Ashleigh’s ambitions

Limestone Coast Local Health Network’s Ashleigh Mabbott has been crowned with the Excellence in Clinical Specialisation award at this month’s 2024 Nursing and Midwifery Excellence Awards named last night.

Nurses and midwives across South Australia were celebrated for the significant contribution the professions make to the health system.

Ashleigh was recognised for her work in the emergency department with a focus on the mental health space.

“I am a registered nurse in the emergency department in Mount Gambier,” Ashleigh said. “As part of working in the emergency department, I also wanted to do a bit more for mental health, so I applied for one of the scholarships for SA Health and the clinical specialisation.

“It was a really good deep dive into the neurological and biological social components of mental wellbeing.

“We got a really good understanding of what services are available, especially regionally.”

Ashleigh’s willingness to step into a sector where the emergency department could do with more specialised knowledge was greatly appreciated by nursing unit manager sarah Trahar.

“We don’t have a wealth of mental health knowledge within the department, so for Ash to come, firstly with her passion, but also backed up by her knowledge,” Sarah said. “It’s just fantastic for us and the community. Mental health, especially in a regional area, is very hard, and we need people like Ash who are keen to be involved with sharing her knowledge and assisting in the treatment of our community.”

And for Ashleigh, expanding her knowledge was all about becoming a changemaker.

“I’m really hoping to change the way mental health is see in the emergency department from the nurse’s perspective, starting at triage,” Ashleigh said. “I’m wanting to be able to build a safer environment for people from the minute they step into the door until their next plans.”

South Australian Health Minister Chris Picton said he was incredibly honoured to attend the awards that recognised the amazing work that our nurses and midwives do every day in South Australia.

“As a state, we are so fortunate to have world-class healthcare professionals who go above and beyond to provide quality care across our state’s hospitals, community, aged care and non-clinical services,” he said. “They are truly the backbone of our health system and we are proud of the work they do.”