Studying for the Graduate Certificate in Cancer Nursing gives students the knowledge and skills to coordinate and provide culturally safe, evidence-based cancer care. The Australian College of Nursing aims to enhance students’ professional and ethical understanding to facilitate clinical practice development and improve outcomes for individuals diagnosed with cancer. Our course is written by specialist nurses for nurses. A team of highly skilled clinical experts supports students towards attaining their individual learning goals.  

Students select from a range of specialty electives which allow further exploration of specific clinical areas of interest related to cancer nursing. Students engage in the planning, developing, and evaluating their own clinical and educational requirements to promote lifelong learning through critical analysis and reflection. 

This course is designed to develop an understanding of cancer nursing with a strong clinical focus. It enables students to:

• Demonstrate a specialist knowledge base within cancer nursing for the provision and coordination of contemporary cancer care
• Develop specialist clinical practice and advanced clinical decision-making skills in the assessment and management of people living with cancer
• Analyse the communication skills used to establish effective therapeutic relationships with people diagnosed with cancer, their families and carers
• Examine leadership and professional and educational skills that contribute to a high standard of cancer nursing care and practice development within interprofessional teams
• Evaluate nursing practice against research and current literature to support the provision of contemporary evidence-based cancer nursing care
• Demonstrate the ability to reflect on personal and professional values and attitudes in relation to the care of people living with cancer, their families and carers

The course responds to industry requirements for flexible, multifaceted practitioners capable of practising in various cancer care environments and specialist cancer nursing roles. The prevention, diagnosis, pathology, and treatment of various cancer types- from diagnosis and primary care to follow-up, survivorship and palliative care- are explored using an interprofessional team approach. Future treatment trends and a cancer diagnosis’s impact on the individual, their significant others, and the broader community are considered.

All applicants seeking admission are required to:

• hold a Bachelor of Nursing or registered nurse equivalent qualification
• hold current registration with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA); or the equivalent registering authority in your country of origin
• have a minimum of one year of postgraduate experience; and
• be currently employed in the clinical area of specialisation