial Scholarship as a great honour and a career game changer.
Signs of success in palliative care
To be able to die in a place of your choosing is a key indicator of the success of a palliative care service. In Broken Hill the percentage is 98 per cent – which is just one reason to join the…
Pandemic spotlights emerging nursing workforce in the NT
Angela Sheedy’s time at the Howard Springs quarantine facility during the pandemic has got her reflecting on the untapped skills of student and newly-qualified nurses in Australia prior to the…
CRANAplus Fellow in Focus: Sally Johnson
Fellow in Focus, from the August 2022 edition of the CRANAplus magazine, is Sally Johnson who, at 81, claims to be ‘absolutely retired’ but she still has ideas for CRANAplus, which she was…
Member Vivienne Fazulla — Nurse of the Year, NSW Far West LHD
Longstanding CRANAplus Member and attendee at the inaugural CRANAplus Conference in Alice Springs in 1983, Vivienne (Viv) Fazulla, won the NSW Far West Local Health District Award for Nurse of the…
Introducing the new Federal Minister for Health and Aged Care, the Hon Mark Butler MP
The Hon Mark Butler MP was sworn in as the Federal Minister for Health and Aged Care on 1 June 2022. CRANAplus catches up with the Minister to discuss nursing workforce sustainability, safety and…
Post-disaster mental health support
Cath Walker, Senior Psychologist with the CRANAplus Bush Support Line, has this June been awarded a National Emergency Medal for her work in Mallacoota, Victoria following the devastating Black…
CRANAplus launches its inaugural Remote Area Nursing Pathway Program
This July, CRANAplus launched its inaugural Remote Area Nursing Pathway Program. The nine-month program is supporting four CRANAplus Members to build clinical skills, resilience, and cultural safety…
Darwin’s cancer care team wins top award
“Winning the team section in this year’s Northern Territory Nursing and Midwifery Excellence Awards this May illustrates how well the Alan Walker Cancer Care Centre at Royal Darwin Hospital pulls…
Making the most of working in remote communities
Registered Nurse/Nurse Practitioner Chris Birch, from the CRANAplus Nursing & Midwifery Roundtable, shares a few tips to help health workers get the most out of working in remote communities.
2022 CRANAplus Conference preview
Discover the speakers, exhibition space, and social opportunities that await at the 39th Annual CRANAplus Conference in Adelaide this 4–6 October.
CRANAcast taster: Episode five with Dallas McKeown
In episode five of CRANAcast, Dallas McKeown, Executive Director First Peoples’ Strategies at CRANAplus and proud Aboriginal woman of the Yuwaalaraay nation, shares her journey from EN to her current…
Readiness for rural and remote healthcare settings
Being prepared is the key to working remotely, according to CRANAplus course facilitator, Registered Nurse Mark Dunn.
Student story: Tess’s outback adventure
At first, flooding cuts Tess Wallace off from her clinical placement in Alice Springs Hospital, but after undertaking an outback journey involving joeys, truckers, and mates from her childhood, she…
Student story: ICU nursing in Alice Springs
CDU student Madaleine Ellsmore’s placement in Alice Springs ICU allowed her to familiarise with new interventions, participate in difficult family discussions, learn from skilled mentors — and even…
CRANAplus’ evolving Mental Health and Wellbeing service
Executive Director, Mental Health and Wellbeing, Pamela Edwards, discusses the value of wellbeing workshops, the need to support the families of remote health workers, and new wellbeing resources you…
Critical Conversations — Free online course
A new, free, interactive online course called ‘Critical Conversations’ is available on the CRANAplus website. It prepares the workforce to navigate conversations with people who need support,…
Face-to-face workshops back in full force
CRANAplus Clinical Education Manager Leanne Laurie discusses how COVID-19 has evolved our course delivery, the enduring popularity of face-to-face courses, course updates and exciting conference…
New addition — Paediatric Advanced Life Support 101
CRANAplus has added Paediatric Advanced Life Support to its Paediatric Emergency Care course, preparing participants to deliver high-quality care to paediatric arrest patients.
