October 20, 2020

Education

“Are You Remotely Interested…?” Virtual Conference

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James Cook University, Centre for Rural and Remote Health (CRRH) is proud to announce that the 10th biennial conference in the “Are You Remotely Interested…?” series, will be held virtually from Mount Isa on Wednesday 30th September and Thursday 1st October, 2020.  The theme for this conference is building on the past work in realising remote possibilities and promising practices, and what we have learnt so for from pandemic responses. We will also be celebrating WHO’s International Year of the Nurse and Midwife, 2020.

You can find out more about the conference here.

Update your diabetes knowledge: Diabetes Update Day 2020

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Diabetes is the fastest growing chronic condition in Australia; increasing at a faster rate than other chronic diseases such as heart disease and cancer. 1.8 million Australians are living with diabetes – someone is diagnosed with the condition every five minutes, which adds up to almost 300 people a day.

Every year, Diabetes NSW & ACT and Diabetes Queensland bring together current and future leaders in the field of diabetes to discuss the future of managing diabetes, preventing and treating complications, and clinical best practice.

With a focus on prevention, early detection, optimal treatment, and effective ongoing support, people living with diabetes can live a full and healthy life. This year’s Diabetes Update Day virtual conference will bring together frontline health care professionals to learn, build networks and discuss new ideas in an online forum.

Learn while you earn CPD hours – professional development points will be available for attendance at this event.

Details

Date: Saturday 24 October 2020
Time: Virtual lobby opens at 8:00am, sessions run from 9:00am – 4:00pm (AEDT)
Where: diabetesupdateday.com.au

What does my ticket include?

Access to the full event program on Saturday 24 October, including:

  • 6 video presentations from experts in the field
  • Interactive live Q&A sessions
  • Live networking with peers and exhibitors
  • Special leaderboard activity with a chance to win prizes
  • Digital resources and more
  • Attendance certificate
  • Digital event booklet
  • Access to revisit event content for up to 90 days post-event

Topics covered

Diabetes Medication Update
Jane Ludington BPharm DipHospPharm, MHPEd, GradCertDiabEd, AACPA, CDE

Learning Objectives

  • Discuss the benefits and risks of different classes of medication for diabetes management.
  • Compare the action profiles of currently available insulin preparations.
  • Identify resources available to support optimal choice of medication for people with diabetes.

Disordered eating rates amongst people living with type 2 diabetes – How can healthcare professionals and teams help to reduce rates?
Fiona Willer B.A., B.HlthSc (hons), AdvAPD

Learning Objectives

  • Identify risk factors for disordered eating and eating disorders in people with type 2 diabetes
  • Recognise disordered eating cognitions and behaviours in people with type 2 diabetes
  • Understand weight-neutral approach frameworks and their application in this population

Wound care and diabetes
Dr Frances Henshaw SoSh PhD

Learning Objectives

  • Understand why people with diabetes get wounds
  • Describing wounds and their classification
  • New horizons-understanding new technologies in wound prevention, assessment and management

Type 2 diabetes ambassador Suellyn Harrison interviewed by Angela Blair
Hear from someone living with type 2 diabetes about her experiences in her journey with diabetes.

Talking about emotional health in a diabetes care setting
Dr Vered Gordon GP, MBBS (Hons), FASPM

Learning Objectives

  • Increase confidence in talking about emotional health within a diabetes consultation
  • Engage in person centred problem solving to address emotional concerns
  • Facilitate the development of a more helpful diabetes narrative for people with diabetes distress

A collaborative approach to improving management of diabetes in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities
Louise Brown RN CDE; Chronic Care CNC

Learning Objectives

  • The health professional will have a greater awareness of the lived experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and reflect on these influences when providing diabetes management.
  • The health care provider will be able to identify key considerations for supporting and improving diabetes management for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, based on their past and present experiences.
  • The health professional will be able to highlight the benefits of a collaborative and holistic approach to diabetes care when working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, in a manner that empowers both client and health professional.

Tickets to this event are valued over $300, but brought to you at the special price of just $80 thanks to an NDSS subsidy.

