Mental health nursing is specialist work. Your professional home should be too.

CMHN (Credentialed Mental Health Nurse) is Australia's nationally recognised credential for mental health nursing professionals, administered by ACMHN. It validates your expertise, commitment to professional development, and adherence to the highest standards of mental health nursing practice.

ACMHN welcomes registered nurses working in mental health settings across Australia, including those in hospitals, community health, private practice, education, and research. We offer membership categories for registered nurses and enrolled nurses, those who have a special interest in the mental health field, retired nurses, and students.

Members gain access to member only resources, credentialing pathways, professional development opportunities, national and state conferences, local branch networking events, advocacy representation at all government levels, special interest groups, and a supportive community of 2,200+ mental health nursing professionals.

To become a credentialed mental health nurse, you must hold current AHPRA registration, hold specialist or post graduate qualifications in mental health nursing, have relevant mental health nursing experience, complete required professional development hours, and confirmation of your practice as a mental health nurse. Visit our credentialing page for detailed pathway information.

Yes! ACMHN provides extensive Continuing Professional Development (CPD) opportunities including national conferences, webinars, workshops, state branch events, and access to research publications. Many of our events offer accredited CPD hours recognised by AHPRA and nursing regulatory bodies.

ACMHN is a not-for-profit professional association. To register as a charity, an organisation must demonstrate that its dominant purpose delivers public benefit not primarily member benefit. Because professional bodies typically exist to advance a profession, set standards, provide credentialing, and advocate on behalf of members, these activities are generally considered to serve members rather than the broader public, which means they do not meet the ACNC's charitable purpose test under the Charities Act 2013. For this reason, ACMHN operates as a professional association rather than a registered charity.