Scholarships

Grace Kinsella Women’s Health Memorial Scholarship

Background

The Grace Kinsella Women’s Health Memorial Scholarship was established in memory of Grace Kinsella in 2018 by her family. Grace Kinsella was an Aboriginal woman of the Worimi tribe born in 1948. Grace was a nurse and midwife who was a passionate advocate for women’s health, especially Aboriginal and Torres Strait women’s health. She initially worked in the Hunter Valley, and later in Sydney, and became the first Aboriginal independent women’s health practitioner in NSW. Grace set up women’ health clinics in western Sydney, in caravan parks, community centres, and shopping centres. She always maintained a strength-based and trauma-informed approach which was very effective in attracting women to come to her clinics for their preventative health checks. Grace will forever be known in the community as a leader to her friends and colleagues, and role model to nurses and midwives who aspired to be just like her. 

Purpose

The purpose of the Grace Kinsella Women’s Health Memorial Scholarship is to provide annual funding for Aboriginal and Torres Strait nurses and midwives to undertake the required education to prepare them for employment as a Women’s Health Nurse.  The Women’s Health Nurse as a career path still struggles to gain traction in the health field, yet these nurses play such an important role in the community. This scholarship aims to encourage more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nurses and midwives to pursue a career in this field.

(The educational requirements for the WHN role can be found on the website of the Australian Women’s Health Nurse Association, the Advanced Practice Standards: https://www.womenshealthnurses.asn.au/resource/#)

Scholarship

This year, two scholarships are being provided of $1000 each for two successful applicants. Grateful thanks to Grace Kinsella’s family and the Australian Women’s Health Nurse Association for providing the funding for this year’s scholarships.

Terms and Conditions

If you are successful in achieving a scholarship, you will be required to:

• have submitted an application and/or been accepted into a relevant education program to prepare you for employment as a Women’s Health Nurse within six months of receiving the scholarship
• provide a short-written report within three months of completing the education program required to become a Women’s Health Nurse
• be willing to provide a photo and profile for use by CATSINaM in communications including website and social media.

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for the scholarship, you must:

• identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
• be a full member of CATSINAM
• have a minimum of two years post-registration experience as nurse or midwife
• disclose information about any CATSINaM scholarship that has been received within the last two years
• has not defaulted on the terms and conditions of a CATSINaM scholarship previously awarded.

Selection criteria

Applications will be judged according to the following criteria:

• Application form is completed
• CV demonstrates nursing or midwifery practice relevant to goal of being a WHN
• Quality of written supporting information
• Applicant explains why he/she wants to become a WHN
• Applicant explains how scholarship will help he/she become a WHN

How to apply

In order to apply for a scholarship, you must submit:

• a completed application form 
• a 300 word description of why you want to become a Women’s Health Nurse and how the scholarship will help you achieve your goal of becoming a Women’s Health Nurse
• a summarised curriculum vitae (maximum length two (2) A4 pages)

Please send your application and supporting materials to: reception@catsinam.org.au

Expression of Interest for remote clinical placement opportunity: 2019

The Royal Flying Doctors Service (RFDS) has provided CATSINaM with funding to assist our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nursing and midwifery students to undertake a clinical placement in remote locations.

General Information:

Expressions of interest (EOI) is sought from third/final year students wishing to undertake a clinical placement in a remote location in the Northern Territory or Queensland in 2019.

We will be working with the centres for remote health in Alice Springs, Mount Isa and Longreach to organise the placements for us. Possible NT sites for clinical placement are: Katherine, Gove, Nhulunbuy, Tennant Creek and Alice Springs.  Possible Qld sites for clinical placements are: Mt Isa, Boulia, Richmond, Julia Creek, Cloncurry, Normanton, Karumba and Weipa.

These sites provide students and supervisors access to accommodation, academic support, professional administrative staff and cultural educators.

For more information click here 

Rhonda Marriott Scholarship

The Rhonda Marriott Scholarship provides support and recognises the contribution of Aboriginal nurses and midwives and the crucial role that they play in WA Health.

This scholarship assists WA Health employed Aboriginal registered nurses and midwives with the costs associated with postgraduate education. Eligible courses include Postgraduate Certificates and Postgraduate Diplomas.

Scholarship funding covers the full cost of each unit of study per semester and funds are dispersed once the Nursing and Midwifery Office have received a copy of results showing successful completion of each unit.

Applications for the Rhonda Marriott scholarship for 2019 are now open and close 11 February 2019. You must select that you are applying for the Rhonda Marriott scholarship on your application.