A groundbreaking digital platform designed to address critical challenges facing Australia’s nursing workforce will launch nationwide in the coming months, providing half a million nurses with free access to tailored professional development resources.
The Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association (APNA) is finalising the development of “Florence,” an innovative app that aims to connect nurses with relevant educational content and career opportunities while helping them track professional development and demonstrate their expertise.
“Florence has been designed to be a gamechanger for nurses and the health system,” said APNA Chief Executive Officer Ken Griffin. “30% of PHC Nurses are rarely used to their full scope of practice. This app will ensure that empowered nurses are matched to the right clinical roles, bringing the best of their skills and experience to improve the health of Australia.”
The app, set to launch in April-May 2025, addresses several persistent challenges in the nursing profession, including difficulty finding appropriate educational resources, lack of clear career pathways, and limited visibility of nurses’ specialised skills.
Rather than functioning as a traditional learning management system, Florence will aggregate and recommend quality educational content from various providers based on individual nurses’ interests, career stage and clinical setting. This content curation approach aims to streamline professional development in a field where options can be overwhelming.
“It’s completely informed by insights from nurses and we’re confident it will become a valuable tool for the nurses who are the largest part Australia’s health workforce,” Griffin noted.
Beyond education, Florence will offer several practical features including CPD tracking aligned with Ahpra requirements, goal-setting tools, and comparative insights into skills development. A particularly innovative aspect is the “evidence of expertise” function, which will help nurses showcase their specialised knowledge, potentially facilitating recognition of prior learning for postgraduate studies.
The platform is also designed to benefit healthcare organisations and educational institutions by enabling them to connect with nurses who match specific skill profiles for research projects, clinical trials, or employment opportunities.
As a not-for-profit initiative, APNA emphasises that Florence aligns with its organisational mission rather than commercial interests, which explains why access will be provided at no cost to individual nurses nationwide.
The app will be available to nurses across all healthcare settings, nursing students, nurse managers and organisations seeking to find and engage with nursing professionals.
Related: Why 1 in 5 Aged Care Nurses Are Ready to Leave the Sector
Ritchelle is a Content Producer for Healthcare Channel, Australia’s premier resource of information for healthcare.
