Mackay Hospital and Health Service will welcome more than 60 registered nurses and midwives to start their careers at Mackay Base Hospital and rural facilities this year.
Chief Executive Jo Whitehead said the health service was thrilled to offer 67 placements to graduates, up from 53 in 2018.
“We are so pleased that even more nurses have chosen to launch their career with us this year,” Ms Whitehead said.
“Our graduate nurses are no strangers to the region with many of them being Mackay locals.
“This all forms part of our greater plan to “grow our own talent” and support Queensland Health’s commitment to provide jobs to locals and Queenslanders where possible. The Mackay Hospital and Health Service continues to support graduate registered nurses after their first year of professional practise with excellent retention rates.”
Competition for the coveted graduate positions was fierce with Mackay receiving 215 applications, of which 105 were interviewed before the final 67 were chosen.
Nurses will undertake post-graduate placements in two rotations across any of the 25 clinical areas in the Base Hospital including mental health, emergency, renal, medical, cardiac, surgical, oncology and theatres.
Fifty percent of this year’s post graduates will have the opportunity to work in one of our rural hospitals as part of their rotation. Applicants who are accepted to work in rural relief positions undergo a longer orientation and upskilling program.
“This includes time in the wound clinic, emergency department, medical and surgical wards to allow them to care for the wider range of patients they will see in a rural hospital,” she said.
Ms Whitehead said one of the benefits offered to nurses is specialised “on the job” clinical training together with the additional support of the post graduate program.
“Their graduate year is an opportunity to work in different areas of the hospitals and experience the variety of nursing that is available,” she said.
The majority of nurses come from CQUniversity and James Cook University.
The Mackay HHS nursing and midwifery post graduate program is 12 months in duration consisting of two (6 month) clinical rotations across Mackay Base Hospital and the seven rural hospitals.
