Nurses in general practice settings: roles and responsibilities.

Nurses are an important human resource, vital for the delivery of health services in countries across the globe. To improve the quality, access and affordability of primary care services to support rural and remote communities, in 2001, the Australian Government implemented the Nursing in General Practice Initiative [NIGPI] to increase the numbers of nurses to work in general practice settings. The NIGPI positions nurses as both a human resource and a human commodity. This paper examines how developments emerging from this initiative enable and constrain the role and responsibilities of nurses working in general practices in Australia.