There is a chronic shortage of nurses in New Zealand. There is, however, no shortage of competent people who have trained as nurses and then taken a break to raise families, to travel or just because they wanted to try something different.
After a break of 5 plus years, it may seem ridiculous to even think about returning to nursing. You might feel you are out-of-date and have forgotten everything you know. However, lots of people, like staff nurse
Anne Marie do return to work. She had 12 years away from nursing and felt she would never be able to get back up to speed. But after completing a return to nursing programme through Waitemata DHB, she is now working at Waitakere hospital, both on the wards and as a clinical assistant.
In order to help make this transition back to work easier for you, we have created a
new section on our website dedicated to nurses wanting to return to practice.
We have
links to various programmes offered throughout the country aimed at nurses wanting to return to work. We also provide
profiles of nurses who have taken the plunge and returned to work, tips to get you started and things you should consider before enrolling in a return to practice programme.