School of Nursing

• Welcome
• Areas of Expertise
• Research ... Making a difference
• Locations
• History

Welcome

Message from the Head of School

Welcome to the School of Nursing, part of the College of Health and Science at the University of Western Sydney.

We are recognised as a national leader in nursing and midwifery education, research and scholarship, with the largest undergraduate nursing degree program in Australia.

Our postgraduate programs include courses in midwifery and specialty areas of nursing, with higher degree programs leading to MSc(Hons), MN(Hons), and PhD awards.

We are committed to providing our students with a contemporary, quality education in a stimulating and rewarding environment. I would encourage you to find out more about us here or contact us if you have any questions about our school, the courses we offer, our research or our other activities.

Professor John Daly
RN BHlthSc RivIHE, BA MEd (Hons) W'gong, PhD SCU, MACE FCN (NSW) FRCNA FINE
Head of School, School of Nursing

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Areas of Expertise

The School of Nursing has a strong reputation for quality, relevant and contemporary professional education, and is supported in clinical education and research activities by strong links with the health service sector, particularly in Greater Western Sydney.

These national and regional ties are complemented by collaborative partnerships and active international links - we work with a range of partners to advance nursing education and research.

The school hosts N-FORCE, a research group which brings a multidisciplinary perspective to its work on two distinct yet complementary research streams: support for vulnerable families; and chronic and complex care.

The school also hosts Xi Omicron Chapter (349). Members of Xi Omicron Chapters are members of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing (STTI). The Xi Omicron Chapter is the only Chapter of STTI in Australia and is active under the leadership of Professor Esther Chang (President) and Sharon Bourgeois (Vice-President). Other Chapters are located in over 90 countries and territories worldwide.

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Related Documents

• Xi Omicron Student Endorsement Form [Acrobat Document: 23Kb]
• Xi Omicron Nurse Leader Endorsement Form [Acrobat Document: 22Kb]
• Xi Omicron Student Application Form [Acrobat Document: 22Kb]
• Xi Omicron Nurse Leader Application Form [Acrobat Document: 23Kb]
• Xi Omicron Board Members 2005-7 [Acrobat Document: 36Kb]
• Xi Omicron Brochure [Acrobat Document: 74Kb]
• Xi Omicron Information [MS Word Document: 32Kb]

Research ... Making a difference

Message from our School Research Director

Professor Esther Chang

The University of Western Sydney continues to have a strong record of achievement in publications, research grants and scholarly activities. Many of these are attracting local, national and international interest and facilitating new developments that are making a difference in modern life. The School of Nursing is making a major contribution to the growing field of nursing knowledge and health care research - boosting standards, and extending our understanding of phenomena of concern in this challenging and complex area health care.

Professor Esther Chang is leading a team of researchers to improve the care of patients with dementia. This project will develop, implement, evaluate and promote sustainability of a decision-making framework for advanced dementia care. Clinical Nurse Consultants from the Sydney West Area Health Service is working collaboratively with specialist aged/dementia nurses to develop the framework. Professor Chang has also led a research team to evaluate a family information booklet for family carers of people with dementia. To address this need for information, a booklet has been developed by the three partner organisations in consultation with dementia and aged care experts, providing information on what to expect as the dementia progresses. The link to the website is http://www.uws.edu.au/research/nforce/projects/2006

Dr Jane Cioffi

Dr Jane Cioffi is currently working with UWS and the Nursing Research Unit at Cumberland Hospital in Sydney West Area Health Service. Her research includes issues that are articulated around the following key themes: the culturally diverse in acute care, clinical decision-making in emergency situations, clients with chronic and complex conditions, models of care and health protection including occupational and male health, weight management and physical activity.

Professor John Daly – Head of School

Professor John Daly is currently the Head of UWS School of Nursing. He is an active researcher with a track record of Successful collaborations with medical researchers (specialist medical practitioners in emergency, palliative care and cardiology) and allied health professionals. His current research programs include cardiovascular disease, palliative care and aged care.

