Western Pacific Region Nursing and Midwifery Databank COUNTRY: FIJI 1. Historical events in nursing and midwifery (e.g. milestones in the development of nursing and midwifery) 1892 Miss Webberburn (friend of F. Nightingale) appointed Matron of CWM hospital and started training European women as nurses 1923 Training continues. Also commenced training Fijians as assistants 1954 New Zealand training introduced to run along side colony programme 1983 Suva and Lautoka schools merge for 3 year-programme. New WHO-assisted curriculum was introduced. 1987 School of Nursing in Suva moved to a new building which could accommodate approximately 400 students. 1990 A distance learning by teleconference course was initiated to upgrade the skills of mid-level nurse managers. 2003 s and Midwives board adopt Nursing competencie based on the WPSEAR. 2010 Fiji School of Nursing merges with Fiji School of Medicine to form the College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences. 2011 Nursing Decree 2011 passed. Fiji Nursing Council established and poised to take over responsibilities from the s, Midwives and Practitioners Board. Annual registration of all s, Student s and Midwives is required. 2. Regulations and Laws 2.1 Act or Law Type of regulations categories Licensure RN s, Midwives and Practitioners Act Title of Act or Law Year Regulatory authority 1954 s, Midwives and Practitioners Board Nursing Decree 2011 Last Update: April 2013 Page 1 2011 Decree passed in 2011, all nurses, student nurses and midwives must register annually with the Fiji Nursing
Council (Formerly s, Midwives and Practioners Board) Certification Midwives & PHNs Through s, Midwives and Practitioners Board - awards certificates to Midwives and PHNs and Practitioners following their post-basic programme 2.2 Regulatory authority Authority Address Phone number Fax number. E-mail address Fiji Nursing Council c/o Ministry of Health (679) 306177 (679) 306163 3. Nursing and/or Midwifery Associations Name of Association Address Phone number Fax number E-mail address Fiji Nursing Association 26 MacGregor Rd., Suva P.O. Box 1364 Suva (679) 304855 or 305855 (679) 304881 fna@is.com.fj Last Update: April 2013 Page 2
4., midwife leaders and/or focal points Name and position title Organization and Address Phone number Fax number E-mail address Ms Silina Waqa Ledua Director of Nursing Services Professor Ian Rouse, (Dean- College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences) Ministry of Health Dinem House, 88 Amy St., Toorak, PO Box 2223 Government Buildings, Suva (679) 33306177 swaqa001@govnet. gov.fj Fiji School of Nursing (679) 321 499 (679) 321 013 Ian.rouse@fnu.ac.fj 5. Category and functions of nurses and midwives Category Entry requirement Length of training Level/Credential Description Public Health Registered Registered Midwife Practitioners 2 years post registration High school certificate 2 years post registration 6 months Certificate Registered who has post basic Public Health Certificate. 3 yrs Diploma Completed a FORMAL training and is registered by the s, Midwives and Practitioners Board. 7 months Certificate Registered who has post basic Midwifery Certificate. RN, RM 1 year Adv. Diploma RN, RM and Reg. NP and works in Health Centre providing primary health care diagnosing and treating of common illnesses. Last Update: April 2013 Page 3
6. Nursing and Midwifery Education (include a diagrammatic illustration if available and the total number of nursing and midwifery schools) Postbasic PHN ( 6 mo) Practitioners (1 yr) Midwifery (7 mo) Diploma Nursing ( 3 yrs) Management* ( 36 weeks) *distance education via teleconference There are currently two Schools of Nursing in Fiji; The Fiji School of Nursing, Suva run through the university and the Sangam School of Nursing, Labasa. Both schools run a three year Diploma in Nursing programme that is competency based. The Fiji School of Nursing serves as a training resource for the countries of the South Pacific (particularly important for training the nurse workforce for Nauru, Niue, Tokelau and Tuvalu) through a post-basic midwifery course (seven months) and post-basic public health nursing course (six months) and 1 year Advanced Diploma in Nursing Practitioners ( Practitioners). There is now a program for RNs to upgrade their Diploma to a Bachelor award and this is carried out in Fiji, directed by James Cook University, Australia. 7. Resources available (e.g. standards, protocols, practice guidelines, policies on nursing/midwifery workforce) Subject/Title Year published Description Contact (Name, Address, Telephone No., Fax No., E-mail, etc.) Distance-education learning manual Radio scripts for nurses working in the Pacific islands 1995 School of Nursing 1996 Director of Nursing Ministry of Health 8. Main nursing issues/priorities Development and endorsement of indicators for RN competencies in Fiji. Need to review the current structure for midwive practice and develop further practice scope to aid in retention of midwives within the hospital system. The Decision making Framework on the scope of Nursing Practice in Fiji, 1999 needs updating. Last Update: April 2013 Page 4
Main midwifery issues/priorities Sustainability of the midwifery workforce. Retaining midwives after training has been difficult in Fiji. 9. Important policies or strategies needed To meet global standards in nurse workforce competency, schools need to implement strategies that allow delivery of Bachelor level award. Development of indicators and CPD programmes for annual licensing. Incorporation of key midwifery skills into the nursing program curriculum is being reviewed. 10. Does your country have a National Health Plan and or Human Resources for Health Strategy? How have Nursing and Midwifery workforce policies been integrated into this plan/s? Yes, Nursing and Midwifery workforce plans are integrated in the Ministry of Health Strategic Plans & Annual Corporate Plans. The 2008 Nursing Workforce Review with its 103 recommendations have been progressively implemented. There is a current Health Workforce Strategic plan that has been updated to include priorities in: - Increasing national nursing establishment - Filling nursing gaps across Fiji - Implementing recommendations from the Nursing Workforce Review 2008 Last Update: April 2013 Page 5