The Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association (APNA) is in the final stages of developing Florence, a new free app for all 500,000 nurses across Australia. Launching in April-May 2025 and will supercharge professional development and career growth for nurses, aiding recruitment and retention in the sector.
The problem
When it comes to education for nurses to choose, there are endless options. It's overwhelming. Currently there is no central place to find quality nursing education, or to get recommendations relevant to a nurse's health care setting, career stage or clinical interest. There is also no way for a nurse to know how their skill set compares to other nurses, and no way to have evidence of their expertise. Florence will change this.
In addition, for organisations, it's really hard to engage with the right nurses. From offering professional opportunities, like participating in clinical trials or research, to job opportunities, or ensuring nurses know about their brand and offering. Florence will change this.
Florence, a new app by APNA
At its core, Florence is an aggregator and match maker, connecting nurses with education and opportunities that will advance their professional development and career growth. As a not-for-profit organisation, APNA is launching this app as it aligns with our Vision and Misson, not for just commercial gain.
Did we mention it's free for nurses?
Florence will be launched in the coming months and features:
- Learning content aggregator and recommendation engine: Making it easier than ever before for nurses to find learning content that is relevant to them. It is not a learning management system and will not house education content; it combines and recommends the best educational content, at no standard listing cost for education creators.
- Uncovering blind spots: Enabling nurses to identify their areas of improvement compared to other nurses and explore what other nurses are learning. Plus, they can explore nursing expertise in other health settings, allowing them insight into their required skillset.
- Goal setting and CPD tracking: Helping nurses create, track and achieve their goals and allowing them to capture and organise learning in seconds, aligned with Ahpra requirements and professional needs.
- Evidence of expertise: Highlighting the breadth of their knowledge, backed up with data, all underpinned by a teaching taxonomy, and a Commonwealth Government funded and supported Career and Education Framework for Australian nurses. Allowing easy recognition of prior learning (advanced standing) for postgraduate studies and to back-up their skillset.
- Nurse engagement platform: Allowing partners to engage with nurses to highlight the education they offer and/or promote their brand.
- Opportunity matchmaker: Using data and evidence to connect nurses with relevant opportunities like research projects, collaborations, and employment.
The free app is designed to be used by:
- Nurses across all healthcare settings
- Student nurses
- Nurse Managers
- Organisations looking to find a nurse
- Organisations looking to engage with nurses
APNA Chief Executive Officer Ken Griffin said launching Florence is a big step for the organisation.
"Florence has been designed to be a gamechanger for nurses and the health system," Mr Griffin said. "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."
"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."
The Florence
