ANMF (Vic Branch) has given members nearly $740,000 to support them to complete post-graduate education across 11 specialty nursing areas and midwifery in the 2021–22 fee grants round.
A total of 221 members, 62 from regional areas, received fee grants to complete education in preferred areas of practice including: addictive behaviours, aged care, critical care nursing, emergency, intensive care, palliative care, perioperative, renal, maternal and child health nursing, mental health, and midwifery. The Advanced Diploma of Nursing is also within ANMF’s preferred areas of practice for fee grants but there were no applicants pursuing this course of study.
The total of the 2021–22 fee grant round was the highest ANMF (Vic Branch) has offered since the grants round started in 2017–18, when $349,029 was distributed to 102 members for post-graduate education.
Among successful applicants, the most popular areas of study were intensive care (42 members), emergency nursing (36) and perioperative nursing (36). Thirty-one members received grants to study critical care nursing and 18 were pursuing further study in mental health. Twenty members, including six in regional areas, received grants to study midwifery.
Of the successful regional applicants, 27 per cent were studying critical care nursing and 22 per cent emergency nursing.
Since 2018 ANMF has provided 668 members with grants, totalling $2.6 million, towards their postgraduate and post-registration education.
The next fee grants round will open in January 2022.