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The term Non-Medical Surgical Assistant (NMSA) encompasses all roles where healthcare clinicians without a medical degree provide clinical services during the perioperative cycle. The role of NMSA is gaining momentum within Australia. It is timely to ascertain who is preforming the role and quantify the practice setting and scope of practice to enable a nationally recognised platform for role evolution. For two months in 2015 a NMSA Practice Audit was available online. Sampling was initially of a convenience modality. A total of 83 clinicians responded. The majority of NMSAs were experienced RNs [>11yrs]; held post-graduate qualifications [80%], practiced predominantly in metropolitan areas [65%] and had been performing the role for 8 years or less. The specialty with the highest uptake of the NMSAs is orthopaedic surgery. This paper provides an overview of NMSAs practicing in Australia and provides cost effective evidence of the need for this service in Australian healthcare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Middleton S, Gardner G, Gardner A, Della P, Gibb M, Millar L. International Journal of Nursing Practice 2010; 16: 517-524 The first Australian nurse practitioner census: A protocol to guide standardized collection of information about an emergent professional group Internationally, collection of reliable data on new and evolving health-care roles is crucial. We describe a protocol for design and administration of a national census of an emergent health-care role, namely nurse practitioners in Australia using databases held by regulatory authorities. A questionnaire was developed to obtain data on the role and scope of practice of Australian nurse practitioners. Our tool comprised five sections and included a total of 56 questions, using 28existing items from the National Nursing and Midwifery Labour Force Census and nine items recommended in the Nurse Practitioner Workforce Planning Minimum Data Set. Australian Nurse Registering Authorities ( n = 6) distributed the survey on our behalf. This paper outlines our instrument and methods. The survey was administered to 238 authorized Australian nurse practitioners (85% response rate). Rigorous collection of standardized items will ensure health policy is informed by reliable and valid data. We will re-administer the survey 2 years following the first survey to measure change over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]