Procurement of Supplier/s to deliver an aged care transition to practice program

The Department is seeking organisations and/or established or future consortia as suppliers to deliver the program. It is anticipated that one or multiple suppliers will be engaged to facilitate up to 2,125 participant nurses commencing the program. Participants are to be nurses in their first two years in the aged care sector, having recently graduated or transitioned from other sectors.

• The program aims to:
  • Provide a supportive environment for nurses new to the aged care sector (including transition for other sectors);
  • Build upon the clinical skills nurses develop during their university or vocational studies with capabilities and knowledge specifically required for the aged care sector;
  • Increase the attractiveness of aged care nursing through mentorship and building career pathways; and
  • Enhance provider capability to attract, develop and retain new nurses to the aged care sector.
• The program should be evidence-based and draw on best practice. The program must include the provision of training to develop and build on clinical and other nursing skills relevant to aged care and the arrangement of mentors to support and give advice to participants throughout the program.

Training

• Training must be provided and should take into consideration skills, knowledge and experience needed to succeed in the aged care environment. Training should be spread over the duration of the program allowing nurses to translate this knowledge into practice. Training provided should consider individual needs of each nurse participating in the program.

Mentoring

• A mentor must be available to each participant to provide advice, mentoring and support. The mentor must be a nurse, and may be employed by the same organisation as the participant nurse, or they may sit outside of the organisation.
• All suppliers will be required to participate in a Community of Practice (CoP) to discuss program implementation issues, providing opportunities to share learnings to support the successful outcomes of the program.
• The Department is looking for one supplier to manage the CoP. It is intended that CoP meetings would be via online meetings, however web-based collaborative environments may be used.
• Tenderers can choose to include management of the CoP in their tender (including management costs) alongside delivery of the ACTTP program, but this is not a requirement.