Register now at diabetesupdateday.com.au

Free CPD: Vitamin D and Bone Health Expert Mini-Course

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Nurses and midwives are being called on to take the lead on important public health issues such the rising incidence of rickets and micronutrient deficiencies.

A new online CPD learning activity called The Vitamin D and Bone Health: Expert Mini-Course – an on-demand, evidence-based course that features Australia’s leading Vitamin D experts – is available throughout the month of August on Healthed for Nurses. This activity was developed specifically to educate nurses and midwives on the important new developments relating to the importance of vitamin D for bone health.

Role of Vitamin D

As widely recognized, Vitamin D plays a critical role in skeletal health and bone-building, helping to control calcium levels in the blood and maintain muscle strength. Research has also suggested that vitamin D extends its role across much of the human health and disease spectrum – including to such conditions as immune disorders, diabetes, pregnancy and possibly even to susceptibility to Covid 19 infection!

Vitamin D deficiency is common in Australia with over 30% of Australians demonstrating a mild, moderate or even severe deficiency. 

Bringing experts together

Featuring 4 national experts, the Vitamin D and Bone Health Expert Mini-Course, will present the latest, evidence-based research.

These speakers will reveal the latest research and explain the significant health impacts these deficiencies can have on the skeleton and other body systems. It will empower nurses and midwives to lead the charge in the national Public Health effort to tackle this widespread deficiency.

Vitamin D deficiency on the rise

A staggering 40 per cent of Melbourne’s population is likely to be Vitamin D deficient, according to Melbourne endocrinologist presenter Prof Peter Ebeling.

“The majority of cases are completely asymptomatic, so if you’re waiting to see signs of deficiency you’ve missed the boat. In severe cases, symptoms can include tiredness, weakness and flat mood or aches and pains, but these can be easily missed,” he says.

Prof Ebeling, who is a Professor of Paediatric Bone and Mineral Medicine at the University of Sydney, will be offering strategies to help empower and educate nurses and midwives on how to become agents for change for this important issue.

Nurses and midwives must take the lead

The World Health Organisation’s 2000 Munich Declaration called nurses and midwives “a force for health” and that they have “key and increasingly important roles to play in society’s efforts to tackle the public health challenges of our time.” This mini-course was created with that as its guiding inspiration.

THE FREE MINI-COURSE IS AVAILABLE NOW TILL THE END OF AUGUST!

This free mini-course equates to 120 mins of CPD activity and comes complete with the following features

  • Test your Learning quizzes after each session to reinforce learning
  • Certificate of completion
  • CPD Documentation and Reflection
  • Resources from experts

TOPIC 1: Vitamin D, Coronavirus, and other Non-Bone Diseases

Prof Peter Ebeling AO – Medical Director, Osteoporosis Australia; Endocrinologist, Head of the Department of Medicine, Monash Health

Scientific research is steadily revealing the role that this important substance potentially plays in modulating chronic disease. Recently, the importance of Vit D has been revealed regarding susceptibility to respiratory tract infections and hence Covid 19. There are even possible links with regard to cancer risk. Prof Ebeling is a leading expert on Vit D, he will describe some of the fascinating evidence and clinical implications.

TOPIC 2: Osteoporosis and the Role of Fracture Liaison Services

Klaus Sommer: Endocrine Clinical Nurse Consultant, Concord Hospital, Sydney

It is estimated that by 2022 approximately 72% of women and 62% of men older than 50 years of age will have osteoporosis or osteopenia, according to WHO criteria. It is therefore a major public health issue. In this nurse led presentation, Klaus Sommer, an Endocrine Clinical Nurse Consultant at Concord Hospital, provides a comprehensive outline of osteoporosis, including its consequences on patients and public health implications, as well as highlighting multidisciplinary components required for a successful Fracture Liaison Service (FLS). He also discusses the role of nurses in these services and the effects of COVID-19.

