Nurse & Midwife Support Podcast

Our Summer Newsletter is all about supporting culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) nurses, midwives and students. We’ve partnered with the New South Wales Nurse & Midwives Association (NSWNMA) to offer you two podcasts with six passionate nurses committed to empowering CALD nurses and midwives. This is the first of two episodes, Episode 36. In this episode of the Your Health Matters podcast we speak to nurses Helen Macukewicz and Catherine Ivanfy, NSWNMA Professional Officers who coordinate the organisation’s CALD reference group, which advocates for culturally and linguistically diverse nurses and midwives on a range of issues. In 2019 the NSWNMA released the Cultural Safety Gap report (https://www.nswnma.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/CaLD-Report-FINAL-lr.pdf)based on a survey of the experiences of CALD nurses and midwives working in NSW. We discuss the survey’s important findings, the subsequent formation of the CALD Reference Group, and how you can get involved to tackle this problem by starting or joining a CALD support group in your workplace. You can also participate in the Australian Human Rights Commission’s Racism: It Stops with Me campaign, which the NSWNMA also supports: https://www.nswnma.asn.au/safer-work-safer-care/racism-it-stops-with-me/ Helen and Catherine are committed advocates for fairer, more equitable and safer workplaces. We’re grateful they joined us to share their insights and help us all work towards Cultural Safety in our workforce. You can also check out Episode 37 where we discuss the lived experiences of four members of the NSWNMA CALD Reference group: Podcast: Calling Racism Out with Julie, Merilyn, Bukwa and Marty. If you need to chat about any of the issues raised in this podcast, we’re here 24/7 on 1800 667 877, or you can email us: https://www.nmsupport.org.au/support

We are delighted to introduce the winner of our story competition celebrating midwifery friendships. Competition winner and registered nurse Leanne O’Connor joins us on the podcast to discuss her friendship with fellow midwife Rowena and share her winning story.

We are delighted to introduce the winner of our story competition celebrating nursing friendships. Competition winner and registered nurse Melinda Jesudason joins us on the podcast to discuss her friendship with fellow nurse Hester and share her winning poem.

Understanding professional boundaries is vital for nurses and midwives to practise safely and adhere to our registration requirements and protect ourselves and the public from harm. Unfortunately, asserting professional boundaries isn’t always easy. At Nurse & Midwife Support we often hear from nurses and midwives that navigating professional boundaries can be complex. We support nurses and midwives impacted by boundary transgressions or with questions about boundary management. We know that managing professional boundaries may not always be black and white and we are here to support you. The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) also recognise that managing professional boundaries can sometimes be difficult, particularly identifying and differentiating the boundaries between professional relationships and personal relationships. That’s why they provide guidance on professional boundaries in the respective Code of conduct that aim to protect the community by helping to prevent distress, confusion, harm, or abuse of people being cared for by nurses and midwives. But professional boundaries aren’t just important for protecting the people we care for — they’re vital for protecting clinicians too. Understanding professional boundaries is important for your professional wellbeing. That’s why we asked Dr Wendy McIntosh to join us on the Your Health Matters podcast to provide you with the facts, information, resources, and support you need to confidently assert your own boundaries. Wendy has spent many years studying professional boundaries. She has 30 years’ experience as a registered nurse in clinical, education and research settings, including twenty-five years in mental health. She takes a special interest in professional supervision, professional boundaries, professional identity, links between childhood trauma and mental illness and workplace bullying. We are so grateful that Wendy has joined us to explain what she has learned about professional boundaries and how they will support your professional health and wellbeing. That’s enough now Wendy has also written a blog for us on the topic: “That’s enough now”— professional boundaries fortify self-care. She writes: “That's enough now” is a phrase I developed while supporting professionals to identify and address factors that led to their boundary transgressions. “That's enough taking work home”, “that's enough workplace bullying”, “that's enough working long hours”, “that's enough unpaid overtime”. That's enough now. Wendy believes “That's enough now” is a crucial phrase to help nurses and midwives create and reinforce boundaries, and that we should start practicing it at the undergraduate level. Check out the blog to learn more about how you can practice saying “That’s enough now.” Talk to us about it Professional boundaries matter! If you need help figuring out how to build and maintain your boundaries, we’re here to chat about it. Give us a call on 1800 667 877. https://www.nmsupport.org.au/news/podcast-asserting-professional-boundaries-dr-wendy-mcintosh

The mental health of nurses, midwives and students is vitally important. In this episode of the podcast we welcome our first ever co-host Tessa Moriarty and discuss insights and experiences on mental health for working nurses and midwives with Registered Midwife Georgie Southam and Registered Nurse Kat Evans. We discuss the unique challenges and factors that impact workers in the healthcare industry. Working on the frontline during the ongoing pandemic has led to prolonged levels of unhealthy stress, anxiety, depression, burnout, and post-traumatic stress disorder in our workforce. Our guests share tips and tricks to improve your mental health and access support. We urge you to remind yourself every day that your health matters as much as the health of those you care for. We hope you know how important your mental health is. If you ever need to chat Nurse & Midwife Support are here for you. Give us a call on 1800 667 877 — free, confidential, 24/7. https://www.nmsupport.org.au/news/podcast-mental-health-tessa-moriarty-georgie-southam-and-kat-evans