MMM: What is it and why does it matter?
The Modified Monash Model (MMM) is the official method for classifying locations as cities, rural, remote, or very remote, writes CRANAplus Professional Officer Michelle Mason. Do you know how your…
Gaining skills through grants — 3 stories
Gaining skills, preparing to return to clinical practice, maintaining the remote skill set: these are some of the benefits made possible by Nurses Memorial Foundation of SA Grants through CRANAplus.…
Support key to WA’s Transition to Practice program
Making the transition from city and regional hospital settings to rural and remote health practice offers huge benefits to career nurses and midwives. But the experience can leave nurses, especially…
Could it be sepsis? The first national standard of care for sepsis patients
The first national standard of care for sepsis patients has been released in Australia, aiming to improve the recognition, treatment and management of the condition which is the body’s…
Healthy mums and babies
At our 39th Annual Conference, Co-Director of the Molly Wardaguga Research Centre and CRANAplus Fellow Sue Kildea will be discussing the state of maternity services in remote Australia and necessary…
Surviving extreme heat
2022 CRANAplus Conference invited speaker Dr Simon Quilty discusses how increased temperatures are impacting remote communities and what Aboriginal culture can teach non-Indigenous Australians about…
Five things you should know about RHD
The Rheumatic Heart Disease Endgame Strategy launched at the end of 2020. Some jurisdictions are now developing and launching their own RHD Action Plans. With the goal of eliminating RHD by 2031, we…
Ready for a Mental Health Emergency
By gaining skills in assessment, intervention, and referral, remote area nurses and health practitioners can drive positive outcomes when clients present with mental illness or severe distress, and…
Remembering Ray Wyeth
On October 11 2021, Nurse and Midwife Raymond Clifford Wyeth tragically lost his life while working in an ambulance in Stanwell, Central Queensland, along with the patient he was caring for. Ray’s…
Singing from the same song book
A stalwart in the remote nursing policy space, Heather Keighley joined CRANAplus as Senior Policy Adviser in December 2021. She discusses policy issues affecting remote area nursing, collaborating…
COVID-19 Safety on CRANAplus Courses
Deputy CEO and Executive Director of Education, Amelia Druhan, outlines CRANAplus’ COVIDsafe protocols for course delivery. Designed to keep the workforce and vulnerable communities safe, these…
2021 Membership Survey results: listening to your voice
The results of the 2021 CRANAplus Membership Survey are in. Find out why your colleagues stay remote, how COVID-19 has affected the workforce, and the advocacy priorities identified by our…
From ED to PHC: Leonie’s Leap of Faith
Leonie Higgs made a ‘leap of faith’ into remote health in late 2021 when she took a primary health care position in Cape York. We caught up with her in January to discuss her new sense of purpose,…
Improving safety in remote clinics: a Q&A with Laura Wright
RN and research student Laura Wright discusses the findings of The Remote Area Safety Project, her mixed methods study involving a literature review, survey, interviews, and policy analysis. What are…
Celebrating the life of NP Cathy Woods
Michelle Dowden recalls her wonderful Galiwin’ku Island colleague, Cathy Woods, who passed away in 2021 but who lives on in treasured memories of distributing ice-cream on Boxing Day and 3am debriefs…
Student Story: Immersion in Emergency
Lucas Revell from Edith Cowan Uni reflects on his month in Esperance, spent consolidating his emergency nursing skills by facing new presentations – including septic shock and mastocytosis – and…
Student Story: Building clinical reasoning in a less critical environment
Days spent gaining skills in venepuncture, arrhythmias, and wound care. Nights spent enjoying the Territory’s best chicken wings and cooling down in the local swimming pool with friends. Charles…
Fellow in Focus: Kathryn Zeitz
Kathryn Zeitz, an avid sponsor of the CRANAplus scholarship program to fund remote placements for health students, has fond memories of discovering the existence of our organisation back in 1998.
