ANMF Mental Health Officer Donna Hansen-Vella at the Victorian Statewide Mental Health Practice Forum for Enrolled Nurses
The introduction of ratios in mental health high dependency units was a ‘historic event in my lifetime’, ANMF (Vic Branch) Mental Health Nursing Officer Donna Hansen-Vella told enrolled nurses at a mental health practice forum.
At the 2018 Victorian Statewide Mental Health Practice Forum for Enrolled Nurses, Ms Hansen-Vella took part in a panel discussion about the mental health enrolled nurse workforce.
Ms Hansen-Vella also gave an overview of ANMF’s work in mental health over the past year. She said the ANMF had ensured mental health services were central to an inquiry into perinatal services, as the first 1000 days of a person’s life are critical to mental wellbeing.
She also detailed ANMF’s work stopping the substitution of mental health nurses with non nurses and assisting psychiatric enrolled nurses (PEN) to overcome employers’ obstacles designed to prevent access to the classification PEN 3.
Speakers at the forum included Chief Mental Health Nurse for Victoria, Anna Love and Katherine Fairest, Graduate Nurse Coordinator/Training Consultant at North Western Mental Health.