Professor Rhonda Griffiths AM

Professor Rhonda Griffiths’ research interest is the management of people with diabetes, and she has been extensively involved with the development of diabetes education in Australia. Her research includes professional development for diabetes educators, epidemiological studies, outcome studies, models of service provision, funding models and systematic reviews. At South West Sydney Area Health Service, her research has focused on community nursing and primary health. CANR is home to the New South Wales Centre for Evidence Based Health Care which is the NSW Collaborating Centre of the Joanna Briggs Institute and works closely with the clinical facilities and clinicians across SSWAHS. The CANR team is headed up by Professor Rhonda Griffith and is active in the development and evaluation of evidence based guidelines as well as the publication of Systematic Reviews. CANR was established by the School of Nursing University of Western Sydney (UWS) and the Sydney South West Sydney Area Health Service (SSWAHS) and is based at the Liverpool Hospital which is a tertiary referral and teaching hospital affiliated with UWS and UNSW. For more information, please contact Professor Rhonda Griffiths or go to the CANR website at http://www.sswahs.nsw.gov.au/SSWAHS/CANR

Professor Debra Jackson

Professor Debra Jackson is the leader of the NFORCE University Research Group. She has a strong clinical and research background in children, adolescent and women’s health. Her doctoral research on women’s health was completed in 2000, and her major research efforts since then have been directed towards improving the health capacity of families and leadership/workforce issues in nursing. She is an experienced researcher who also has completed research and published work in a range of relevant areas including childhood obesity, adolescent drug use, family violence, parenting, particularly mothering and family support.

Professor Maree Johnson

Professor Maree Johnson has Two key streams of research that include Parenting: Understanding the meanings, experiences and outcomes of transition to parenthood and the early childhood years and Developing practice: Improving care provided by nurses and midwives. This research is aimed at improving the health and well being of children and families in Greater Western Sydney, particularly vulnerable children and families during pregnancy and the early childhood years and to develop and test innovative models of integrated services.

Associate Professor Louise O’Brien

The Mental Health Research Unit is a joint initiative between the School of Nursing, UWS and the Sydney West Area Health Service and the unit is headed by Associate Professor Louise O’Brien. Research in the MHNRU is currently based around themes of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Rehabilitation and Early Psychosis with a focus on Clinical Decision Making Process and Early Intervention.

Associate Professor Virginia Schmied

Associate Professor Virginia Schmied has built a program of nursing and midwifery research using both quantitative and qualitative methodologies to study the transition to parenthood, childbirth and parenting programs, breastfeeding, supporting parents with infants in neonatal nurseries, models of midwifery care and postnatal care and the role of child and family health nurse. More recently, she has undertaken or overseen work on child abuse and neglect, early intervention and models of service delivery for children and young people with behavioural and emotional problems in out-of-home care.

Professor Lesley Wilkes

The Clinical Nursing Research Unit Nepean Hospital is headed up by Professor Lesley Wilkes who has a well-established research program led by Professor Lesley Wilkes. The research team comprises of highly experienced researchers from UWS and Collaborators from Sydney West Area Health Service, Our Lady of Consolation Aged Care Society, Southern Cross Homes, Children’s Hospital Education Research Institute, Westmead and The Benevolent Society. Professor Lesley Wilkes’ research into ‘Cancer and Palliative Care’, ‘Chronic and Complex Care’ ‘Pastoral Care’, ‘Spiritual Needs of Families’, ‘Family Support in Health and Illness’, Dementia Care, and ‘Adolescent Health’.

Locations

The School of Nursing offers programs on Bankstown, Campbelltown, Hawkesbury and Parramatta campuses. For information about the programs we offer and their availability, please see the College of Health and Science course directory.

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History

The School of Nursing was established in January 2006. It was formerly known as the School of Nursing, Family and Community Health, which was created in 2001 following the merging of the Faculty of Health at UWS Hawkesbury, the Division of Nursing at UWS Macarthur, and the School of Nursing and Health at UWS Nepean.

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