Message from our Acting CEO
To build the rural allied health workforce of the future we need to start at the very beginning (a very good place to start). In 2010 the World Health Organization published a raft of recommendations to increase access to health workers in rural and remote areas through improved retention (see the document here). We know that targeting students from rural backgrounds, locating clinical schools outside of major cities, providing high quality undergraduate clinical placements and embedding rural health issues within a curriculum all contribute to an environment conducive to producing health professionals who want to live and work rurally. Sustained attention to (and funding of) these factors has been the stuff of medical workforce initiatives over the past twenty years or so.
But as yet we have not seen similar attention given to the allied health professions, and in fact, the redistribution of scholarship funding in 2017 means that right now there are no undergraduate scholarship programs to support rural students who want to obtain an allied health degree. As someone who grew up as part of a farming family this burns me up. I can attribute my degree in physiotherapy to two people: Gough Whitlam, who in 1974 abolished university fees, and my mother, who went to work to ensure I could continue my education. And remember, that was in the days when it was still expected that a married woman retired from the workforce to focus on domestic duties. Nowadays of course it is normal and necessary that both parents work to support a household and educate the kids. But given the lack of scholarships and other supports for potential students it is left to Fate to decide whether rural students aspiring to a career in allied health actually make it.
As the dust begins to settle on the 2019 federal election SARRAH will be working with our elected leaders to raise awareness about the need for an end-to-end appraisal of the allied health rural workforce pipeline, to identify the cracks that diminish the supply chain of rural-ready allied health professionals and do something about repairing those cracks. Next week we will be meeting with Rural Health Commissioner Paul Worley to continue these discussions.
But our main focus next week is on Reconciliation. SARRAH is committed to a future where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians have health outcomes equitable with other Australians. It is a theme that is central to our work. SARRAH and our partner organisation Indigenous Allied Health Australia (IAHA) have committed to work together through a Memorandum of Understanding to address systemic failures in health service delivery that significantly disadvantage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. It is an “uncomfortable truth” that not all health services provide culturally safe environments that support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to access services where and when they are needed. SARRAH supports IAHA’s advocacy for an increase in the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander allied health professionals and for ensuring that Cultural Safety and Responsiveness is embedded in health education curricula at all levels. These are key steps toward ensuring health professionals are encouraged and enabled to respond to the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
IAHA and SARRAH Staff
Earlier this week SARRAH staff visited IAHA’s office and shared an afternoon tea in recognition of our longstanding relationship and our shared commitment to improving the quality of life of our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. We are fleshing out the details of our MOU as the foundation of our joint activities and I look forward to sharing details with you as they emerge.
Cheers, Cath
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Member Call Out - Accreditation Experience Wanted
Dear Members,
The SARRAH team are working on some new ideas around sector benchmarking and would love to get in touch with any members who have previous or current experience with accreditation/credentialing.
Please contact us if you’d be willing for us to pick your brain and run some of these early stage concepts by you, we’d really appreciate your input. Email sarrah@sarrah.org.au
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Townsville - SARRAH 2020 Conference
Initial planning has commenced for the Townsville Conference, it is going to be another amazing SARRAH conference. Hope to see you all there.
SARRAH Celebrating 25 Years
Image: View of the Shore from the Strand Jetty - Photographer Megan MacKinnon
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State Memorial Service for the Hon Bob Hawke AC Announced
Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, says a State Memorial Service for the Honourable Robert (Bob) James Lee Hawke AC will be held at the Sydney Opera House at 11.30am on Friday 14 June 2019.
Members of the public wishing to attend will be able to secure complimentary tickets from midday on Wednesday 29 May via the Sydney Opera House website. The service will also be screened on the steps of the Opera House Forecourt and televised on the ABC.
Health Workforce Scholarship Program
Rural Doctors Workforce Agency DWA is providing scholarships and bursaries for medical, nursing and allied health professionals (including Aboriginal health workers) working in rural and remote South Australia through the HWSP. More information here.
Release of Public Survey - Shaping the future of Disability for 2020 and beyond
The aim of this public consultation is to ensure a disability strategy for beyond 2020 is informed by the views and experiences of people with disability, their families and carers as well as those who work in the disability sector, including service providers and advocates.
There are many opportunities for people to have their say including community workshops, an online forum and a public survey. Further details on these and links to register for workshops and online forum are available at Engage.
The public survey is now open. You can complete it here.
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Have you had your flu shot?
Australians are being urged to get a flu shot to protect themselves against this year's influenza virus. Those eligible for a free flu vaccine through the NIP include people aged 65 years and over, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged six months and older and people aged six months or older with certain medical conditions which put them at risk of severe influenza. More here.
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Would you like to advertise your job vacancies with SARRAH?
Please contact us for more information.
Current Employment Opportunities
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Whats happening in your Community
If you have something happening in your community please contact us so we can share the details here.
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New Report - Admitted Patient Care 2017-18
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report Admitted patient care 2017-18: Australian hospital statistics shows public patients are waiting twice as long overall for elective surgery - a median of 44 days for public patients and 22 for the privately insured.
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Upcoming Events and Conferences
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Other News
- APRA releases quarterly private health insurance statistics for March 2019, more
here.
- The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (the Commission) invites you to participate in the open consultation for the National Safety and Quality Primary Health Care Standards. For more information, please visit the Commission’s website.
- Survey shows Australians not planning for one of life’s certainties. Palliative Care Australia (PCA) deputy-chair Judy Hollingworth says the results of a national online survey shows most Australians know they should plan for the end of their lives, but are putting it off. More here.
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