2.5 Recruitment, selection and
employment guide including
industrial, legal and insurance
requirements
2.5.1 How to determine the roles for the
practice nurse
This part of the resource contains information to guide recruitment,
selection and employment of a nurse for a general practice.
Before undertaking the recruitment process it is important to consider the roles that a nurse may undertake at your practice.
Please refer to section 2.4 ‘How to determine the roles for the
practice nurse’.
The first steps in the recruitment process are to:
• ensure a range of industrial, legal and insurance
requirements are met
• identify the roles the nurse will undertake
• develop a job description and employment contract to
be offered
• develop an advertisement, plan how interviews will be
conducted, and decide on the appointment process.
At this time a decision should be made about who within the practice will be responsible for this process. For example, will
the practice manager be soley responsible for all aspects of the
recruitment of a nurse to the practice or will other practice team
members be involved? Assistance with nurse recruitment may
be sought from your division of general practice. Some divisions
also provide other supports such as a pool of nurses who can
be contracted to the practice.
At this stage it is also a good time to identify a suitable area in
the practice for the practice nurse. The area selected should
conform to occupational health and safety guidelines; provide
privacy for the nurse to attend to patients; and provide the
clinical setting and tools for the work identified for the nurse at
the practice including IM/IT access.
Templates to assist with the recruitment process have been
provided in section 2.4 of this guide.7
Key steps in the recruitment process
| Check professional indemnity cover |
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| Contracting, remuneration decisions |
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| Job description document |
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| Advertise |
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| Plan and conduct interview |
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| Appointment process |
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| Preparing for a new staff member — work area |
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| requirements and orientation plan |
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| Induction and orientation |
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Professional indemnity issues
One of the first things to do when thinking about employing a practice nurse is to check that the practice has sufficient
professional indemnity insurance to cover the general
practitioner and the practice nurse.
The information provided below does not substitute for professional legal advice. Contact your insurer for professional
indemnity advice.
Professional indemnity issues are addressed in the RCNA Nursing in General Practice — a guide for the general practice
team resource http://www.rcna.org.au/pages/nsggp.php.8
Recommended activities include:
• develop a clear job description document and
employment contract for the practice nurse position,
outlining the roles and responsibilities of
• the nurse within the
practice, and the conditions under which they are employed
• check the nurse’s registration by sighting the original annual
certificate to confirm that the registration is current
• ensure that the applicant has the required experience or
capability to meet the requirements of the job description,
including a referee
• check.
The practice’s policies and protocols should also be fully
documented, frequently reviewed and updated, and freely
available to the practice staff.
If the nurse who you intend to employ is an authorised nurse
immuniser, or is accredited to undertake cervical screening,
notify your insurer of this fact and ensure the practice nurse has
relevant documentation and current certification before they
perform these roles.
Further information regarding professional indemnity issues
and practice nurses can also be found on the AGPAL website
http://www.qip.com.au/
Professional standards
Nurses are legally bound by a framework of core professional
standards that makes them accountable and responsible for their
own actions within nursing practice. The core standards are:
• AMNC National Competency Standards for the
Registered Nurse
• ANMC National Competency Standards for the
Enrolled Nurse
• AMNC Code of Ethics for Nurses in Australia
• AMNC Code of Professional Conduct for Nurses in Australia
These core standards are available free of charge from the
Australian Nursing and Midwifery Council website
http://www.anmc.org.au
Standards which a practice nurse may be assessed against include the core competency standards, the competency
standards for nurses in general practice and the competency
standards for the advanced registered nurse and advanced
enrolled nurse. These are available from the Australian Nursing
Federation http://www.anf.org.au
The ANMC diagram below demonstrates the links between
competency standards, code of ethics, code of professional
conduct and nursing accreditation.
The following information under the headings ‘Employment Options’, ‘Employment Contract’,
‘Remuneration’ and ‘Discrimination’ was written as a
result of advice received from DLA Phillips Fox Legal
Firm. The advice is correct as at 5 October, 2006.
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