The Australian College of Nursing (ACN) has named three finalists for the Health Minister’s Award for Nursing Trailblazers 2026, recognising nurse-led innovations that are delivering measurable improvements in health outcomes for communities across Australia.
Nominations were assessed by an expert panel of nurse leaders against criteria including context and challenge, innovation and nurse-led approach, contribution to nursing and the community, outcomes and evidence of impact, cost-effectiveness, and scale and adaptability.
The three finalist innovations span cardiac care, allergy treatment, and paediatric vascular access – and each demonstrates how advanced nursing practice can close gaps in access, improve safety, and reduce costs across the health system.
“These finalists show the potential of nurses to design better ways of delivering care. Each of these innovations is expanding access, lifting the quality of care, and reshaping how services are delivered – particularly for people in rural and regional Australia,” said ACN Chief Executive Officer, Adjunct Professor Kathryn Zeitz FACN.
The Minister for Health and Ageing, the Hon Mark Butler MP, will announce the recipient of the Health Minister’s Award for Nursing Trailblazers 2026 on 5 August at the National Nursing Forum in Melbourne.
The 2026 finalists:
Ms Catherine Baring MACN – Fast Advice and Access for Intravenous Routes with Imaging (FAAIRI) Service
A nurse-led vascular access service for children with difficult intravenous access in a tertiary paediatric hospital, providing ultrasound-guided cannulation, midline and peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) insertion, and comprehensive vascular access management. Replacing a fragmented escalation process that relied on repeated failed attempts and avoidable anaesthetic intervention, the service has improved first-attempt success rates, reduced complications such as infection and line failure, and streamlined escalation pathways. It has also contributed to policy development, staff education, infection prevention, and expanded access to ultrasound-guided vascular access in hospital and community settings.
Professor Andrea Driscoll RN, NP – Nurse Practitioner Models for High-Risk Heart Failure Populations
An integrated, nurse practitioner-led model delivering specialist heart failure care across inpatient, outpatient, and virtual settings. Designed to close gaps in continuity of care and specialist access, especially for people with complex, high-risk heart failure in rural and regional areas, the models have reduced preventable hospital readmissions and emergency department presentations, improved uptake of guideline-directed therapies, and generated significant cost savings. The approach has been replicated across multiple hospitals and has influenced heart failure policy and practice at state and national levels.
Mrs Sigrid Pitkin MACN – Rural Allergy Group Nurse Practitioner-Led Oral Immunotherapy Program
A nurse practitioner-led model delivering oral immunotherapy for food allergies in a regional primary care setting. By shifting a treatment usually confined to metropolitan specialist centres into a community-based, nurse-led environment, the program has expanded access for patients in regional Victoria and interstate, including Queensland and South Australia, who would otherwise have limited or no treatment options. It delivers care at substantially lower cost while maintaining safety and clinical outcomes, offering a scalable model for delivering complex allergy services outside traditional hospital settings.
The judging panel included nurse leaders:
- Adjunct Professor (Practice) Alison McMillan PSM, MACN – Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer, Department of Health and Aged Care
- Ms Kathryn Stein FACN – President, Australian College of Nursing
- Adjunct Professor Kathryn Zeitz FACN – Chief Executive Officer, Australian College of Nursing