Moral injury and the COVID-19 pandemic
Have the pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic forced you to do things at work that go against your moral principles? You may be experiencing moral injury and its symptoms of guilt, anger, and…
MEC course updates incoming
A recent survey of Maternity Emergency Care (MEC) course participants is guiding updates to CRANAplus’ MEC Program. Using the feedback you provided, the Education Team are now busy updating the…
End of an Era: Farewell to Long-time Facilitator, Rosemary Moyle
A facilitator on the CRANAplus REC Course since the very beginning, Rosemary Moyle continued to bring her wide-ranging experience to CRANAplus courses until 2021. As she hangs up the boots, Rosemary…
Let’s CHAT about Dementia
The Let’s CHAT Dementia research project is set to drive research-informed best practice dementia care for Indigenous Australians living in rural and remote areas. Dallas McKeown, who is a member of…
SMS 4 Dads heads to rural and remote Australia
The call is out to all rural and remote health workers to spread the word to new dads and dads-to-be about a free text-based service designed especially for them.
Being an AHP during the pandemic
Geoffrey Ganambarr from the Marthakal Homelands Health Service has been an Aboriginal Health Practitioner for 11 years. His challenging role involves being the first point of contact and providing…
How is stroke retrieval changing?
“For the first time in Australia’s history, the Stroke Alliance aims to close the health care gap in providing stroke care across our vast continent,” says Skye Coote (NP, CCRN, MN, NVRN-BC,…
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Myth Busting with NOFASD Australia
CRANAplus catches up with Robyn Smith, the Helpline Manager for the National Organisation for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (NOFASD), to tackle four common Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder myths.
New resources to improve Quality Use of Medicines
NPS MedicineWise has just released three new resources to make it easier to follow a quality use of medicines (QUM) approach and reduce pressure on nurses moving between communities.
Student story: earning independence
University of Notre Dame nursing student Jennifer Kuppens discusses how her placement in Kununurra District Hospital improved her time-management skills, confidence and ability to prioritise…
Student story: my intrastate odyssey
University of Wollongong Nutrition and Dietetics student Gynette Reyneke recalls her placement in Broken Hill. A warm welcome, heritage and culture, and rewarding project work awaited her in the far…
Equal opportunities needed for all health students
Two thirds of nursing students never had the opportunity to complete a rural or remote placement, recent National Rural Health Student Network (NRHSN) research has shown. NRHSN Chair Jean-Baptiste…
Kellie Kerin: Upfront about Trauma, Turnover & Culture Shock
Short-lived attention to workplace safety for nurses and midwives in remote settings is nothing new. If RN Kellie Kerin, the NT Indigenous representative on the CRANAplus Nursing and Midwifery…
Meet 2022 OAM, Vicki O’Donnell from Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Services
Vicki O’Donnell, a Nyikina Mangala woman from Derby in Western Australia, is the third person in her family to receive the OAM for community work. Here she talks about the influence of her family and…
Improve your triage competency, online
CRANAplus recently launched Triage Emergency Care Online, a scheduled online course that makes triage competency attainable to remote health professionals who are affected by COVID-19 restrictions or…
New tool to fight infection in the tropics
