workforce
As a result of the uncompleted work, and with no consideration
for Oliver’s overall workload and his novice status, he was not
given any further shifts. He said: “I was not alone in this situation,
as other graduates had faced the same fate.”
He went on to comment: “I felt really let down and really
disappointed, and felt very disillusioned. I am rethinking my career
and if I should look for something else.”
Oliver said finding a nursing position, as a new GRN, was very
difficult. “Employers seem to seek out more-experienced nurses
for permanent roles and use the inexperienced nurses as casual
relief as a last resort.
“I personally feel that in order to support myself and a family in
the future, if this is the problem you face when entering the field
of nursing, then it is quite discouraging. It has made me feel that
nursing isn’t a stable career option and that I may need to consider
other opportunities.”
At the six-month post-RN-registration contact, Oliver
acknowledged that he had persevered in his quest to gain a
GRN program, remarking: “I felt that after my aged care RN
experience, the only way I would find the support needed to
transition into a competent RN, and then be able to obtain
a permanent position within nursing, was through doing a
GRN program.”
On his first attempt, he was given an interview but was not
successful, due to very limited graduate positions, but he was
offered a place on his second attempt.
Oliver said: “I am excited and happy about this opportunity but a
bit disappointed it will be nearly a full year before I gain entry into a
GRN program.”
He discussed his experience and voiced his disappointment at
the lack of opportunities for new graduates who are unable to
obtain entry into GRN programs in order to find a job for which
they have been trained. He further reiterated that there is a very
unrealistic view of what new GRNs should be able to do as they
enter their new career environment.
The challenging situation faced by Oliver and James in finding
employment due to their novice RN status and lack of clinical
nursing experience is a phenomenon common across the
Australian nursing workforce.
The concerns about decreased employment opportunities for
Australian graduate nurses and health employers’ tendency to
employ 457 visa RNs are outlined in the March 2016 Senate report,
A National Disgrace: The Exploitation of Temporary Work Visa
Holders. The report highlights the lack of transition support as a major
issue, which is consistent with the experiences of James and Oliver.
New GRNs require access to the professional practice
environment to gain RN experience with given time to synthesise
their nursing theory to practice. Therefore, the challenge to
reduce graduate nurses’ frustration in gaining registered nurse
experience requires health industry financial investment for GRN
professional support and the opportunity for successful transition
into the professional-practice environment with gainful nursing
employment are paramount.
Moreover, it can be argued that there is a need to establish
quarantined graduate registered nurse positions within the
health environment and to invest in nurse leadership in the form
of mentor support and role modelling supportive transition for
novice nurses in professional practice. ■
Dianne Juliff is a nursing PhD candidate at the University of
Notre Dame Australia, Fremantle.
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