The Pathway to Specialty Practice (PSP) is a 6-month program, with two intakes January and May.
St Vincent's Mental Health (or Inner East Mental Health Service) provides psychiatric services to people who are aged between 16 and 65 and living in the cities of Yarra and Boroondara.
You will have the opportunity to undertake a non academic or academic pathway. The academic pathway includes credits towards a postgraduate degree.
The Anaesthetic rotation will include but not limited to conducting systematic patient assessment skills, airway management, different anaesthetic techniques and haemodynamic monitoring related to cardiac and respiratory function. Support from education, specialised nurses and learning packages will reinforce your knowledge and skills in both Anaesthetics and Post Anaesthetic Care Unit. The PACU consists of an 18 bay, high acuity unit that provides immediate post-operative care for patients following surgery. During this rotation you be exposed to skills including but not limited to systematic patient assessment, airway management, early recognition of post-operative complications, pain and post op nausea and vomiting management and haemodynamic monitoring in all surgical specialities.
A 28 bed ward located across the 6 floor, patients are admitted for a variety of conditions, including acute leukaemia, lymphoma, myeloma, primary and metastatic tumour disease, autologous stem cell transplantation, palliation and islet cell transplantation.
4 West is an 18 bed ward that comprises 6 CCU beds and 12 Cardiology/Respiratory beds. The ward specialises in cardiology patients who have undergone coronary angioplasty, post-acute myocardial infarction, unstable angina, endocarditis, heart failure, arrhythmia management and pacemaker insertion. We also care for respiratory patients with exacerbation of chronic conditions including asthma and COPD, sometimes needing non-invasive ventilation.
4 East is a 20 bed ward with 4 Respiratory medicine beds. The patient mix includes cardiac patients from the Intensive Care Unit that may have temporary cardiac pacing. Patients are admitted from home for procedures such as CAGs, valve replacement, PPM insertions and thoracic surgery including VATs pleurodesis, lobectomies and pneumonectomies. All the beds on this unit have cardiac monitoring, as patient conditions can change quickly, so assessment skills will become refined
St Vincent’s at Home provides multi-disciplinary home based care under Hospital in the Home (HITH) and District Nursing (DN) streams. The program aims to offer consumers the choice to receive care in their home, whilst supporting access and flow from acute, subacute and community. The program operates seven days per week and receives referrals from all areas of SVHM and community providers.
St Vincent’s Correctional Health Service provides acute medical, surgical and psycho-social care to prisoners in Victoria, through arrangements with Justice Health. The Correctional Health Service operates from two locations; the St Vincent's campus in Fitzroy - St Augustine's, Port Phillip Prison at Laverton. Within these facilities, St. Vincent's Correctional Health employs a wide range medical, nursing, medical professional and support services staff. The St. Vincent's campus provides a ten-bed, maximum security in-patient unit, called St. Augustine's and offers state-wide tertiary services to Victorian prison population.
St Vincent’s Nephrology Service provides a full range of dialysis services for patients experiencing acute and chronic renal failure. It caters for a wide range of patient needs including acute, satellite and home services, as well as pre-dialysis assessment and education and work up for transplantation. On-site dialysis is provided at St Vincent’s, Fitzroy and St George’s, Kew. The service also offers supportive care for St Vincent’s & Mercy Private and Peter McCallum Cancer Centre (PMCC) and supports satellite dialysis services in Sale, Werribee, Warrnambool, Swan Hill, Kyabram and Shepparton. The main Dialysis Unit is a 15-chair community facility where you will appreciate the role and importance kidneys play as a major body system. The Dialysis Unit also has a Home Therapies Unit –the teaching for both home haemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis is undertaken in the community unit and at home.
The Emergency Department is a challenging, dynamic learning environment with a great variety of patient presentations. It has 38 cubicles including resuscitation, acute, fast track, short stay and new mental health hub. There is a strong emphasis on team work and being a member of a multidisciplinary team. During your rotation in the emergency department it is anticipated that you will develop strong assessment skills, learn to prioritise care and work as part of a multidisciplinary team.
8 East is a 24 bed unit consisting of four medical units and four GEM beds. Our patients have varied and complex medical conditions providing a great introduction into other speciality areas such as neurology, neurosurgery, cardiology, respiratory, endocrinology, oncology, gerontology, palliative care and infectious diseases. We are the primary discharge destination for ICU medical patients and we embrace a multidisciplinary team approach to patient assessment, evaluation and discharge planning to provide optimal patient outcomes.