Tropical areas across the top of Australia have a very high rate of potentially dangerous skin and other infections – and a very low level of information to support clinicians in treating these…
Neuroprotective developmental care
Dr Pamela Douglas, the Medical Director of Possums & Co., discusses the Neuroprotective Developmental Care Accreditation Pathway, for which the charity is offering 300 scholarships. She also…
Why we stay and why we leave
As part of her Flinders University Master’s of Remote and Indigenous Health, RN Jacki Argent interviewed seven experienced RANs for her study ‘Why we stay or leave and what we value: a qualitative…
A tropical transition to remote
We catch up with Madison Clark, RN with the Torres and Cape Hospital and Health Service, to find out what it’s like to work near ‘the most beautiful beaches’, witness the impacts of health promotion…
Wound care training in remote NT
The Australasian Foundation for Plastic Surgery has conducted 20 wound care workshops and counting in the Top End, paving the way for faster-healing wounds, fewer infections, and locally provided…
Roundtable Round-up: Nurse Practitioner Candidate Emma Collins
The CRANAplus Nursing and Midwifery Roundtable discusses and reports on key issues affecting rural/remote health. Roundtable Member, Nurse Practitioner Candidate and Nurse Manager Emma Collins from…
Meet 2021 Collaborative Team Award Winners, the Midwifery Unit of the Coomealla Health Aboriginal Corporation
In the Far West region of New South Wales, Coomealla Health Aboriginal Corporation have been doing things differently. Midwife Debbie Towns discusses their innovative transition to a digital…
Meet 2021 Excellence in Research and/or Education Award Winner, Dr Kylie McCullough
Hear from Dr Kylie McCullough, lecturer at Edith Cowan University in Perth, on her early experiences in Kakadu, how they shaped her research interests, and how research into remote area nursing is…
Meet 2021 Excellence in Remote and Isolated Health Practice Award Winner, Helen Parker
Child Health Nurse with Mala'la Health Service, Helen Parker, has worked in Kenya, Saudi Arabia, and widely through the Top End. She reflects on becoming a nurse practitioner, a RAN's wide scope of…
Meet 2021 Aurora Award Winner, Terrie ‘Tess’ Ivanhoe
Tess Ivanhoe, Nurse Practitioner on the Chronic Disease Program at Nganampa Health Council, discusses how localised care can change health outcomes, the importance of understanding the community you…
Our new Acknowledgment of Country
Acknowledging Australia’s First Peoples is an obligation that CRANAplus embraces with deep commitment. Under the leadership of CRANAplus’ inaugural Executive Director of First Peoples’ Strategies,…
Just like the real thing: the new simulation tech changing how we learn
The more life-like a training scenario, the more meaningful the learning experience. CRANAplus constantly keeps abreast of the latest developments in simulation technology and a few recent…
Working through the bushfires: a psychologist’s experiences
Bush Support Line Manager Stephanie Cooper reflects on her experiences living and working on New South Wales’ south coast during the 2019/2020 bushfire season. As her story shows, even those with…
Eating well on the job: 9 nutrition tips
CRANAplus Senior Psychologist Nicole Jeffery-Dawes explains the connection between nutrition, gut health and wellbeing, and identifies nine ways to improve what you’re eating and drinking when…
Climate change and health
With a recent survey finding that more than half of the Australian health workforce are alarmed by how climate change is impacting health, CRANAplus is increasingly advocating for meaningful action.
