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Nursing to the front
Nursing emerges as top career choice .
By NCA NewsWire
Interest in nursing has surged despite the pandemic , with the career choice topping other fields in applications received by five out of nine Victorian public universities .
A bachelor ’ s degree in nursing is the prime choice for students applying to
Australian Catholic University , Deakin University , Federation University Australia , La Trobe University and Victoria University , according to the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre data .
Deakin University has had the highest number of nurse aspirants , with general nursing drawing 7987 applicants , followed by Australian Catholic University with 4947 , La Trobe University with 2652 and Victoria University with 1427 .
The VTAC data does not include late applications , but provides a first glance at what courses are shaping to be the most popular in 2022 .
Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation state secretary Lisa Fitzpatrick said the pandemic had shifted nursing to “ the forefront of people ’ s minds ”.
“ It ’ s recognition of what such an amazing contribution nurses have made during the last two years with the pandemic ,” Fitzpatrick told 3AW radio .
“ It ’ s been at the forefront of people ’ s minds and I think people have a great understanding of the work they have done , whether it be looking after people who are unwell , vaccinating the community , it ’ s very exciting to see .
“ All of those students , in three years ’ time , will be welcomed with very open arms .”
Fitzpatrick said while nursing had always been popular , the last two years had been “ very different ”.
“[ It ’ s ] changed us in many ways and hopefully made us appreciate some of the smaller things in life that we took for granted ,” she said . ■
‘ I don ’ t recognise myself ’
Nurse reveals the horrifying effects of long-COVID .
By NCA NewsWire
A
Tasmanian nurse who contracted Covid-19 last year has detailed how drastically her life has changed since recovering from the virus .
Department of Public Health Secretary Kathrine Morgan-Wicks told reporters that the woman contacted her while in lockdown .
The nurse ’ s email was read aloud at a press conference because she wanted to share her story to try and encourage more people to protect themselves by getting vaccinated .
The woman aged in her 50s said she never had any health issues in the past , wasn ’ t on any medication and rarely used paracetamol .
But now , the nurse said she has a large list of issues including fatigues like “ nothing she ’ d experienced before ”, constant headaches that feel like her head is “ being crushed ” and nerve pain that makes her skin feel like its “ burning ”.
“ When you ’ re tired , you have a good sleep and feel better but I never feel better ,” her email read .
“ The scariest issues I have is my diagnosed cognitive impairment . I have problems keeping up with everyday conversations and keeping up with my peers .
“ Covid changed my life so much so that some days I don ’ t recognise myself .”
The nurse said there was no pleasure in anything she ate or drank because she also lost her sense of taste and smell .
“ I understand some people are hesitant about vaccination and what they think it can do to their health . I had those same feelings ,” her email said .
“ But I had it and all I want is for people to seriously think about this because I wouldn ’ t want anyone to end up like me or feel the guilt for giving it to someone else .” ■
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