At North West Regional Hospital (NWRH), Clinical Nurse Educator Erin Quirke is leading an innovative accreditation and education initiative that is delivering benefits far beyond Tasmania’s North West. With more than 13 years of emergency nursing experience and a strong focus on paediatric care, Erin identified a critical need to strengthen staff capability and ensure consistent, evidence-based care for children presenting to emergency departments.
In response, she developed a structured paediatric progression pathway for emergency nurses, creating a clear framework for education, competency development and professional accreditation. As part of this work, Erin undertook specialist training at the Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne, gaining NeoResus trainer accreditation and further enhancing local expertise in neonatal and paediatric emergency care.
Erin also reviewed and adapted Queensland Health’s Optimus CORE program, tailoring it to meet the needs of Tasmanian clinicians and patients. The resulting program has improved nurses’ confidence, capability and preparedness in responding to paediatric emergencies, supporting safer and more consistent care for children and families across the region.
Importantly, the impact of the initiative extends well beyond NWRH. The Optimus Program is now being adopted across Tasmania, establishing a statewide benchmark for paediatric emergency education and supporting a more consistent approach to workforce development across the Tasmanian Health Service. Through interdepartmental training and collaboration, Erin’s work is helping to strengthen capability, improve patient outcomes and foster a culture of continuous improvement across the state.
A key contributor to the project’s success has been the support of the Clifford Craig Health Foundation, which provided a $7,000 grant to assist Erin’s initiative. The Foundation is dedicated to advancing healthcare through education, research and innovation, investing in projects that improve patient outcomes and strengthen the health workforce across Northern and North West Tasmania.
The funding has helped build local expertise in paediatric emergency care, enabled enhanced training opportunities for clinicians, and supported the development of a program that is now influencing practice across the state. By investing in frontline clinicians and innovative ideas, the Clifford Craig Health Foundation continues to play an important role in improving healthcare outcomes for Tasmanians.
Through leadership, innovation and collaboration, Erin Quirke’s accreditation initiative is creating a lasting legacy for paediatric emergency care, strengthening workforce capability and delivering long-term benefits for children, families and health professionals across Tasmania.
First published in Edition 57 — August 2026.