Surgical Liaison Nurse

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• Multiple permanent, part-time positions available
• 56 hours (1.4 FTE)
• Heidelberg location

Austin Health is the major provider of tertiary health services, health professional education and research across three campuses in the north-east of Melbourne and statewide. We have a highly engaged, diverse and collaborative workforce that is unified by our goal to help people live healthy and fulfilled lives. 

About the department

The Surgery, Anaesthesia and Procedural Medicine Division (SAPM) is responsible for over 50,000 procedures per year being delivered to the community served by Austin Health. This includes planned surgery, emergency surgeries and procedure-based care across 11 operating theatres at the Austin site (AOS) and 8 operating theatres at The Surgery Centre (TSC).  

The planned surgery waiting list and endoscopy services waiting list continue to grow year on year. This, along with Austin Health’s increased demand in emergency surgery (14% increase year on year), creates significant pressure to ensure planned surgery and endoscopy patients are treated within their clinically recommended timeframes, while enabling emergency surgery access for our patients. 

About the role 

The Surgical Liaison Nurse (SLN) is responsible for managing the patients on Austin Health Planned Surgery Preparation List, in accordance with the Planned Surgery Access Policy. The SLN role focuses on pre-admission requirements for Planned Surgery patients, booking planned surgery theatre lists, and ensuring planned surgery patients have timely access to care. The workload and work focus of all SLN’s can change depending on the requirements across all surgical units within SAPM or at the direction of the Planned Surgery Access Manager (PSAM).

A regular day will see you:   

• Provide efficient, streamlined and effective pre-admission processes for planned surgery patients across a variety of surgical units 

• Booking of planned surgery theatre lists and ensuring planned surgery patients have timely access to care 

• Ensure the educational needs of the patient and their carer/family are met through a variety of mediums. 

• Work closely with staff including the elective surgery booking team, surgical units, unit managers, patient access and flow, bed management, outpatients, theatre & anaesthetics and other liaison nurses across Austin Health 

About you 

You will have excellent communication and interpersonal skills and be comfortable problem-solving in a variety of complex situations. You'll be comfortable working both autonomously and as part of a dynamic team. 

To be successful in this role, you’ll bring with you: 

• Registered Nurse registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) without restrictions 

• Substantial knowledge and expertise in the planned surgery booking processes, Planned Surgery Access Policy (PSAP) and the role and function of the Surgical Liaison Nurse 

• Strong clinical assessment skills and demonstrated leadership ability 

• A patient-centred approach to evidence-based care delivery 

Our benefits 

Working at Austin Health means enjoying a strong sense of purpose, engaging in meaningful work every day. Our people also receive a variety of rewarding benefits, including: 

• Greater take-home pay through generous salary packaging, for living expenses, meals, and holiday accommodation. 
• A suite of wellness initiatives designed to support you, including discounted fitness memberships and special offers on health insurance, and a comprehensive wellbeing program. 
• Onsite childcare at Austin Hospital, easy access via public transport and car parking options. 
• Mentoring and career development opportunities. 

Work with us! 

We are committed to cultural safety and health equity for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander People. We celebrate, value, and include people of all backgrounds, genders, identities, cultures, bodies, and abilities. We welcome and support applications from talented people identifying as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, people with disability, neurodiverse people, LGBTQIA+ and people of all ages and cultures. 

If you feel this role is right for you, we encourage your early application. Even if you don’t meet every single requirement, we encourage you to apply. What matters most is your passion, your drive and your willingness to learn and contribute. Applications will be reviewed as they are received, and interviews may take place prior to the closing date. This means we reserve the right to close a job ad prior to the advertised closing date. 

All appointments are made subject to a satisfactory National Police Check and if required, a Working With Children Check. Austin Health is a child safe organisation, committed to upholding the rights, safety, and wellbeing of children and young people in line with Child Safe Standards. If you require any reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process, you are welcome to reach out to the hiring manager: Vanessa Napoleone, Interim Planned Surgery Access Nurse Unit Manager at Vanessa.NAPOLEONE@austin.org.au or Naomi Italia, Interim Divisional Manager Access, Planned Procedures and Endoscopy Services at Naomi.ITALIA@austin.org.au

Interested in finding out more about this opportunity? Read the position description for further details. 

Application closing date: Sunday 8th November 2026