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4 NOTRE DAME SCHOOL OF NURSING & MIDWIFERY Associate Professor Caroline Bulsara notredame.edu.au/ nursing&midwifery20 THE UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME AUSTRALIA SCHOOL OF NURSING & MIDWIFERY Higher Degree by Research Symposium 2020 Location The University of Notre Dame Australia Fremantle Campus The symposium is a wonderful networking opportunity for staff and research students. We are showcasing postgraduate and research work within a supportive, collegial atmosphere at the School of Nursing & Midwifery. The symposium with provide a lively combination of presentations, e-posters and keynote presentations. Prizes for best presentations and best first-time presenter will be awarded. Please join us to enjoy and celebrate postgraduate student and staff research achievements within the school. A call for abstracts will be sent out soon. Please register your interest (for catering requirements) with Chelsea Smart: chelsea.smart@nd.edu.au or Caroline Bulsara, research coordinator: caroline.bulsara@nd.edu.au Research The last few months have been a bit of a roller-coaster for research within the school! Due to the COVID-19 pandemic a lot of researchers and research students are having to slow down or cease their research work for the immediate future. It has been a worrying time. Also, we had an all-consuming, busy lead up to the planned Research Symposium. Thanks to the enormous help from our donors for our prizes as well as the help from our own Chelsea Smart we were looking forward to an afternoon of networking and research. A week before the event the COVID-19 crisis arrived at our doorstep and sadly we had to postpone the event as it was just too risky to hold it on campus. At this stage, everything is still ready to go and we are planning to hold the event later this year. Thank you to everyone who agreed to participate and were willing to present. Be reassured that your day will come! …if not a little later this year. I will keep everyone posted regarding a new date and time. Stay safe in the meantime. Associate Professor Caroline Bulsara Research Coordinator caroline.bulsara@nd.edu.au Midwifery Semester 1 2020 has been a challenging time for the Notre Dame Midwifery students; COVID-19 has had an impact on everyone, and students in healthcare areas have been particularly affected. The wonderful Notre Dame midwifery students have braved the daily changes and managed to undertake their clinical placements in some challenging situations. The midwifery academics want to especially acknowledge the 13 graduating students who are currently into their eighth week of professional practice. They have been working hard (full-time) to complete their extensive portfolio requirements, doing day shifts and night shifts to care for childbearing women. It is important for midwifery students to continue to work alongside experienced staff to support women throughout this important stage of their lives. This has not been easy due to the general anxiety in the community and hospitals, but the students have continued to go on placement, and have always put women and their families at the centre of their care. In addition, some COVID-19 restrictions have not made it easy for Notre Dame midwifery students to continue supporting the women who volunteer for Continuity of Care. The midwifery academic team is proud of the creative methods students have used to support their Continuity of Care women during this time. The entire midwifery team congratulates the graduating midwifery students and we all wish them well in their transition to the workforce. The relatively seamless transfer of the midwifery program to the online learning environment – from a fully on campus, face-to- face delivery – has been achieved because all members of the midwifery team have worked together. The tremendous support of the extraordinarily patient Learning and Teaching Coordinator, Michelle Katavatis, has enabled the midwifery team to move to the online platform. As a result, the midwifery students have had few issues with the online teaching and learning. The next semester may look different yet again, but the midwifery team will continue to enable opportunities for continuing students to learn at an advanced level and to practise in the clinical space. Sheena McChlery GDM Program Coordinator If you would like information about the Graduate Diploma of Midwifery at Notre Dame in Fremantle, please contact the GDM Program Coordinator, Sheena McChlery on 9433 0216, or email sheena.mcchlery@nd.edu.au NURSING NEWS