by sara.horsey on February 20, 2012
Re-registration time is just around the corner!
Are you running out of time to earn those 20 CPE points ?
With First Choice Care’s online learning opportunities provided by the Australian Nursing Federation, it could not be a better time to complete some education; further develop your skills as well as refreshing some existing skills. All education units completed through the ANF are reported directly to AHPRA – demonstrating directly to the registration board that you are continuing to maintain your educational requirements.
All Registered Nurses and Midwives require 20 hours (with documented evidence) of relevant professional development each year. Those practitioners with Scheduled Medicines Endorsements or Nurse/Midwive Practitioner Endorsement requiring at least 10 hours of professional education related directly to your endorsement.
One hour of active learning equals one CPD. Each nurse is responsible for calculating the hours of active learning completed each year.
Evidence of self-directed study must demonstrate that the Nurse or Midwife has;
- Identified and prioritised their learning needs
- Developed a learning plan based on the learning needs
- Participated in effective learning activities relevant to their learning needs.
- Reflected upon the value of the learning activity or the effect that the participation in the learning activity will have on their practise.
Participation of mandatory skills acquisition may be counted as CPD.
Remember; a number of nurses and midwives are selected each year for annual audit by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia to ensure standards are monitored.
If you require assistance with the maintenance of your education needs throughout the year please call Recruitment and one of our consultants can provide further guidance.
by sara.horsey on December 9, 2011
by FCC Team on October 31, 2011
We know that nurse’s availability can change at a moments notice.
So we’ve put our heads together and come up with what we feel is the best and more convenient way for our nurses to let us know when they’re available:
- Online at www.fcclive.com.au
- Call our Call Centre on 1300 307 241
- Via our very own iShift App (free and available in the App store)
Hope that helps!
The First Choice Care team
by FCC Team on October 10, 2011
We would like to say a big thank you to Julia Cleaver for her hard work at Holy Spirit Northside Hospital.
Julia has received some great feedback after her shift today.
Julia has only been with First Choice Care for a couple of months now and is already receiving great reviews and promoting First Choice Care in a positive light.
Congratulations Julia keep up the good work!
Regards
The First Choice Care team
by FCC Team on August 15, 2011
We’re always trying to think of better ways to make our nurses lives that much easier and your dealings with us more convenient.
To that end, we’ve had our team working hard on developing the iShift App.
It’s a mobile application that allows you to very quickly and easily let us know your shift availability from anywhere, at any time.
Currently compatible on:
- iPhones and
- Android phones
Screenshots of the iShift
Download Now – Absolutely Free
iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/ishift/id440473022
by FCC Team on August 11, 2011
Was chatting with one of our nurses today and she made a great point.
You see, this nurse used to have her own business and she can see the similarities between working for yourself and nursing.
Sunny days here at First Choice Care!
In nursing, she reasoned, there’s usually work available, but some times (like winter) have a lot more work than normal.
Her philosophy was that it’s better to “make hay whilst the sun shines”, so you can take it easy in the quieter months.
Lots Of Shifts Now Available
Not a bad analogy – and one that leads me into saying this:
We have lots (and lots) of shifts available at present, so if you want some of that hay give our Call Centre team a call on 1300 307 241 to let us know of your availability!
by FCC Team on May 3, 2011
As a clinical nurse working through an agency, the arrangement is often referred to as ‘casual’ work or ‘casual’ shifts. However, the relationship forged between the Nurse and the Agency isn’t ‘casual’ at all. This relationship is built on trust and respect, both expressed and implied.
As a Nursing Agency, the elements of trust revolve around a number of essential aspects:
Financial
- Your chosen agency should provide you with the most competitive rate of pay it can secure. The probability of you gaining work should not be hindered by excessive agency fees.
- The cost of processing a nursing payroll should be covered by the agency. This means no or minimal bank fees flowing on to you as nursing staff.
- The frequency of the payment should be customized to meet your financial lifestyle. Decide what pay schedule is more convenient – do you wish to be paid weekly or fortnightly?
- Your agency should inform you of your current rate of pay and other entitlements. You should have quick access to accurate information on this subject. There should also be effective procedures in place to assist you to deal with incorrect payments (or any queries you may have) in a timely manner.
First Choice Care is upfront with all details of your pay, securing you the most competitive rates. All payroll costs are taken care of by First Choice Care, and you get to choose your preferred pay schedule.
Superannuation
- Your entitlement is based upon an Australian Taxation Office calculation that states: ‘if the nurse earns a gross of over $450 per month then the Agency shall contribute 9% of the nurses gross wage into the nurse’s nominated fund.’
- While it is true that the process time it takes some funds to allocate contributions into member’s accounts is lengthy, remember that all super funds begin accruing interest from the time the payment is received from the agency.
- Responsible agencies pay super on a quarter by quarter basis, as scheduled by the ATO. There should be no catch here – Superannuation should be paid on time, every time.
- Superannuation information should be validated by your pay slip and the statement generated by the nominated Superannuation fund.
- Superannuation is not only a legal obligation; it is a matter of trust.
At First Choice Care we take our obligations to our nurses seriously. You can be sure you will receive your pay when allocated and your Superannuation will be administered on time on your behalf.
