ECU is offering refugee nurses the chance to gain Australian accreditation for free.
An innovative solution to help address the national healthcare shortage will give nurses forced to flee their homeland the chance to use their skills in their new home.
Edith Cowan University (ECU) announced the new pilot program, the Scholarship for Refugee Nurses, will be delivered in collaboration with the WA Department of Health and MercyCare.
The scholarship will see 10 nurses who are registered in their homeland be able to undertake the International Adaptation Program for free.
Upon completion, the nurses will be eligible to work in Australian hospitals and other healthcare settings.
The WA Health Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer Dr Robina Redknap said she was delighted to support additional scholarships and thanked the North Metro Health Service for committing to offer the refugee nurses clinical placements.
ECU School of Nursing and Midwifery executive dean Professor Karen Strickland said the scholarship had many benefits.
"WA is currently experiencing an acute shortage of RNs which puts significant pressure on the delivery of clinical services, as well as affecting the wellbeing of the existing workforce," she said.
Professor Strickland said the program allowed the WA health service and refugee and asylum seeker community to provide mutual support to each other.
"I am delighted to be offering fee-waived scholarships to nurses who are refugees in WA," she said.
"We recognise many refugees who are nurses have vast expertise, but face challenges with gaining registration to practice in Australia.
"Our course at ECU helps those nurses gain registration to allow them to practice and make a significant contribution to our community health.
"Furthermore, we want to help those refugees who are part of our nursing community to settle in Australia and be welcomed into our community."
MercyCare employment liaison officer Jacqui Whelan said the partnership with ECU addressed some of the barriers faced by refugees and asylum seekers.
"As a refugee or asylum seeker new to Western Australia, it can be a daunting process to register to practice your profession locally," she said.
"There is so much to navigate and understand, while also adjusting to settling in a new country, as well as the overwhelming financial barrier.
"This pilot program offers a clear path to build on existing professional skills and transfer them to the local context.
"So many of our refugee and asylum seeker clients have existing skills, qualifications and experience they are yearning to use to help others and be contributing members in their new community.
"In the case of registered nurses, it's a perfect scenario to gain meaningful employment whilst helping alleviate pressure on the Western Australian health system."
