Meet Juliane Samara, Senior Outreach Nurse Practitioner

"My name is Juliane Samara, and I have been an endorsed nurse practitioner since completing my Masters Nurse Practitioner at University of Sydney in 2013. My speciality areas include oncology, specialist palliative care and aged care.

I spent the last 8 years working at Clare Holland House in Canberra, providing specialist palliative care services to older people living in 28 residential aged care facilities.  During this time, I was involved in running a clinical trial of Palliative Care Needs Rounds – a proactive model of care that reduces hospital presentations and length of stay. Our team won several national awards for this work. Palliative Care Needs Rounds have now been implemented nationally and internationally and presented as a solutions-focused model to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety.

Last year I was invited by the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation to represent them as a member of the Commonwealth Aged Care Taskforce. I was the only clinician on the Taskforce and had the opportunity to represent nurses and aged care staff, and to influence the future of aged care by arguing that funding for clinical care should remain the responsibility of the Government.

At the beginning of this year, I decided it was time for a sea-change and moved into the role of Senior Outreach NP in Eurobodalla.  I’ve been busy setting up a hospital avoidance service, aiming to reduce emergency department presentations for older people who live in the 8 residential aged care facilities in the area. So far, it’s been challenging but enjoyable and I have been meeting lots of new people.

I really enjoy working with older people and love providing palliative care. It gives me an opportunity to really connect with patients and their families at the most vulnerable time in their lives, and to make a real difference in ensuring people live and die well, with their symptoms well managed. It is such a privilege to be with someone in their last hours of life and to help families navigate what can be a very distressing time.

One of the best things about moving to Southern NSW Local Health District has been having the opportunity to mentor several transitional nurse practitioners. It’s great to see the enthusiasm and dedication of the nurses who have chosen a career pathway to becoming NPs, and I’ve been learning so much from them at the same time as being able to support them in their study and advanced practice.

In my spare time I like to moonlight as a writer. I find this is a very effective way of managing the emotional burden of the work that I do and reflecting on my practice. I’ve had several articles published in The Guardian and several professional journals. I’m currently trying to work up the courage (stamina) to commence a PhD!"