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Diversity in practice
32
JCPSLP
Volume 17, Number 1 2015
Journal of Clinical Practice in Speech-Language Pathology
Nicole Byrne
THIS ARTICLE
HAS BEEN
PEER-
REVIEWED
KEYWORDS
CAREER CHOICE
DIVERSITY
SEX
DIFFERENCES
SP
SPEECH
PATHOLOGISTS
WORKFORCE
Diversity in speech
pathology
Endangered or extinct?
Nicole Byrne
the census data reported for 1996 and 2011 (Health
Workforce Australia, 2014) and discusses the trends and
the possible future implications for the profession. The
report also provides information on student enrolment in
university programs.
The drivers and demographics of
the speech pathology workforce in
Australia
University programs
Speech pathology is a growing profession in Australia. Both
the number of universities providing SP programs and
student intake numbers have grown steadily. For example,
in 2007 there were eight Australian universities offering a
four-year (full-time) undergraduate Bachelor degree (and
some Masters programs) in SP (Charles Sturt, Curtin,
Flinders, James Cook, La Trobe, Newcastle, Queensland,
Sydney). Macquarie University offered only a Masters
entry-level program. By 2014, there were an additional six
universities offering the SP program (Australian Catholic
[which offers the program on three campuses – Sydney,
Melbourne, Brisbane], Melbourne, Central Queensland,
Southern Cross, Edith Cowan, and Griffith; Speech
Pathology Australia, 2014a).
Male participation rates
Table 1 shows that the number of people working as a
speech pathologist more than doubled over the data
collection period and there was an increase in the number
of males working in the profession. Unfortunately, the
increase in the male numbers has been proportionally lower
than the increase in female numbers. The 2011
participation rate for male speech pathologists (i.e., the
proportion of speech pathologists that were male) was the
lowest that it had been for the preceding 15 years.
Australia’s Health Workforce Series’ report
Speech Pathologists in Focus
provides an
opportunity to review the demographic profile
of speech pathologists in Australia over the
last 15 years. Currently, speech pathologists
are not representative of either the Australian
population, or of the clients who access the
services. The scant research available also
suggests that some population groups are
less likely to access health and speech
pathology services (e.g., Indigenous
Australians, people from non-English
speaking backgrounds). Greater workforce
diversity, commensurate with the populations
serviced, may assist in enhancing equity of
services and increasing engagement and
attendance at therapy for currently
underrepresented client groups.
T
he recent Health Workforce Australia (2014) report
Speech Pathologists in Focus
in the Australia’s Health
Workforce Series provides the first comprehensive
information on the speech pathology workforce in Australia.
Byrne (2007) identified that a comprehensive workforce
report on speech pathology (SP) has not previously been
provided as had been available for other allied health
professions, such as physiotherapy (Australian Institute of
Health and Welfare [AIHW], 2000) and occupational therapy
(AIHW, 2001). This Health Workforce Australia (2014)
Speech Pathologists in Focus
report is the first government
agency publication providing information on all people
working as speech pathologists in Australia.
Previous speech pathology workforce reports have
been conducted via the professional association, Speech
Pathology Australia (SPA; Lambier, 2002). Consequently
the data, which were gathered via membership surveys,
were limited to those people who were voluntary members
of SPA and not necessarily representative of the whole
working profession. Additionally, the data may have
included people who were not actively working as speech
pathologists, but who maintained membership. The
current Health Workforce Australia (2014) data reports on
SP participation in the Australian workforce and makes
comparisons to census data for each of the four-year
periods from 1996 to 2011. The current paper considers
Table 1: Male participation in SP workforce
Census 1996 Census 2011
Total speech pathologists
2,322
5,295
Number of male speech
pathologists
77
134
% of total that are males
3.3%
2.5%
Source: Health Workforce Australia, 2014