IF YOU know a nurse, today is the perfect day to say thank you.
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Today is International Nurses Day, recognising the care, dedication and vital work nurses do in the community.
Some 500 nurses celebrated the day at Wagga Base Hospital yesterday, learning they were soon to have the chance to further develop their skills.
Last week, Murrumbidgee Local Health District (MLHD) learnt it had been successful in gaining $255,000 in Health Workforce Australia funding to develop training packages to help registered and enrolled nurses.
It will see a study and training program put into place over 18 months to enable nurses to perform a wider range of treatments like suturing, basic plastering and ordering standard pathology and radiology tests, when patients arrive with less urgent conditions at the emergency department (ED).
The study and training, which is likely to begin in July, will not only give nurses added skills but free doctors up from more basic tasks to focus on serious cases, according to MLHD nursing manager for policy and practice Daniel McCluskie.
He said research would be conducted across the region to find gaps in staff skills, from which a development program would be designed.
In marking International Nurses Day, acting director of nursing and midwifery Carla Bailey urged residents to thank nurses for their contribution to health and improving the lives of others.
"These people are here working 24 hours a day and often see patients more than they see their own families," she said.
"This is a chance for us to say thank you for the efforts they make in getting people better."