ADJOURNMENT

Senator TYRRELL (Tasmania—Independent TAS Whip) (19:45): Tonight I rise to speak about a group of workers that are fundamental to the health and wellbeing of our communities: our nurses. I rise to speak about an issue that isn't talked about enough but could make a world of difference to rural and regional communities in particular: the role of primary healthcare nurses across regional Australia and Tasmania.

Nurses are the backbone of our health system. They're highly educated and highly skilled, and they make up 54 per cent of Australia's entire health workforce. Yet, far too often, their contribution in primary care is overlooked, underresourced and underutilised.

In Tasmania, we have over 5,000 nurses working in primary health care. Many of them are highly trained with postgraduate qualifications and master's degrees, but, despite their expertise, too many of these nurses are underutilised, not because of a lack of willingness or ability but because of funding limitations and outdated scope-of-practice restrictions. There are six times as many primary care nurses as there are GPs in Tasmania, but our systems are not structured to support them to work to their full potential.

I've met with representatives from the Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association, and their message is clear and simple: nurses want to do more. They are already doing critical preventive health work. They are promoting self-care, having lifestyle and behaviour change conversations and managing chronic disease in partnership with their GPs, but too many are bogged down with tasks that don't require a clinical qualification.

Our latest workforce survey shows that 45 per cent of nurses in general practice are regularly performing office admin, 44 per cent are doing non-clinical cleaning and a quarter are answering phones and working the reception desk. We are wasting their capacity. It's not just inefficient; it's a missed opportunity, especially at a time when we face GP shortages, an aging population and rising rates of chronic disease.

Tasmania is already feeling the pressure. We've seen it at the Mersey Community Hospital, where the emergency department is in crisis. Earlier this month, patients waited up to 87 hours for a bed—three and a half days.

This is not sustainable, and it reinforces something we all know: a strong health system does not begin at the emergency department; it starts in primary care. It starts with the support we give to the people preventing hospital visits in the first place. That's why I want to highlight the Nursing in Primary Health Care Program run by the Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association.

In its pilot phase, it created 105 new nursing positions across general practice, aged care and Aboriginal community controlled health services, but not one of those positions were in Tasmania—not one. It wasn't because the need wasn't there; it definitely was. The funding just didn't stretch that far.

Meanwhile, communities across Tasmania are desperate for better access to health care. Clinics want to do things differently. Nurses are ready to step up, but they can't do it without structured, ongoing support.

We've seen what's possible when the government listens and invests where the need is. Just last week, the Devonport Medicare Mental Health Centre officially opened. This is a huge win for the north-west of Tassie, and it shows what happens when community needs are met with meaningful investment.

Now it's time to bring that same mindset to our primary healthcare nurses in Devonport, Queenstown, St Helens—right across Tasmania. So, tonight, I'm calling on the government to expand and extend the Nursing in Primary Health Care Program and make sure Tasmania gets its fair share. I'm calling for action to cut the red tape that is keeping nurses behind desks and doing cleaning duties instead of delivering the care they are trained and qualified to provide.

The government is currently reviewing funding models for general practice through a national scope of practice review, and we expect this to lead to action in the next budget. That is welcome progress, but we must ensure it supports nurses as well as doctors. While I support better compensation for GPs, we need to also acknowledge that, in the past, medical organisations have resisted expanding the roles of nurses, and that has to change.

If we are serious about building a stronger, more sustainable health system, especially in regional Australia, we have to start with the people already on the ground who are already doing the work and ready to do more. I am grateful for the incredible calibre of nurses we are so lucky to have, and I want to give them a crack at doing what they are more than capable of.