Student nurses enjoying NSRP rural placements

Three nursing students, Srijana Mishri, Shirin Thapa and Seema Tamang, of Torrens University (NSW), have become the first to take part in the Nurse Student Rural Placement (NSRP) Project in NSW, a partnership delivered by RDN and the Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association (APNA) to help address nurse workforce shortages by expanding rural primary health care clinical placements for nursing students. 

The students are currently on placement in Tamworth, with a further two students set to undergo their placements in Mittagong and Coffs Harbour this August. 

The project focuses on providing a high-quality placement experience, supporting nursing students to positively discover and assess the possibilities of a rural primary health care nursing career. Learning in a small ratio environment (usually 1:1) and under the supervision of experienced Registered Nurses and/or Nurse Practitioners, student nurses have the opportunity to master their clinical skills and acquire professional competencies specific to the role of a primary health care nurse. 

The NSRP Project works in collaboration with a number of Australian universities and education providers, supporting them to place 1st, 2nd and 3rd year nursing students, as well as Post-Graduate and Master of Nursing (Nurse Practitioner) students in a range of quality primary health care settings. 

To date, there are 40 primary health care sites across rural NSW who are taking part in this project. If you are interested in being a part of this project, please visit our website to learn more 

“Providing a high-quality placement experience has the potential to diversify students learning, build a sense of belonging to the local community, and increase autonomy and self-confidence,” says Project-Lead Kellie Ross. “It is immersive rural placement experiences like this, that support and enable nursing students to see this as a viable, diverse and attractive career path following graduation,” says Kellie. 

To learn more about the NSRP Project, please follow this link  or contact RDN’s Project Lead Kellie Ross, via email: nursingplacements@nswrdn.com.au.