Anna Shepherd FACN GAICD (Class of 1980) joined Regal Home Health, in 1983.   Regal Home Health was established by Anna’s mother, Patricia Shepherd OAM FACN in 1966 and provides in-home health care and support services to enable individuals to live independently at home.  Anna is currently the Executive Chair of Regal Home Health.

In recent years, Anna has joined the Australian College of Nursing (ACN) and prior to this, she was a member of the College of Nursing and the past Vice President of the Australian Council of Community Nursing.

The Australian College of Nursing’s (ACN) “Nursing in the Community Week” aims to raise awareness of how nurses can support community to stay safe at home, wherever that is.  Anna has been instrumental in its formation and development and in September “Nursing in the Community Week” was formally recognized by The Hon Greg Hunt MP, the Federal Minister for Health and Aged Care.

The Australian College of Nursing’s (ACN) Nursing in the Community Week has a proud history of raising public awareness about the crucial role nurses play in caring for individuals where they need it most, in their local communities. Anna and Regal Heath Care have been involved from the start and are the founding sponsor of Nursing in the Community Week.

Anna believes that nurses working in the community have a unique opportunity to impact overall health outcomes.  Nurses are ideal at getting involved as early as possible in the process of prevention and building frameworks so patients can be cared for at home. If you have a model of health care where nurses are treating people in their own homes, that also has a direct link to reducing GDP, an area which Anna has carried out a lot of research in recent years.  The impact of care from somebody you trust can’t be underestimated and that is why year on year nurses are rated as the most trusted professionals.

Minister Hunt said “There are more than 124,500 nurses working in community health care including more than 40,000 working outside our cities.  These highly trained and skilled nurses are working in GP practices, outpatient services, correctional facilities, Aboriginal health services, the Australian defence forces, schools and hospices.  We recognise the immense contribution they make to the health of our nation.

Congratulations to Anna and her devoted team of Community Nurses !