Helping people become ‘health seekers’
Lesley Salem became Australia’s first Indigenous Nurse Practitioner 19 years ago. Now, she works in Doomadgee in Far North Western Queensland where the 2017-founded primary health care service is…
Student Story: From Katherine to Port Augusta
Kelly Ramsdale recollects the memorable moments from her professional experience placements – such as learning traditional weaving and the removal of a fist-sized carbuncle – and highlights the…
Student Story: Paramedicine, 750km from home
On the wide open plains of southwestern Queensland, hospitals and outside help may be far away. Nicolas Stanford reflects on his time as student paramedic on Charleville Station, the importance of…
Student Story: Lightening the Burden
Ballarat-based nursing student Molly Gladman’s four-week placement in Tennant Creek saw her gain experience in the general ward, midwifery clinic, renal dialysis unit, and GP clinic. Confronted by…
Fellow in Focus: Working for a fair and equitable society
Dr Scott Davis, a Fellow of CRANAplus, has worked in remote health for 30 years across the north of Australia and internationally, always with an eye on creating opportunities to support the…
CRANAplus People Power: Our three new Remote Clinical Educators
Meet Nicole Smith, Michelle Price and Leanne Laurie, three new CRANAplus Remote Clinical Educators who started in the last half of 2021. We discuss their backgrounds, what makes them tick, and the…
Facilitating courses is Ken’s passion
Ken Iles has participated in rescues following natural disasters, been a stand-by paramedic for your favourite reality TV show, and facilitated CRANAplus courses for 14 years. But it’s the remote…
Getting the #JabDone with Wuchopperen
Far North Queensland’s Wuchopperen Health Service discusses its unique engagement-focused approach to the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out, which includes community events, pop-up clinics and creating…
Meet the 2021 Gayle Woodford Scholarship Recipient
This year’s successful applicant for the Gayle Woodford Memorial Scholarship is Katie Yeomans, a proud Aboriginal Nurse of the Ngarigo Nation. A patient accumulator of the necessary experience, Ms…
Meet new CRANAplus Board Member, Naomi Zaro
At the CRANAplus Annual General Meeting in October, Naomi Zaro was voted in as the organisation’s newest Board Member. A proud Torres Strait Islander woman, Ms Zaro is eager to support the…
Occupational therapy in the Red Centre
Jordyn Iovino reflects on her clinical placement with Desert Therapy in Alice Springs and discusses how she has grown as a professional through increased cultural awareness.
Supporting farmers in remote Gippsland, Victoria
The Victorian Government announced funding for a Bush Nursing Pilot project this June. We catch up with Sarah Carr from Dargo Bush Nursing Centre to find out how the project is being implemented and…
Providing good preconception and antenatal care in rural and remote
Judy Burke has been working as the women’s and maternal health coordinator at Katherine West Health Board for the past two years.
Meet Deputy National Rural Health Commissioner, Adjunct Prof. Shelley Nowlan
Primary healthcare, women’s health, rural nursing, rural midwifery, and shining a light on nursing in the bush are key priorities set by the new Deputy National Rural Health Commissioner.
Vaccination – speak up loudly, reasonably and often
The awards just keep coming for Professor Sabina Knight, a key player in the creation of the Council of Remote Area Nurses of Australia (CRANA) back in 1983, the organisation that led to CRANAplus in…
From Cairns with love
Developing skills in the general medical ward and during home visits and experiencing Cairns by pushbike made this clinical placement away from her kids worthwhile for Nicola Dolan – and allowed her…
Health at great heights
Third-year nursing student Sarah Horn took to the air during her clinical placement at RFDS’ Meekatharra base. Despite the challenges of working at altitude and in intense heat, learning cultural and…
A welcome change of pace
Maigan Marrocco headed to Lake Grace in south-west WA to undertake her stage three nursing placement, with the financial assistance of a CRANAplus sponsored Undergraduate Remote Placement…
Fellow in focus: learning how to listen
Cross-cultural nursing, and certainly Remote Area Nursing (RAN), were basically unheard of in Australia when Registered Nurse Toni Dowd began practising in the late 1970s.
Facilitator spotlight: following in family footsteps
Catch up with Keppel Schafer, CRANAplus Facilitator since 2011. Keppel followed his grandmother’s steps into healthcare and is passionate about the transition from paper-based to digital…
You don’t know what you don’t know
Nurse Practitioner Lynette Byers, now in her third term on the CRANAplus Board, has seen many changes in the past nine years. Here she talks about her passion for education.
Fellow in Focus: Turning up at the coal face
Each edition of the magazine, we talk to a Fellow of CRANAplus, people who work tirelessly in their roles in rural and remote health and who we have recognised for their efforts. This month we…
A dream come true — eventually
CRANAplus facilitator Kathy Arthurs always wanted to be a nurse and to work for the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS). She studied nursing straight from school, in the days of hospital training. But…
