building greater knowledge in complex areas of nursing

Tuija Juusti received the HESTA and ANMF (Vic Branch) Forensic Mental Health Nursing Scholarship to help fund her study in mental health nursing.

Working as a psychiatric enrolled nurse at Forensicare’s Thomas Embling Hospital, Tuija was accepted into the graduate program in 2020 and will complete her graduate diploma in mental health nursing this year with the help of the ANMF and HESTA mental health nursing scholarship.

Receiving the scholarship was a welcome surprise for Tuija, and it has helped ease the pressure of combining work with study. “I was really excited. It’s also great to know forensic mental health nursing is recognised and valued in this way. It’s an important field of study so it is good to know there’s assistance out there for people entering this field”.

Working within a complex field, Tuija’s studies are helping to build greater knowledge and skills to deal with the challenges facing the patients she works with. “The people we work with have often experienced extensive trauma in their lives and are very vulnerable,” she says.  “Their recovery can be a hard and slow journey”.

For Tuija, the best part of her job is supporting her patients on their road to recovery. “When people arrive at the hospital, they are often very vulnerable and unwell.  Many find it difficult to build trust and it can take time to create the rapport needed to support them. 

“Thank you to HESTA and the ANMF for awarding me the scholarship.  Mental health nursing is extremely rewarding, and I feel very lucky to have this support at this stage of my career. I strongly encourage nurses and nursing students who are passionate about mental health and helping vulnerable people to consider becoming a registered psychiatric nurse”.