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association affiliation updates

The National Rural Health Alliance (NRHA) believes that all Australians, wherever they live, should have access to comprehensive, high-quality, accessible and appropriate health services, and every opportunity for equivalent health outcomes. The NRHA is Australia’s peak non-government organisation for rural and remote health. The Alliance’s vision is good health and wellbeing in rural and remote Australia. It works to: • identify priority needs in rural and remote health and promote appropriate action; • research key issues in rural and remote health; • disseminate relevant information and knowledge to those with an interest in rural and remote health; and • provide feedback to governments on the health impacts of their policies and services in rural, regional and remote communities. The NRHA is highly influential and produces many valuable documents including fact sheets, position papers and submissions as well as managing the National Rural Health Conference and the Australian Journal of Rural Health ( AJRH ). Information about these documents and events, and other useful links, can be found at www.ruralheatlh.org.au . Speech Pathology Australia is one of the 36 other Member Bodies who comprise the National Rural Health Alliance. Amanda O’Keefe (Seymour), who many of you may recall was a NT Councillor for SPA for a number of years, is SPA’s representative on the NRHA. Amanda will take part in a NRHA teleconference on August 18 and then will be gearing up for the five-day NRHA Council Fest to be held in Canberra in September. Members wishing to discuss issues with Amanda (and others) can post questions and comments on SPA’s Rural and Remote Member Community . SPA’s Rural and Remote Member Community Members wishing to keep up-to-date with rural and remote news, share information of interest, and network with colleagues working rurally and remotely can join SPA’s Rural and Remote Member Community. The member community currently has almost 300 members and is a great forum for providing and seeking support. As mentioned above Amanda will be using the member community to share information about the NRHA. Information about joining the Rural and Remote Member Community can be found on the SPA's Member Community webpage . National Rural Health Alliance

Allied Health Professions Australia

2014 was expected to be a busy year for Allied Health Professions Australia (AHPA) with a new government to work with, and several reports from the National Commission of Audit pending. It has indeed proven to be so, and there has been a buzz of activity in AHPA related to Government advocacy and relations, and the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). Closing the Gap Thursday 20 March 2014 was a momentous day in the allied health sector in Australia. Not only was it national ‘Close The Gap Day’, but it was also the day that Indigenous Allied Health Australia (IAHA), AHPA, AHPA’s 18 member organisations and four affiliate organisations signed a Statement of Intent to work together to achieve equality in health status and life expectancy between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians by year 2030. It is based upon the Close The Gap Statement of Intent and has been adapted to align with the core business of the signatories. This is the first time such an innovative undertaking has occurred within the Australian allied health sector. Government Advocacy and relations Following the completion of the National Commission of Audit and the delivery of the 2014 Budget, AHPA has developed key position papers in consultation with our members. While individual organisations make their own connections with government and opposition representatives, it is important that the core allied health messages are delivered by a united voice across many allied health professions. These messages were effectively delivered when a contingent of AHPA member organisations [including Speech Pathology Australia] recently attended a day of meetings in Canberra. Eight meetings were attended, including various Senators and Ministers, and the Chief Allied Health Officer and Advisor. AHPA’s position papers included: Retaining best practice is crucial to the success of the NDIS; Important access to update electronic health records; Prescribing rights for allied health professionals; Ensuring quality care in the new Primary Health Networks; Preventative health and health workforce measures: retaining important data, knowledge and networks; Streamlining direct referrals to medical specialists; Improving mental health outcomes through allied health; and AHPA-NDIS activity. Member organisations with allied health professionals working in the disability field have formed an AHPA-NDIS Reference Group. The group is meeting each fortnight, and AHPA has funded a Project Officer position to provide the group with some resources to achieve their objectives. This part-time position is shared by Natasha Layton (OT) and Cathy Olsson (SP). The group is also working closely with Lynne Adamson (Director, Research Market, Innovation, Quality and Pricing, NDIA). Submissions and Representation AHPA has arranged for representation on IHPA’s Mental Health Costing Study (Steering Committee), the Australian Telehealth Conference Strategic Advisory Committee and the NDS Working Party looking at Support Workers in the NDIS Workforce Strategy. Representatives have also attended the Victorian Allied Health Research Conference and the National Forum on inter-professional education. Submissions were made to the NDS Project Team on Forming a National Disability Workforce Strategy, and to IHPA’s Mental Health Costing Study. Lin Oke Executive Officer, AHPA

10 Speak Out August 2014

Speech Pathology Australia