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Welcome to the July edition,
In this newsletter, we take a moment to reflect on NAIDOC Week and explore the importance of cultural safety. This year marks 50 years of NAIDOC - half a century of courage, advocacy and cultural celebration.
The theme for 2025, “The Next Generation: Strength, Vision & Legacy”, invites us to honour the Elders and trailblazers who shaped this movement, while celebrating the young leaders who are carrying it into the future.
Recognising cultural safety as a guiding principle and objective in the National Law is an important step toward striving for health equity, and eliminating racism for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.
In June, the NMBA was proud to unveil a video created in partnership with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practice Board of Australia in Darwin.
The video showcases what genuine, respectful, racism-free collaboration can look like, and the difference it can make to health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.
The registration renewal period is now closed. Over 510,000 nurses and midwives renewed their registration this year. A heartfelt thank you for your continued dedication to the profession and the community.
If you didn’t renew your registration but need to stay registered, fast track applications are now available in your Ahpra portal. Log in to complete your fast-track application before 31 July.
Adjunct Professor Veronica Casey Chair, Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia
In late June, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practice Board of Australia and NMBA gathered in Darwin to showcase the strength and value of interprofessional collaboration.
In an important step toward striving for health equity and eliminating racism for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, the Boards shared videos and images of what genuine, respectful, racism-free collaboration between practitioners can look like at an exclusive breakfast event for Northern Territory stakeholders.
The work builds on the Guidance for nurses and midwives working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Health Practitioners, and highlights the vital role the National Scheme plays in ensuring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples receive and access culturally safe healthcare that is free from racism in all forms.
In the coming months, these resources will be tailored for nurses and midwives, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioners and the public.
During their visit, Board members and Ahpra staff were also fortunate to be welcomed to Larrakia country by taking part in a Saltwater Ceremony at the Darwin Waterfront.
Regulators are stepping in to guide practitioners who prescribe medicinal cannabis due to evidence that poor practice is leading to significant patient harm.
Ahpra, the Medical and Nursing and Midwifery Boards of Australia have published guidance to support practitioners in meeting their professional practice responsibilities when prescribing medicinal cannabis. Further information on the framework for medicinal cannabis prescribing in Australia has been published to supplement this guidance.
The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) has published an updated Fact Sheet: Information for registered nurses and midwives: Practice in maternal child and family health roles. The fact sheet provides guidance to registered nurses and midwives seeking to expand their scope of practice into maternal, child and family health roles.
Maintaining good health records helps keep the public safe by contributing to the continuity of healthcare.
The NMBA has approved the use of resources to help nurses and midwives better understand and meet their health record management obligations.
The resources approved for use are a summary of the guidance about record management in the Code of Conduct for nurses and the Code of Conduct for midwives, as well as a self-reflective tool to help practitioners to assess the adequacy of their record keeping and management practises.
The Summary of obligations for managing health records aims to provide more specific high-level information for practitioners beyond the Code of Conduct for nurses, and the Code of Conduct for midwives.
The self-reflective tool is to assist practitioners to reflect on whether their records and record management processes meet relevant standards as set out in the applicable professional codes of conduct. The tool is for practitioners’ use, with the questions and guidance framed to encourage practitioners to proactively reflect on their records and record management processes.
In March 2025, the NMBA agreed to adopt the National Scheme definition of cultural safety following advice from key stakeholders. Recognising cultural safety as a guiding principle and objective in the National Law is an important step toward striving for health equity and eliminating racism for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.
As the regulator for registered health practitioners, the National Scheme has a vital part to play in ensuring that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples receive culturally safe healthcare that is free from racism in all forms.
The previous definition of cultural safety is now retired. Regulatory documents which contain the previous definition of cultural safety will be progressively updated. While Ahpra review and update the documents which contain the previously used definition, we’re encouraging practitioners to read and understand the Scheme definition. The expectation for nurses and midwives to practise in a culturally safe way remains the same.
CATSINaM, Aphra's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Strategy Unit and the NMBA met in June to discuss next steps in strengthening the partnership and progressing its important work.
In June, 2023 the Congress of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nurses and Midwives (CATSINaM) and the NMBA committed to a landmark Partnership Investment Agreement (PIA).
This work aims to strengthen the collective commitment to improve the quality and safety of contemporary nursing and midwifery practice to further influence culturally safe care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples including nurses, midwives and students.
This includes addressing systemic racism and enhancing cultural safety, as well as empowering the next generation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nurses and midwives, engagement with education pathways and strengthening community. As part of its commitment to support nurses and midwives to deliver culturally safe care and improve health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, the NMBA has initiated a review of NMBA standards, codes and guidelines to ensure cultural safety and the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples is addressed
Ahpra has issued its first ever public statement under new legislation designed to protect public health and safety.The statement relates to suspended West Australian practitioner Peter Terzi, also known as Peter Taylor, who Ahpra believes poses a serious risk to persons because of his conduct.
Peter Terzi/Taylor, who held dual registration as a dentist and a nurse, has been suspended from practising in both professions since 26 February this year.
Ahpra and the National Scheme’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Anti-Racism Policy was informed by extensive consultation and the expertise of Professor Yin Paradies, a leading scholar in racism and cultural safety.
This policy was developed by and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples to create a safe, valued, and respectful environment within Ahpra and the National Boards.
It forms a critical step in enacting Ahpra and the National Scheme’s policy and legislative commitments to eliminating racism.
Racism towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples is persistent, harmful, and structurally embedded. This policy acknowledges those realities and provides clear mechanisms for preventing, addressing, and eliminating racism within Ahpra, the National Boards and committees. It establishes stronger reporting pathways and introduces the Racism-related Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-only Special Issues Committee (RATSISIC) to ensure culturally informed responses to racism.
The policy reflects the hard work and leadership of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Anti-Racism Policy Working Group, chaired by Professor Carmen Parter, whose contributions were vital to its development.
Download a copy of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Anti-Racism Policy.
A number of culturally significant dates are recognised annually. Upcoming dates of significance include, but are not limited to:
Aug 4 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day
Aug 8 International Day of Allyship
Aug 9 International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples
Sept 4 Indigenous Literacy Day
Sept 13 Anniversary of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People
Oct 26 Anniversary of Uluru being returned to the Traditional Owners
Ahpra is seeking expressions of interest from nurses and midwives to be examiners in the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) for the assessment of Internationally Qualified Nurses and Midwives (IQNM).
OSCE examiners play a vital role in the process of delivering a reliable and fair assessment process.
If you are interested in taking part, please submit an expression of interest.
The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia, along with other National Boards and Ahpra are reviewing the Supervised practice framework (the framework) and we want to hear from you. How do you use the framework? What are its strengths and limitations? Is it working flexibly or is it too restrictive? Is there anything missing? Now is the time to have your say.
Reviewing the framework is part of the recommendations from the Independent review of Australia’s regulatory settings relating to overseas health practitioners, led by Ms Robyn Kruk AO.
Visit the current consultations page to read the consultation paper and quick guide to the consultation. To share your feedback, use the link to the online form, or complete the submission template and email it back to us.
The consultation is open for eight weeks, closing on 31 July 2025.
We’ll also be collecting feedback about supervised practice, the framework, employing supervised practitioners and being a supervisor or supervisee at a focus group. We would love to hear from:
If you would like to be considered for a focus group, please complete this online application form.
