ABN 69 004 271 103

National Office | 1 Napier Close, PO Box 219, DEAKIN WEST, ACT 2600
Tel: +61 (02) 6283 3400|Fax: +61 (02) 6282 3565|E-mail: canberra@rcna.org.au |Web: www.rcna.org.au

For Immediate Release

Dated: 21 September 2005

“…If you want one hundred years of prosperity - grow people.”

Health Industry ‘first’ - National Mentoring in Healthcare Conference in
Canberra

The last line of a Chinese proverb is the ethos behind the Royal College of Nursing,
Australia (RCNA), and Australian Mentor Centre (AMC), jointly hosting the National
Mentoring in Healthcare Conference: Sharing the Wisdom, at the Hyatt Hotel in
Canberra, 21-23 September 2005.

“RCNA is delighted to join with AMC in presenting members of the healthcare

community, for the very first time, the opportunity to explore the role of mentoring for
the future professional development of all members of the Australian Healthcare
Community”, said Rosemary Bryant, Executive Director of RCNA.

In Australia, mentoring is successfully being integrated into the healthcare setting across
a broad range of initiatives that include support to tertiary healthcare students and
graduates, inclusion of mentoring as part of healthcare leadership programs, and
introduction of mentoring programs as part of broader healthcare workforce initiatives.

Gilly Johnson, Director and Founder of Australian Mentor Centre, said that while a
number of conferences contain components addressing mentoring, this conference, while
recognizing mentoring as a formal workforce strategy, is also the first to bring people in
healthcare together to explore mentoring in its own right.

“Mentoring is not simply role modeling, it has many benefits for those involved. But,
more importantly we need to realize that when you share the wisdom, you empower a
future” said Ms Johnson.

Both Ms Bryant and Ms Johnson, are pleased that Simon Corbell MLA, the ACT Health
Minister, will be presiding over the official opening of the conference on Friday morning
at 8.50am.

“It’s exciting that mentoring is being acknowledged as part of the professional

development of all healthcare professionals – now and into the future,” Ms Bryant
concluded.

The keynote speaker at the conference is Dr Linda Phillips-Jones, a licensed

psychologist, consultant, researcher, and author based in Northern California, USA, and
principal consultant of The Mentoring Group. While other guest speakers include:
Clinical Professor Fiona Wood, FRCS, FRACS, AM, Australian of the Year 2005 –
Recipient (by Video); Ms Wendy McCarthy AO, Chancellor of the University of
Canberra and Chair of Plan Australia; Ms Linda McGregor, Managing Director of
Performance Mentors; and Gilly Johnson, Director of Australian Mentor Centre.
 -ENDS-

Media Contacts:
Rosemary Bryant FRCNA, Executive Director, RCNA. (02) 6283 3400 / 0414 675 405
(a.h.)
Gilly Johnson, Director and Founder of Australian Mentor Centre (02) 6283 3400
Editorial Notes:
If you want one year of prosperity - grow grain,
If you want ten years of prosperity - grow trees,
If you want one hundred years of prosperity - grow people.
-Chinese proverb

Rosemary Bryant, Executive Director of RCNA, is a Registered Nurse of 23 years

experience who possesses a broad career in acute hospital and community nursing as
well as in the bureaucracy – Rosemary is frequently sought to provide responses to
government and non-government health related issues and documents – such as the
increase in Nurse Practitioner roles within our current healthcare system. Rosemary’s
current positions include Board Director and 2nd Vice President of the International
Council of Nurses, and the Federal Minister for Health’s appointed representative to the
taskforce responsible for implementing the findings of the Report, The National Review
of Nursing Education 2002: Our Duty of Care. Rosemary’s previous positions include:
Senior Policy Officer in the Victorian Department of Human Services; Director, Nursing
Policy and Planning, in the then Health Department of Victoria; Director of Nursing,
Royal Adelaide Hospital; and Director of Nursing in the Child, Adolescent and Family
Health Service in South Australia.
Gilly Johnson, Director and Founder of Australian Mentor Centre, has been involved in
education, mentoring and coaching since 1993. She has designed and implemented
national mentoring programs for tertiary nursing students across Australia and more
recently, has been the driving force behind the creation and launch of Australian Mentor
Centre.

Royal College of Nursing, Australia (RCNA) is the leading national professional organisation for nurses
representing nursing
across all practice and academic spheres.
RCNA participates in international policy and lobbying for improved health outcomes through its membership
of
the International Council of Nurses.

Australia’s Peak Professional Nursing Organisation