media Releases and Position statements

Position statements

8 July 2019

Breastfeeding and breast milk substitutes

ACNN supports the aim of the World Health Organization International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes to promote and protect breastfeeding as the best form of nutrition for all infants, in particular the sick and/or preterm infants admitted to neonatal units. ACNN also supports the Australian response to the WHO code, the Marketing in Australia of Infant Formulas (MAIF) Agreement, as updated in 2016. Read more in the full statement.

23 October 2018

The Australian College of Neonatal Nurses joins with other nursing, midwifery and medical professional organisations to strongly support the evacuation of all children and families from Nauru and Manus Island to Australia for professional assessment and treatment. ACNN advocates for the welfare of all families, recognising the particular needs of disadvantaged and vulnerable groups, including children in detention centres. ACNN calls on our federal MPs to listen to expert health professionals, to close the detention centres on Nauru and Manus and transfer all remaining people to processing centres in Australia where professional medical and mental healthcare is readily available for all, according to need.

A/Prof Karen Walker
President ACNN

3 January 2017

ACNN strongly supports the position statement Nurses, midwives and vaccination, issued by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) in October 2016, see http://www.nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au/Codes-Guidelines-Statements/Position-Statements/vaccination.aspx

ACNN expects its members to comply with the professional standards set by the NMBA. In accordance with the NMBA, ACNN promotes the use of best available evidence as the basis for health care advice. The Australian National Immunisation Handbook 10th edition provides evidence-based advice on vaccinations and their public health associated benefits.

Up to date information can be found on the website Immunise Australia Program http://www.immunise.health.gov.au/internet/immunise/publishing.nsf/Content/national-immunisation-program-schedule

A/Prof Karen Walker
President ACNN

14 June 2016

The Australian College of Neonatal Nurses Inc. (ACNN) strongly supports the view of the Australian College of Nursing (ACN) that access to comprehensive health care should be available to all persons regardless of visa status. ACNN also advocates for equitable and holistic health care. ACNN agrees with the ACN position that the Australian Border Force Act 2015 (the Act) undermines the ability of nurses and midwives to uphold their professional standards under the Code of Professional Conduct and Code of Ethics for nurses in Australia and that the Act is inconsistent with the International Council of Nursing Code of Ethics for Nurses.

ACNN is concerned about the recent transfer of a woman to Brisbane for an emergency delivery due to complications. Without an open, clear review of health management it is uncertain if the standard of care for mothers and babies in immigration detention is the same standard of care available to all Australians. The Act prohibits nurses and midwives working directly or indirectly for the Department of Immigration and Border Protection from disclosing information regarding access and quality of health care and prescribes a penalty of 2 years jail for breaches of the Act. ACNN is an active provider of education and training for all health workers working with newborns in the Asia-Pacific region; however we deeply regret that the current situation, in regard to refugees and asylum seekers and The Act, prevents ACNN members from providing this education and other services in-country in Nauru, for the benefit of locals, refugees and asylum seekers.

A/Prof Karen Walker
President ACNN

8 March 2016

The Australian College of Neonatal Nurses (ACNN) strongly supports the Australian Medical Association (AMA) in calling for:
1. A moratorium on asylum seeker children being sent back to detention centres.
2. The immediate release of all children from both offshore and onshore detention centres into the community where they can be properly cared for.
3. The establishment of a transparent, national statutory body of clinical experts, independent of government, with the power to investigate and report to the Parliament on the health and welfare of asylum seekers and refugees.
4. If the Government or Opposition cannot provide satisfactory health care to people seeking asylum, then their policies should be revisited.

A/Prof Karen Walker
President ACNN