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ACORN history

1971

A number of operating room nurses from around Australia met in Melbourne at a Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) and Faculty of Anaesthetists seminar, ‘Safety measures in the operating theatre’. Considerable differences in policies, procedures and practices were apparent.

1975

Mary Barry suggested a national operating room nurses’ conference and ten operating room nurses from around Australia met to discuss the possibility of organising it. A conference coordinating committee was formed, comprising one representative from each state present.

First meeting

Ten operating room nurses from five states attended the 1975 meeting.

New South Wales:

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Queensland:

South Australia:

Tasmania:

Victoria:

Judith Cornell

Rita Stahl

Colin Shipton

Lynette Stanley

Ann Swifte

Lyn Root

Marea Fennell

Mary Barry

Sister Mary Felix

Pauline Bennett

 
 

Conference Committee 1977 with New Zealand representative, Brenda Miles (seated at left), Chairperson and New South Wales representative, Judith Cornell (seated centre), and Treasurer and Victorian representative, Mary Barry (seated at right).

ACORN

The acronym was originally chosen to signify the Australasian Conference of Operating Room Nurses. There was forethought that if an organisation were to be formed it could be changed to the Australian Confederation of Operating Room Nurses.

Logo

The ACORN conference logo was designed by Jeanette Waterhouse (Cuttler) of The Geelong Hospital. Subsequently, a badge of the conference logo was manufactured and made available to members on payment of their membership fees to their state or territory organisation.

Download the History of ACORN

1976

The coordinating committee met again and were joined by representatives from the Australian Capital Territory, the Northern Territory and Western Australia. New Zealand was also represented.

1977

The inaugural Australasian Conference of Operating Room Nurses in Canberra was a resounding success. Delegates attended from all over Australia and from New Zealand, United States of America, United Kingdom and Malaysia. A unanimous decision was made to form a national organisation and state representatives formulated a constitution, financial guidelines and organisational format.

1978

The first National Council meeting took place in Adelaide in February. Council meetings were set for every six months and the council term was for three years. The first official journal, ACORN News, was published in February.

1980

The second national conference was held in Adelaide. New guidelines for operating room nursing practice, based on reviews of resolutions taken at the 1977 conference, were made available. This was the origin of the ACORN Standards for Perioperative Nursing in Australia.

1986

ACORN News was amalgamated with The New South Wales journal, Forceps, and the Victorian journal, Snippets, to become a national journal, ACORN Journal – The Journal of Perioperative Nursing in Australia, which was published in December.

1996

ACORN became incorporated as a company limited by guarantee by the Australian Securities Commission. The six senior councillors became directors of the company and the president became company secretary as well as a director. The seven junior councillors became representatives of the company.

1998

The national conference in Perth celebrated the 21st birthday of the Australian Confederation of Operating Room Nurses. The theme of this national conference was ‘21 years on – Growth, development and diversity’. Hereafter the national conference would be held every two years with a corresponding term of office for the ACORN council.

2000

ACORN became a college – Australian College of Operating Room Nurses. The president and executive were elected from candidates currently serving on the board, rather than appointed by succession. The president was thus independent, rather than state based, and could give greater attention to national issues.

ACORN presidents

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1977–1980 Jill Hughes Jones (SA)

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1980–1983 Ruth Gericevich (WA)

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1983–1986 Jacqueline Dalzell (Vic)

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1986–1989 Heather Moon (Qld)

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1989–1992 Pat Eiszele (Tas)

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1992–1995 Narelle Hines (NSW)

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1995–1998 Carolyn Webster (WA)

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1998– 2000 Judith Berry (SA)

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2000– 2002 Phyllis Davis (NSW)

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2002–2004 James Harrison (Tas)

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2004–2006 Kim Hepper (SA)

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2006–2008 Jennifer Rabach (Vic)

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2008–2010 Cheryl Winter (NT)

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2010–2012 Vicky Warwick (WA)

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2012–2014 Ruth Melville (Qld)

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2014–2016 Jed Duff (NSW)

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2016–2018 Sarah Bird