8 West is a 24 bed ward which provides a multidisciplinary assessment of General Medical patients admitted via Emergency and ICU. The General Medicine unit includes 4 cardiac monitored beds and 4 GEM plus sub-acute beds. The unit is a dynamic environment with a high patient turnover and a patient population with diverse and complex medical conditions.
10 East is a 24-bed ward with a co-located 4 bed inpatient dialysis treatment area. Nursing staff care for patients with a variety of medical conditions, ranging from acute stroke, multiple sclerosis, and epilepsy to acute renal failure. There is also an opportunity to care for renal transplant patient’s pre and post operatively and a strong multidisciplinary team approach to patient care.
Geriatric Evaluation Management (GEM) is a sub-acute unit has 22 beds and provides an excellent opportunity to consolidate your skills as a clinician in a friendly and positive environment. It is a busy ward, admitting patients with medical and post-surgical conditions/ co-morbidities, e.g. orthopaedic, cardiac surgery, respiratory disease, unstable diabetes, delirium, renal impairment and neurological conditions. The multidisciplinary approach to care ensures patients achieve optimum health and function prior to discharge. GEM Fitzroy rotations do not include night duty
5 West is a 29-bed ward and a microsurgery unit renowned for being world leaders. The ward specialises in surgery of head and neck cancers requiring reconstruction, AAA repairs using endoluminel grafts, vascular bypass surgery, skin grafts, reconstruction following mastectomies, free flaps, amputations, and replants of digits and limbs.
7 West is a 25-bed busy acute ward with a variety of complex patients requiring procedures such as TURP’s and prostatectomies, the medical and/or surgical management of bowel diseases and conditions such as pancreatitis and ascites.
9 East is a 24-bed surgical ward, caring for patients undergoing elective (joint replacement surgery) and emergency orthopaedic procedures, we also have a number of beds allocated for the care of rheumatology patients. It’s a very supportive team environment, fun and fast paced.
There are regular local education sessions held on the unit, and local competencies to complete.
9 West is a 20-bed unit specialising in orthopaedic oncology. The unit cares for patients requiring surgical intervention for tumours of the musculoskeletal system and orthopaedic trauma, and has endocrinology beds. The nursing teams are dynamic with a focus on providing Graduate support and education to ensure best patient outcomes.
The Department of Critical Care Medicine encompasses the Intensive Care and High Dependency Units, totalling 19 critical care beds. In this challenging and dynamic learning environment you will care for patients requiring high levels of organ support and monitoring. During your rotation you will develop strong assessment skills and sound clinical reasoning. Additional clinical services (such as the ICU Liaison Service and Donate Life) and in house non-clinical services (such as Research and Quality Improvement).
This weekday only rotation involves the areas of Medical Imaging, CMMI, MRI and Angiography. Nursing experience and education incorporates department competencies, and patient care from pre-assessment through to procedure and recovery care. You work alongside radiographers and doctors to perform procedures such as biopsies, drainages, cardiac stress tests and lumbar punctures. Learning is well supported in this multi-disciplinary team, with opportunities to develop clinical and organisational skills in patient-focused nursing. You’ll be supported in Medical Imaging, with the option of a second rotation to the Angiography suite, and you’ll learn how your skills as a surgical and medical nurse combine, your powers as a scrub and scout nurse entwine and improve your communication, consultation skills with multiple craft groups in this tight knit department where consultants work alongside nurses to achieve a better patient outcome.
10 West is a 24-bed, acute surgical ward, with facilities for monitoring epilepsy. Common surgical procedures include craniotomies, tumour resections, spinal surgery, drainage of haemorrhages, and clipping of aneurysms. The nursing is challenging, requires a multidisciplinary approach and learning is supported by ward based education sessions. The neurosciences teams are committed to the professional development of nursing staff.
The Operating suite consists of 12 theatres and performs more than 9000 operations per year. During this rotation you may rotate through each specialty theatre and develop skills in the roles of both an instrument and circulating nurse role. You will be involved in the planning and preparation for surgical procedures ensuing the appropriate instruments, equipment and consumables are available. Skills will involve care and management of instruments, maintain aseptic techniques, developing a surgical conscience, assisting the surgeon with procedures and gain great knowledge of anatomy. Dexterity, good organisational skills and teamwork are crucial in this environment.