Practice nurses update skills
Practice nurses in East Gippsland had the opportunity to update skills at the first Practice Nurse Education Group (PNEG) program workshop in February.
The Practice Nurse Education Group program (based at the School of Rural Health – East Gippsland in Bairnsdale) has been running for the last three years. Designed to give medical practice nurses up-to-date training opportunities, the program is coordinated by Marnie Connolly (Year 4C academic coordinator in Bairnsdale). Participants travel from rural and remote areas of Gippsland to attend, so the workshops provide a positive networking opportunity as well.
February’s workshop focused on basic life support with theoretical and practical workshops which covered an update on Australian Resuscitation Council guidelines and CPR techniques for all age groups, automated external defibrillation (AED) and choking. Robyn Adams from the Gippsland and East Gippsland Aboriginal Cooperative joined Marnie in presenting February’s workshop.
The regular workshops are delivered with the support of local medical practitioners and nurse educators who run the topic discussions and instruction. Previous topics have included management of asthma, structured approach to psychiatric emergencies, and principles of diabetics and its management. Each workshop is evaluated and the feedback is taken into account in developing future workshops. Previous comments noted that the workshops provide positive reinforcement of existing knowledge and cover gaps in knowledge. SimMan received a special mention when he was introduced as a learning tool.