Nurses on the front line

It seems fitting that on the 200th anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birth, nurses are being celebrated the world over for their bravery, skills and sacrifice.

Australia must plan for the toll on mental health

A UNSW Professor says long-term mental health issues are a hidden threat from COVID-19 in launching this year’s Australian mental health prize.

Nursing the next generation

Health services need to consider the impact of COVID-19 on the work of the maternal and child health nurses who give preventative care and support to women and families in the community.

Nurses are not just needed now, they are essential to post-pandemic recovery

Nurses have proven their worth during the COIVD-19 pandemic and they will also play a key role in the country’s post-pandemic recovery.

A chance to reframe health politics

The response to COVID-19 is a reminder of the huge capacity of states to improve health outcomes and exposes how our acceptance of suffering on the basis of ‘affordability’ costs lives.

A global emergency demands a global solution

Dealing with the crisis alone incurs only deeper health and economic costs. Tackling a crisis that knows no borders demands a truly global response.

Understanding – and enforcing – self-isolation

Australia will likely hit a peak in coronavirus cases around the height of flu season, further straining our health system and increasing the likely death toll. Getting a flu vaccination in addition to other health measures will help.

Testing new arrivals could save more lives

It would be a tragedy if the coronavirus outbreak continues to spread because the authorities failed to give swab tests to everyone who meets the appropriate criteria.

Regional leadership and responses to the coronavirus

Greater communication and coordination between all countries is needed until the scientific community develops a vaccine to halt the spread of the new coronavirus.

Australia could fare worse than China in the virus outbreak

Australia could see higher death rates from the novel coronavirus outbreak than China, due to our relatively older population and the more severe symptoms they suffer.

COVID-19: Profit or people?

It’s time for Australia to take real action to prevent coronavirus taking hold in this country. Closing the nation’s borders to foreign visitors could help us contain the virus and protect our most vulnerable citizens from harm.

Protect the nation – or international trade?

COVID-19 has created a tightrope on which governments must balance between protecting their own citizens and maintaining diplomatic and trading relationships abroad.