TOPIC 3: Vitamin D: Bones and Beyond

Dr Christian Girgis: Endocrinologist; Senior Lecturer, Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney

Around 1 in 3 Australians are vitamin D deficient, with around 4% being severely deficient. In this presentation, Dr Christian Girgis, Staff Specialist Endocrinology at Westmead and Royal North Shore Hospitals and Senior Lecturer at Sydney Medical School, the University of Sydney, uses relevant studies and data to discuss the importance of vitamin D on musculoskeletal health, effects of vitamin D deficiency on high risk groups, the relationship between chronic diseases and vitamin D, as well as various vitamin D treatments.

TOPIC 4: Can I Get Enough Vitamin D from Diet Alone?

Melanie McGrice: Fertility and Prenatal Dietitian; Media Spokesperson, Dietitian’s Association of Australia

Throughout life, vitamin D plays an important role in skeletal and possibly extra-skeletal health. This talk will highlight the dietary requirements not only of vitamin D, but other important dietary factors to ensure optimal bone health in childhood and adult life. McGrice will cover how to meet dietary requirements for vitamin D with food, how to meet dietary requirements for iron with food, foods that inhibit iron absorption, life stages that require increases in vitamin D, iron and iodine and the top food sources of iodine.

ENROL FOR THIS FREE MINI-COURSE HERE

This post was sponsored by Heathed for Nurses.

Colonoscopy Clinical Care Standard  – Educational Webinar        

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The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (the Commission) will be conducting a number of educational sessions using webinar facilities to promote the use of the Colonoscopy Clinical Care Standard and highlight resources developed by the Commission to help with its implementation. These sessions will have no cost to participants. The first of these webinar sessions will be targeted towards nurses working in endoscopy units. This session will be hosted by the Gastroenterological Nurses College of Australia (GENCA) on the 11th  August at 7pm (EST).  All nurses are welcome and do not have to be a member of GENCA.

A certificate of attendance will be provided by GENCA to all attendees and this can be contributed to CPD points.

REGISTER HERE

Background 

The Colonoscopy Clinical Care Standard was developed by the Commission following consultation and development of a national safety and quality model for colonoscopy (the safety and quality model). The development of a clinical care standard was an integral component of the safety and quality model. The Commission collaborated and consulted with consumers, clinicians, researchers and health organisations during the development of the safety and quality model and many of these groups were represented on the Colonoscopy Clinical Care Standard Topic Working Group. The clinical care standard complements existing efforts that support care of patients undergoing colonoscopy for screening and diagnostic purposes, including state and territory-based initiatives. It is expected that colonoscopy will be provided by a health service organisation that has been assessed to the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards (NSQHS Standards). The NSQHS Standards require that all hospitals and day services providing colonoscopy in Australia are to be accredited to the Colonoscopy Clinical Care Standard.

For more information about the development of this clinical care standard and the indicators, visit: www.safetyandquality.gov.au/ccs.

Nurses and midwives called on become a ‘force for health’

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Nurses and midwives are being called on to take the lead on important public health issues such the rising incidence of rickets and micronutrient deficiencies in Australian mothers-to-be.

A new evidence-based seminar called Blood, Brain & Bone – which will air as a free webcast series starting on June 25 this month – was developed specifically to educate nurses and midwives on important new developments on key micronutrients such as Vitamin D, Iron, and Iodine.

Bringing experts together

Featuring national and international experts in their field, the Blood, Brain & Bone webcast series will specifically empower and educate nurses and midwives in light of their crucial position at the coalface of infant nutrition.

Nine expert speakers will, over the course of the seminar series, reveal the latest research and discuss the significant health impacts these deficiencies can have on mother and child in order to empower nurses and midwives to lead the charge in creating widespread change.

Major changes must be made to the existing nutritional advice being given to pregnant women, medical experts say, and Blood, Brain & Bone will educate Australian nurses and midwives on these.

The webcast series will tackle the rising problem of vitamin D, iodine, and iron deficiency, all of which can lead to significant reduction in quality of life – and in severe cases can lead to conditions such as rickets, intellectual impairment and osteoporosis.

While these micronutrients are essential for everyone, the rate of deficiency is higher for females and causes the most negative health effects during foetal development and infancy – in mother and baby.

