Tasmanian nurses and midwives will soar new heights as they embark on a new leadership pilot program.
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The Department of Health's inaugural Nursing and Midwifery Mid-Career Leadership program has taken on 26 nurses and midwives from across the state, with the aim of developing their leadership potential.
Pandemic preparedness response project nurse Sarah Mineall is one of the nominated nurses. She said she looked forward to supporting her team in the "ever evolving" field.
"You come into these leadership roles, and there might not be a lot of support. So this is a way to support people and to meet other people that are going through a similar phase in their careers as well," she said.
Ms Mineall has a Master of Clinical Nursing, Nursing Honours, and a Certificate of Health Leadership. Prior to her current role, she worked in the Intensive Care Unit in research.
Ms Mineall said good clinical leadership within the nursing workforce promoted better outcomes for patients, and improved culture and clinician wellbeing.
"I've done some wonderful things in my career, and this is just making it even better ... Hopefully, I can support others and they can have their journey as well," she said.
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Tasmanian Health Service-North pandemic response and preparedness nursing director Jan Coull said Ms Mineall's leadership skills came to the fore during the pandemic.
"Sarah set up a whole new service for Northern Tasmania in the Coach House," she said.
"She's demonstrated to the whole hospital that she's a doer, that she gets things done. She's got a very gentle caring nature with people, and that's how she shows her leadership qualities.
"I think this will help her confidence. She's really gained confidence in what she's doing from a logistics perspective, but I think this will help her gain confidence in her management of staff ... and in developing culture within workforces."
Department of Health secretary Kathrine Morgan-Wicks said the program, developed in collaboration with the University of Tasmania, was an investment in the state's future nursing and midwifery leaders.
"As the largest component of the health workforce, nursing and midwifery leaders are cornerstone to the safety and quality of healthcare in Tasmania," she said.
Ms Morgan-Wicks said the program would involve both online modules and face-to-face intensives.
After the pilot, the program will run twice yearly. It is funded under the Department of Health's Health Workforce 2040 Strategy.
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