Palliative Care Nursing Resources

Palliative care nursing

For education and training within the health care workforce, The Program of Experience in the Palliative Approach (PEPA) offer a free workforce placement scheme funded by the Department of Health and Aged Care.
Palliative Care Nurses Australia (PCNA) offer membership through which they provide advocacy, representation, and professional development opportunities. They provide information on palliative care nursing, including competency standards.
The Palliative Care Curriculum for Undergraduates (PCC4U) have courses to promote the inclusion of palliative care education in undergraduate studies and in ongoing professional development.
Palliative Care Australia has a searchable database of palliative care services National Palliative Care Service Directory. Use the ‘find a service provider’ search button to access the data base.
Read the International Council of Nurses position statement on the Nurses’ role in providing care to dying patients and their families (2012).

To understand the scope and focus of professionals involved in the delivery of palliative care and the competencies required to provide palliative care read the white paper from the European Association of Palliative Care: Core competencies in palliative care: an EAPC White Paper on palliative care education (2013).
Read the Competency Standards for Specialist Palliative Care Nursing on the Palliative Care Nurses Australia website.
For an overview of the context of nursing in palliative care and the development of nursing competency in palliative care nursing there is the National Professional Development Framework for Palliative Care Nursing in Aotearoa New Zealand (2014).
From Palliative Care Australia: The National Palliative care Standards, 5.1 edition document provides a framework for all nurses working in any role in palliative care.
The All Ireland Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care, along with other national palliative care organisations, has developed a Palliative Care Competence Framework, for evidence-based, safe and effective palliative care for generalist and specialist practitioners irrespective of place of practice. Individual chapters can be downloaded.

Further information about NP registration can be found at the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) website.
Australian College of Nursing (ACN). 2019, Achieving Quality Palliative Care for All: The Essential Role of Nurses (422kb pdf) is a White Paper that discusses the positive impact that nurse led models of palliative care can have and the challenges that are faced in implementing them.

Last updated 29 July 2026