Rickets on the rise

For instance, a staggering 50 per cent of pregnant women being seen at Sydney’s Westmead Hospital are vitamin D deficient, and in South Australia, the numbers are even higher, according to Sydney paediatric endocrinologist and Blood, Brain & Bone presenter Prof Craig Munns.

As yet, however, only one hospital and one LHD in NSW has adopted the 2016 international guidelines for the prevention and treatment of rickets, he says.

“The majority of cases are completely asymptomatic, so if you’re waiting to see signs of deficiency you’ve missed the boat. In severe cases, symptoms can include tiredness or aches and pains, but these are also common in pregnancy, so can be easily missed,” he says.

Prof Munns, who is a Professor of Paediatric Bone and Mineral Medicine at the University of Sydney, will be offering strategies to help empower and educate nurses and midwives on how to become agents for change for this important patient group.

Nurses and midwives take the lead

Blood, Brain & Bone was created specifically in recognition of the importance of empowering nurses and midwives. The World Health Organisation’s 2000 Munich Declaration called nurses and midwives “a force for health” in terms of their current and potential capacity to achieve public health outcomes and urged authorities to better support them in this role.

According to WHO, nurses and midwives have “key and increasingly important roles to play in society’s efforts to tackle the public health challenges of our time.”

THE FIRST FREE WEBCAST SESSION KICKS OFF THIS MONTH

Part one of Blood, Brain & Bone will air on the evening of June 25 from 7pm-9pm AEST and will feature three presentations – equating to 90 minutes of high-quality CPD – focusing on the importance of vitamin D and calcium:

TOPIC 1: Vit D Supplementation in Pregnancy and Neonates – Practical Implementation

Michelle Simmons: Registered Midwife and Nurse; CMC Postnatal and Infant Feeding, Women’s and Newborn Health, Westmead Hospital; Director of Events, Lactation Consultants of Australia and New Zealand (LCANZ).

Nutritional rickets can be prevented with universal vitamin D supplementation of pregnant women and infants for the first 12 months of life. This presentationwill focus on the implementation of such a program and provide an insight into how supplementation can be done successfully.

TOPIC 2: Vitamin D and Calcium in Pregnancy

Dr Therese McGee: Clinical Director, Women’s and Newborn Health, Westmead Hospital; Clinical Senior Lecturer, Sydney University.

Pregnancy and breast feeding place extra demands on maternal mineral homeostasis. To ensure adequate maternal well-being and fetal development it is important to ensure adequate calcium and vitamin D intake during pregnancy and in the post-partum period. In this presentation the role of calcium and vitamin D in pregnancy will be discussed.

TOPIC 3: Nutrition, Children and Rickets

Prof Craig Munns: Professor of Paediatric Bone and Mineral Medicine, University of Sydney; Senior Staff Specialist, Endocrinology, Westmead Children’s Hospital.

This presentation will provide an overview of vitamin D metabolism and an understanding of the role that vitamin D and calcium plays in skeletal development in children and the potential devastating effect of nutritional rickets on growth and development.

REGISTER FOR THE 25 JUNE FREE BLOOD, BRAIN & BONE WEBCAST HERE

This content was proudly sponsored by Healthed.

CPD reprieve for nurses and midwives

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The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA), along with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra), have advised that they will not take action if a nurse or midwife declares that they could not meet their required CPD hours for the 2019-2020 registration period.

In a statement, Ahpra indicated that the COVID-19 crisis may mean that “some nurses and midwives may have trouble meeting the CPD requirements during this challenging time”. This has resulted in the NMBA providing a level of leniency for those unable to meet these requirements.

However, nurses and midwives should continue to improve upon their professional development, and log any CPD they have undertaken during this period. 

Nurses and midwives are reminded that the following learning opportunities may contribute to CPD hours:

  • COVID-19 in-services,
  • reading and reflecting on COVID-19 journal articles, and
  • COVID-19 infection control training – online training modules.

Ahpra has indicated that the NMBA may request for evidence of CPD for nurses and midwives who declare that they were unable to meet the recency of practice standard.