Have you started 2022 feeling you are in survival mode? Was your longed-for leave cancelled? Are you working too many hours? Are you — like many — sapped of energy, depleted, and running on empty? Do you feel cooked? You are not alone. Unfortunately, this is exactly how many nurses and midwives feel. This podcast may help you to shift gears, refocus on your own health and make intentional changes to move into thrive mode! Two years into this brutal pandemic, many nurses and midwives are exhausted, fatigued and wondering how much they have left in their energy tank. We are concerned about the impact on the health of nurses and midwives. We’ve recorded this podcast to offer you support, health tips and hope. Two years ago, we spoke to Sam Eddy, Mental Health First Aider, experienced workplace coach and educator on Episode 15 of the podcast. We discussed stress management in times of crisis. That was in the early months of the pandemic and now feels like a lifetime ago. Given the popularity of the episode we asked Sam back to offer his support and tell us about his new training program From Survive to Thrive, a 12 week program developed with Mental Health Nurse Sarah. This is a self-paced online study program filled with emerging scientific concepts to empower you with the knowledge and skills to move beyond merely surviving and into thriving in your career, home life and for your mental and physical health. We discuss the importance of listening to your body and mind and taking affirmative action to provide refocus and attention to your health and wellbeing because YOUR HEALTH MATTERS! We often hear from nurses and midwives that they feel drained and don’t know how to refuel. The tips in this podcast aim to assist you to top your energy levels, refocus your health, establish boundaries that support your wellbeing and work towards thriving in 2022. We hope this podcast supports you to take a moment to reconnect with your health and wellbeing and make it a priority. If you’d like to talk, take a minute to reach out for support — give Nurse & Midwife Support a call on 1800 667 877. Your health REALLY does matter! Mark Aitken RN

WARNING: This issue deals with sensitive issues including problems related to substance use. This is a complex and sensitive area and may be triggering for some, difficult for others and result in strong emotions. If this topic raises issues for you, now may not be the right time for you to read it. Give us a call on Nurse & Midwife Support on 1800 667 877 if you would like to talk about what you are feeling.  For many nurses and midwives, talking about problems related to substance use can be challenging, anxiety provoking and evoke complex feelings including fear, shame, and stigma. Many do not know where to start to access support. We thought you may need a helping hand if you are struggling with this issue yourself or supporting someone who is struggling. On this episode of the Your Health Matters podcast we speak to Registered Nurse Dr Adam Searby, lecturer at the School of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Health, Deakin University and president of Drug and Alcohol Nurses of Australasia (DANA). We discuss the complexity of substance dependency, its impact on nurses and midwives and the range of emotions it evokes.

The COVID-19 pandemic feels like a marathon. Many nurses and midwives have been racing against this pandemic since March 2020. We all want it to end. If you are feeling fatigued and exhausted by the impact of COVID-19, you are not alone. Chances are you feel like you haven’t had time to pause and catch your breath. We hear from nurses and midwives that they feel drained and don’t know how to refuel. We thought you may need a helping hand. On this episode of The Your Health Matters podcast we speak to Marie Louise and Kerrie Otto de Grancy, from the Evolve Yourself Institute (EYI) about the importance of your health, wellbeing and self-care and the impact of not doing so during challenging times. EYI is committed to supporting nurses and midwives to get their life on track with self-care practices and processes. They share some breathing and mindfulness activities to incorporate into your day and fortify yourself against chronic stress. Many nurses and midwives feel exhausted and often overwhelmed by the response required over the prolonged response required of them during the pandemic. It is vital to your wellbeing that you set time aside each day, even if it is 5 minutes, to give yourself self-care and take a moment to do something that allows you to pause, breathe, be still and start to recover. We hope this podcast supports you to pause, take a breath and focus on your health and wellbeing. If you’d like to talk, take a minute to reach out for support — give Nurse & Midwife Support a call on 1800 667 877. Your health REALLY does matter! Mark Aitken RN

On this episode of the Nurse & Midwife Support Your Health Matters podcast we speak to Jay Court about This Way Up, a digital program to support the mental health of nurses, midwives, and students. Jay Court is the Digital Mental Health Engagement Lead for This Way Up at the Clinical Research Unit for Anxiety and Depression (CRUfAD), St Vincent's Hospital Sydney. Jay has dual backgrounds in mental health nursing and communications. Jay discusses the importance of nurses and midwives taking care of their mental health, some of the challenges and barriers to this and how online digital mental health support removes access problems. This Way Up provides evidence-based programs and resources developed and run by clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, researchers, and web technicians based at the Clinical Research Unit for Anxiety and Depression (CRUfAD) — a joint facility of St Vincent’s Hospital and the University of New South Wales. The This Way Up program and resources are based on iCBT, which is internet-based cognitive behaviour therapy. Jay discusses the This Way Up programs and how a nurse or midwife experiencing a mental health concern can access them. This Way Up offers specialised resources to support you during the pandemic, including five simple steps to calm your emotions, and tips for getting through. In this episode we talk about the importance of accessing support. I hope you find this our discussion informative and useful. Look after yourself and each other Your Health Matters. Mark Aitken RN Stakeholder Engagement Manager Nurse & Midwife Support

In this episode we talk to Julie Sharrock, an experienced registered nurse and clinical supervisor about the importance of clinical supervision. We explore the benefits and why professional self-care as an essential form of support for nurses and midwives. Clinical supervision is a formal process that aids supported reflection. It is one tool underutilised by nurses and midwives to provide support. Julie explains how the process helps nurses and midwives to develop their practice through regular time spent in reflective discussion with experienced and knowledgeable colleagues trained in providing clinical supervision — you won’t want to miss Julie drawing a parallel between clinical supervision and the Pensieve in Harry Potter! It’s the first time the wisdom of a Harry Potter character has made it to the Your Health Matters podcast, and we hope it won’t be the last time! The magic of support matters! Mark Aitken Stakeholder Engagement Manager