Charles Sturt University’s Faculty of Health has been awarded a $649 000 grant from the NSW Health Department to implement initiatives aimed at combating a predicted chronic shortage of mental health nurses.

The grant, one of the largest awarded, will also be used for projects aimed at boosting the profile of mental health nursing, particularly in rural and remote areas.

Dean of the Faculty of Health Studies, Professor David Battersby, said CSU was delighted to be assisting the NSW Health Department in its pro-active approach to advancing mental health nursing in NSW.

“The grant will enable the Faculty to appoint a Mental Health Nursing Clinical Co-ordinator, to provide undergraduate and postgraduate scholarships in mental health nursing and to develop a new Aboriginal mental health nursing course,” Professor Battersby said.

“These initiatives are likely to make a substantial difference to mental health nursing in regional and rural areas of NSW.”

The Head of the School of Nursing and Health Science at the CSU Bathurst Campus, Jan Allan, will coordinate the projects associated with the grant.
 
Ms Allan, a mental health nursing specialist, said the field is expected to face a chronic shortage over the next ten years, as 85 per cent of mental health nurses are due to retire over this time.

“A lot of leadership and experience in this field will be lost, as there will be no one to pass this information on if the current trend continues,” Ms Allan said.

Charles Sturt University already has a significant profile in the field of mental health nursing. All students in the undergraduate nursing courses at Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst, Dubbo and Wagga Wagga participate in mental health clinical placements as part of their course.

At the postgraduate level there is a range of courses in mental health nursing, including a course for those specialising in rural practice.