Allied Health Insights Vol.3 No.6: One AHP’s Experience Of The Aged Care Volunteer Visitors Scheme
In this edition of Allied Health Insights
- How do we define fulfilment as an allied health professional? Sometimes it can go beyond the clinical or academic facets of professional life—for some AHPs, volunteer work can be that missing link. This has certainly been the case for physiotherapist and research project manager Nicki Atkinson, a passionate volunteer with the Aged Care Volunteer Visitors Scheme (ACVVS). ACVVS is an initiative funded by The Australian Government aimed at assisting older people who may be socially isolated, lonely, or who don’t have the opportunity to leave their homes very often. What’s interesting about this—what makes it such a great story—is the idea of a healthcare professional contributing to a person’s health, wellbeing and longevity through companionship. We chat with Nicki about her volunteer work with the ACVVS, and why she finds the experience so enriching.
- The Power Play in Healthcare: Who Really Holds the Scalpel? webinar is a “must-attend” for all healthcare leaders in a position to advocate for a concerted shift toward securing more sustainable, efficient and equitable access to safe and effective health services. Professional scopes of practice are under scrutiny and revision and this brings significant opportunity for board directors, managers, policy-makers and peak bodies to speak out to ensure that the healthcare system advances, safely and efficiently, to meet the significant and ever-growing demand for enhanced delivery of health care services. Taking place on February 22nd, our expert panel of presenters, Professor Susan Nancarrow, Professor Alan Borthwick OBE and Dr Anne-Louise Carlton, will lead a discussion exploring scopes of practice, and the mechanisms for ensuring that they are both supported and harnessed to evolve, as the sector itself is evolving, for the benefit of everyone involved in the delivery or receipt of healthcare services.
- Have you been involved in development or implementation of an allied health advanced practitioner role? If so, the Allied Health Academy’s AHP Advanced Practice Collective is calling for submissions from you. Share your experience with your international colleagues by downloading the Advanced Practice Template, available from this link, from the Collective and re-uploading to the feed with the #AdvancedPracticeTemplate. If you are not already a member of the Collective, you will be prompted to join the free community about all things allied health advanced practice, featuring monthly webinars on topics of interest as an opportunity to connect with experts and advanced practitioners around the world.Submissions received before 29 February 2024 will be considered for inclusion in the Advancing Practice Across Australia Summit on Wednesday, March 6, 2024 at the University of Canberra, co-hosted by Canberra Health Services and the University. This in-person event, with an online option for the morning’s session, is a unique opportunity to connect with healthcare leaders and expand your knowledge of advanced clinical practice for the Allied Health, Nursing and Midwifery workforce. Keynote presenter Professor Beverley Harden is the Workforce Lead for NHS England’s Allied Health Professions and the Deputy Chief AHP Officer, England. She has led Health Education England to enable employers to realise the full workforce potential of Allied Health Professions. At the summit, you’ll hear from experts in the field who will share their insights and experiences. Advanced Practice Templates submitted before or after the 29 February deadline will support ongoing global collaboration and shared learning, through the Collective.
- The Allied Health Academy is pleased to invite you to free introductory webinars about its upcoming programs:
- Empowering Allied Health Entrepreneurs (intro webinar 27 February 2:00-3:00PM AEDT)—an 8 week online program designed to bridge the gap between clinical expertise and business acumen, helping you create a profitable service delivery model that empowers you to do more of the work that matters to you.
- Board Bootcamp (intro webinar 27 March 2:00PM-3:00PM AEDT)a specialised online program, run over 16 weeks, which will equip you with the essential knowledge and skills to implement effective governance practices and drive value creation. Whether you are planning to take the leap and put yourself forward for your first board role, or are already a board director and feel you need a stronger knowledge base in order to truly excel, you will emerge from this course confident, ready and supported to make that happen.
