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Allied Health Professions Day

Allied Health Professions Day

14 October 2024

‘Stronger together’

Allied Health Professions Day was first held in England in 2018 and is now an international event held annually on 14 October, celebrating and bringing together the allied health professional community.

This year the main theme ‘Stronger together’, highlights the benefits of multidisciplinary team-based care. While it is well known that allied health professionals play a key role in the health and wellbeing of all Australians, health system reform is finally recognising the value, both economic and clinical, of multidisciplinary care. Allied Health Professions Australia

Cochrane Library

Clinical resources

Professional bodies

Articles

Clinical

Research

Workforce

E-books

E-journals

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Articles

Clinical

Key success factors in implementing allied health outreach services 
Clinicians who provide outreach services to remote communities often encounter barriers to engaging with local people. Factors contributing to poor engagement include unwelcoming health settings, inflexible approaches to service delivery, a sense of alienation, poor understanding of services and referral pathways, long wait lists, inadequate care coordination and mistrust of mainstream health care. However, there are effective ways of working with people in remote communities, which can build trust and authentic engagement. This article provides a case study that highlights some key success factors that enabled engagement, and positive outcomes and experiences for people needing to access health and disability services in a remote community. Australian journal of rural health 21 September 2024 

How effective are allied health group interventions for the management of adults with long-term conditions? An umbrella review of systematic reviews and its applicability to the Australian primary health system
Group allied health interventions for people with chronic conditions may be a solution to increasing access to allied health in primary care. This umbrella review aimed to determine the effectiveness of allied health group interventions to improve health-related outcomes for adults with chronic conditions and the applicability of the findings to the Australian primary health care context. BMC primary care 4 September 2024

Preventive healthcare practice by allied health professionals: Results from a cross-sectional survey in rural and regional Victoria
The purpose of this study is to describe the frequency of preventive healthcare practice (assess, advice, refer for support) provided by allied health professionals (AHPs) practicing in regional and rural healthcare settings to address smoking, diet and physical inactivity. To identify factors that influence the delivery of preventive healthcare practice. Australian and New Zealand journal of public health 24 September 2024

Allied health professionals knowledge and clinical practice in telehealth exercise behavioural change for multiple sclerosis
The growing importance of telehealth in multiple sclerosis (MS) necessitates an understanding of current practices and training needs of health professionals. We aimed to evaluate the knowledge, preparedness, and training preferences of Australian allied health professionals (AHPs) in telehealth exercise therapy and exercise behavioural change for MS patients to inform the development of educational training. Multiple Sclerosis and related disorders 19 May 2024

Impact of an inter-professional clinic on pancreatic cancer outcomes: A retrospective cohort study
The implementation of an inter-professional clinic for patients diagnosed with Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) led to improvements in overall survival, patient-reported well-being, time to initial assessment visit and pathological diagnosis, and symptom management. These findings advocate for the adoption of an inter-professional clinic model in the treatment of patients with PDAC. Current oncology 2 May 2024

Combined physiotherapy and cognitive behavioral therapy for functional movement disorders: A randomized clinical trial
Results show that multidisciplinary treatment (physiotherapy plus cognitive behavioral therapy) effectively improves symptoms and physical aspects of the quality of life of patients with functional movement disorders against nondirected psychological support and education; this improvement seems to be driven by changes in mobility and pain domains. JAMA 5 August 2024

Exploring the goals and outcomes of adults with severe acquired brain injury participating in an extended inpatient brain injury rehabilitation unit in Australia
This study offers insights into the goals elicited, goal attainment and engagement of people with severe acquired brain injury (ABI) participating in an inpatient extended rehabilitation (ER) program underpinned by interdisciplinary, role-based goal setting.  Disability and rehabilitation 11 July 2024

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Research

What evidence exists to support palliative allied health practice in aged care: A scoping review 
As our population ages, the demand for aged care services and palliative care is expected to increase. Allied health professionals have a diverse set of skills to offer in the management of older adults. This scoping review aimed to identify what evidence exists to support the best practice of allied health clinicians in palliative and aged care. Healthcare 3 October 2024

Client satisfaction with allied health professionals in an occupational health setting
Client satisfaction surveys have served as a valued appraisal tool to measure quality care in various healthcare settings, but there is a paucity of published research of client satisfaction with allied health professionals in the occupational health setting. The aim of this project was therefore to evaluate client satisfaction with allied health professionals in an occupational health setting. British journal of multidisciplinary and advanced studies 13 July 2024