Working Conditions
- There is good proof that correct clinical placement is the proven method for achieving good working conditions. You should be placed in a working environment that matches your skills, strengths and personal goals. Your Nursing Agency should take the time to listen to your aspirations and take into consideration any concerns or anxieties you may have in a workplace setting.
Communication is something we value highly at First Choice Care. Our success depends upon listening to you, discovering your needs and doing our absolute best to ensure you are given the right clinical placement.
Provision for Ongoing Nursing Education
- Resources should be made available to allow the all-important accrual of Continuous Professional Education Points towards your re-registration.
- Continued up-skilling will provide you with correct clinical placement in a rapidly evolving clinical area with new technology.
- Keeping up clinically with the technology push isn’t just a nurse’s responsibility; it’s a joint responsibility with the Nursing Agency.
Ongoing education is the key to keeping up with the latest technologies and discoveries in your field. First Choice Care continues to implement online resources and training to assist you to develop new skills.
Safety
- A top priority for any corporation or agency – be it nursing or not – is making sure you are safe.
- Each year, at First Choice Care we conduct competencies to measure skilling in a number of basic areas to improve safety. These include:
- Manual handling
- Occupational Health and Safety
- Basic Life-support
- Infection Control
- Our more advanced practitioners are also tested in Advanced Life-support. Additional courses are available at First Choice Care to augment nursing staff clinical skills.
- The intended result of the training should be a confident nurse being allocated the clinical area of their chosen competency, with the full support of his or her agency.
First Choice Care offers health and safety training to build your confidence, add to your skill set, and most importantly keep yourself and those around you safe. We look upon safety training as not only a workplace skill, but a life skill that you carry with you everywhere you go.
Fitting into Your Nursing Life
- Ultimately your chosen Nursing Agency should want to be part of your working life without being intrusive. This is all part of supporting a healthy work/life balance.
- First Choice Care recently finished an application (app) which bridges across all platforms. This, on top of the current online education available, gives our nurses access to an informative and helpful intranet through a variety of platforms, eg. computer, phone, etc. Nurses can log into a personal account and make notes, collect pay slips, post availabilities, request help if needed, access resources, and browse the FAQ’s.
Basically, you get to choose how much interaction you want from First Choice Care. You can contact the agency through the various platforms or via phone to our dedicated call centre. First Choice is about Your Choice.
At First Choice Care our goal is to find you the most appropriate nursing positions, ensure your safety, educate you, protect you financially and legally, and most importantly, listen to you.
by FCC Team on March 24, 2011
We’re thrilled to be have just been recognised with the industry leading certifications for quality assurance with us being acredited to:
- ISO 9001:2008, Quality Assurance Standards.
- ISO 14001 , Environmental Standards.
Congratulations to the entire team for providing the professionalism and quality that is recognised by Australia’s leading accreditation certification body for getting things right!
You can find more information about the certifications here.
As one of the few Australian nursing agencies with this accreditation – we’re checking to see if we’re the only ones – we couldn’t be prouder ;o)
Congratulations and well done team!
by FCC Team on January 13, 2011
Update: 23 March 2011
Wow!
After floods, fires, cyclones and more things seem to have finally settled down here in Queensland.
The Productivity Commission (PC) released its draft report Disability Care and Support recently, containing recommendations on Australia’s disability support system.
Some very interesting ramifications to come from the implementation of the report.
Update: 2 Feb 2011
With evacuations from hospitals in the cyclone hit North Queensland, we’d appreciate nurses availability updates as possible so we can help look after the many new arrivals in Brisbane hospitals.
Thanks
The First Choice Care team
Update: 18 Jan 2011: Floods Receded, Clean Up Begins
Great to see the floods waters gone, but now the big job of the clean up starts.
Use FCC Live For Help
Please take advantage of our FCC Live facility online at www.fcclive.com.au.
If you haven’t yet been issued a password or are having trouble logging in please contact us on 1300 307 241.
We take great pride in looking after all our nurses and facilities.
Let Us Know If We Can Help
If there is anything we can to help please do not hesitate to let us know.
Stay safe.
The FCC Team
Flood Emergency Information
Disaster Recovery Hotline: 1800 173 349
State Emergency Service: 132 500
by FCC Team on October 21, 2010
Whilst working for an agency, superannuation will be contributed by your agency to your nominated superannuation fund.
The ability to contribute to funds such as Q Super is important and extremely relevant given the recent Global Financial crisis. A simple calculation based upon any casual worker grossing (pre tax) a wage of $450 per calendar month results in a contribution by the agency of 9 percent of the gross wage earned into the nominated superannuation fund.
This access to funds that were previously not available simply means you, as a fund member, can contribute to one fund with a greater return. A simple calculation of the size of the superannuation contribution and the length of time it is invested will result in a better payout at the end of your working life.
A better quality of life.
The ability to track down lost or unclaimed superannuation is available to all Australian workers.
Part of the take home lesson learned from the Global financial crisis is the relevance of knowing about where to find solid strategies to give you a good quality of life even after the working phase has finished.
For anyone who has taken more than a casual look at their superannuation statements in the past three years and shaken their heads as the figures have run in reverse, at First Choice Care, the philosophy is simple:
Super is on time, every time.
We encourage consolidation as, in the context of superannuation, there is no such thing as having all you eggs in one basket.
If you have any thoughts or concerns, payroll@firstchoicecare.com.au is a handy contact to have.
