Dr Pascale Dettwiller1, Ms Beth Tiernan1
1University Of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia
Biography:
Dr Pascale Dettwiller holds a doctorate in pharmacy and is a pharmacy rural health academic for the Department of Rural Health at UNISA. She also holds a senior executive position at the Country SA Primary Health Network and the Health Advisory Council for EFNLHN. Currently, Pascale is involved in research projects, workforce development, and quality and safety of geriatric medicines to students on placement in residential aged care and to staff working at the residential facility. Pascale is an advocate for rural and regional workforce development and community engagement for successful advancement in healthcare models of delivery of regional care.
Abstract:
Background:
At times allied health professionals in rural, remote and regional healthcare settings have to work at the limits of their scope of practice in order to meet the needs of their clients. This takes courage! This project builds on work to understand the lived experience of clinical courage experienced by rural medical professionals (Walters et al.2020).
Method:
This research is based on mixed methods, using a questionnaire that includes demographics and 26 characteristics of clinical courage. This paper will present descriptive and preliminary statistical analysis.
Results:
Out of 242 respondents from 12 allied health professions with wide experiences and associates, 77.4% were women aged 30 to 55. All states and territories are represented. This variety of work settings illustrates the diversity and complexity of their experiences from very remote to regional towns.
Most are employed (67.8%), and 29% are business owners. A large majority sees itself in the current practice in the next 3 to 5 years.
The questionnaire exploring the 26 characteristics rated with a Likert scale of 1 to 10 shows condensed ratings between 6.25 and 8.22 (SD: 1.95 to 2.71) towards high concordance between disciplines and rural work.
Discussion:
The cohort reflects practitioners with a strong focus on Community needs, demonstrating their deep sense of social responsibility and their trustworthiness within their communities.
“It requires a tolerance of uncertainty and adherence to good processes and sustained connection and support with community and holding and shaping a vision of their wellbeing” wrote respondent ID #163.