The insights of allied health professionals transitioning from a matrix structure to a centralized profession-based structure within a public hospital setting
In the dynamic setting of public hospital bed-based services, allied health is highly complex, consisting of diverse professionals (e.g., audiology, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, podiatry, pharmacy, dietetics, social work, and speech pathology), each requiring different technical expertise, training pathways, professional governance, and accountability. This case study evaluates the outcomes of a re-structure of allied health professionals working in bed-based services who transitioned from a matrix to a centralized structure of service delivery. Journal of organization design 30 August 2024

Readiness of exercise physiologists, physiotherapists and other allied health professionals to respond to gender-based violence: A mixed-methods study
Experiencing gender-based violence (GBV) is associated with health conditions that are common indications for referral to exercise physiologists, physiotherapists and other allied health professionals (AHPs). The readiness of AHPs to identify and respond to GBV is currently unknown. This study aimed to determine the readiness of AHPs to respond to a person who had experienced GBV. Participants completed the modified Physician Readiness to Manage Intimate Partner Violence Survey (PREMIS) and/or an interview. The AHPs felt underprepared, had low perceived knowledge and lacked confidence to respond to and support people who have experienced GBV, despite recognition of the importance and agreement of the relevance to AHPs’ practice. Violence against women 2 June 2024

Utilising an allied health practitioner capability audit and confidence survey to identify implications for telehealth safety and risk—A chronicle of a health service improvement activity
Whilst the benefits of telehealth were identified during the COVID-19 pandemic, the authors noted barriers to its use at a vital time. Through a health service improvement approach, they sought to increase allied health professional capability in telehealth, but also sought to understand if there were risks associated with its use. Healthcare 19 July 2024

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Workforce

Factors influencing the translation of evidence Into clinical practice for hospital allied health professionals in terms of the domains of behaviour change theory: A systematic review
This systematic review provides an overview of the unique challenges allied health professions face in the translation and implementation of evidence into practice, which remain relatively under reported and uninformed by a theoretical basis of behaviour change. Evaluation and the health professions 23 September 2024

Exploring allied health professionals' perceptions and knowledge of artificial intelligence in healthcare
The findings emphasize the need for targeted educational programs, increased awareness of ethical considerations, and the development of a multidimensional skill set to prepare allied health professionals for the evolving landscape of AI in healthcare. Journal of chemical health risks 12 February 2024

Clinical care ratios for allied health practitioners: an update and implications for workforce planning
This research has confirmed that clinical care ratios are a useful tool in workload management and determining staffing levels for allied health professionals. The recommendations from this research provide a starting point that can be finessed with reference to profession, model of care, workforce structure, governance and training requirements. This will lead to increased staff wellbeing and improved patient outcomes. Australian health review 22 July 2024

Recruitment and retention of rural allied health professionals: A scoping review
The evidence available provides an understanding of what research exists to understand recruitment and retention of allied health professionals (AHPs) from a recruitment and retention approach, person factor approach, and demographics and trends approach. Based on this scoping review, there is not a clear road map for predicting or maintaining AHPs in a rural workforce. Further research is needed to support increased recruitment and retention of AHPs in rural areas. Rural and remote health 1 June 2024

Continuing professional development training needs of allied health professionals in regional and rural Victoria
What is already known on this subject?

  • CPD is essential in healthcare professional learning, development and career progression.
  • CPD is an identified factor of dissatisfaction among AHPs in rural areas, potentially contributing to workforce recruitment and retention barriers.
  • To address limitations in regional and rural areas, it is recommended that CPD be relevant to the regional and rural context, grounded in adult learning principles and delivered by flexible and accessible means.
  • TNAs have been a method used for identifying relevant training requirements. There have been limited published TNAs aligned to the CPD needs of AHPs in Australia.

What does this study add?

  • A novel approach to TNA specific to the CPD needs of AHPs in regional and rural Victoria.
  • Identification of diverse CPD needs of AHPs in regional and rural Victoria beyond traditional career pathways of clinical practice and management.
  • Recommendations to support regional and rural AHPs with CPD tailored to their specific contexts, supporting AHPs to develop research skills and education delivery capabilities and important considerations to AHP preferences regarding where CPD should be accessed from at different career stages.

The Australian journal of rural health 30 May 2024

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E-books

This is just a sample of the e-books the library subscribes to – you will need your library login

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E-Journals

A sample of the journals the library subscribes to – you will need your library login

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