Allied Health Insights Vol.2, No.8: Highlighting The Allied Health Assistant Workforce
Over the next few months, the allied health assistant (AHA) workforce will be discussed and workshopped by a number of stakeholders in the allied health space.
This rapidly growing profession has enormous potential to improve patient care and help to relieve workforce shortages. Introducing AHAs in healthcare settings presents a number of challenges however, such as ongoing uncertainty regarding the scope of AHA roles and responsibilities, lack of supervision training for allied health professionals (AHPs), and lack of clarity around employment and government structures.
The Allied Health Industry Reference Group
A national forum set up by the Australian Government’s Chief Allied Health Officer to discuss key issues related to allied health will convene this month to discuss the role of allied health assistants. The Allied Health Industry Reference Group (AHIRG) brings together Allied Health Professions Australia (AHPA), Indigenous Allied Health Australia, National Alliance of Self Regulating Allied Health Professions, PHN Steering Team AlliedHealth Framework, and Services for Australian Rural and Remote Allied Health(SARRAH)—this month’s meeting follows a prior discussion regarding ways of increasing access to allied health assistants.
Launching AHANA at the National Allied Health Conference in August
The newly-formed peak body for allied health assistants—Allied Health Assistants’ National Association Ltd (AHANA)—is now accepting new memberships and will be officially launching at the National Allied Health Conference (NAHC), August 7 in Perth. AHANA supports, promotes, informs and advocates for the AHA workforce in Australia.
Pre-NAHC allied health assistant workshops
National Allied Health Conference attendees have the option to attend two pre-conference AHA workshops: Toward a National Curriculum for Allied Health Assistants, and Building a Rural and Remote Allied Health Assistant Workforce.
Featured in this edition
- We explore a major point of discussion around this profession: delegation. One of the most common concerns that allied health professionals raise about employing alliedhealth assistants is a lack of clarity on who is responsible for the outcomes around patient care, and many AHPs tend not to delegate work that could or should be done by other workers as a result. At a time of enormous workforce shortages, reticence to delegate can result in longer patient waiting times and reduced overall access to health services.
- We chat with Tara Intarapanya, who is a senior allied health assistant and a board member of the Allied Health Assistants’ National Association Ltd (AHANA), about championing the potential of AHAs through AHANA, and her hopes for the AHA workforce in Australia.
- Are there AHAs in the UK? Yes! They’re known as allied health support workers. As a founding member of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy’s Support Worker Reference Group, Christopher Richards has been instrumental in advocating for and developing the role of physiotherapy support workers in the UK. We speak to Christopher about how support worker innovations can improve outcomes and access to quality care.
- If you are looking to employ an allied health assistant to support your service, we’ve compiled a selection of AHA guides, blog articles and published research to support the successful integration of AHAs into healthcare teams. This resource will continually updated.
