Ms Alexandra Lewis1, Ms Amanda Wray1, Ms Rebecca Daebler2, Dr Rosalie Yandell1
1Nutrition and Dietetics, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Flinders University, Bedford Park, Australia, 2Flinders Medical Centre, Southern Adelaide Local Health Network (SALHN), Bedford Park, Australia
Biography:
Alexandra Lewis is a Dietitian in the community in Adelaide, South Australia. Alexandra completed her Bachelor of Nutrition and Dietetics at Flinders University in 2024 with First Class Honours. Alexandra’s Honours project involved collaboration with researchers at Flinders University and with allied health leadership at Flinders Medical Centre on a project investigating the way Early Career Allied Health Practitioners are supported in their transition into the workforce, including wellbeing factors and growth in interprofessional practice competencies. Her passion for wellbeing and excitement to step into the workforce was reflected in this project, and Alexandra looks forward to sharing the findings.
Abstract:
Mentoring programs are important facilitators of psychosocial and professional growth for early career healthcare practitioners. The Southern Adelaide Local Health Network (SALHN) offers an Early Career Mentoring Program (ECP) for allied health professionals (AHPs), leveraging the philosophy of social learning and the communities of practice theory to support new graduates in their transition into the workforce. The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to investigate the experiences of early career AHPs participating in the ECP. Semi-structured interviews, observations, and questionnaires explored participants’ experiences of the psychosocial support and professional growth opportunities offered in supporting their transition from university into the workforce. Eleven early career allied health professionals participated in questionnaires and six in interviews. The results generated themes pertaining to program benefits and areas for improvement. Themes included 1) sense of community, 2) learning with, from, and about each other, 3) wellbeing and stress management, and 4) navigating the workplace, which describe the benefits of ECP participation, and 5) program quality improvement, detailing areas for closer alignment with the communities of practice key concepts in future program iterations. Developments of the ECP should ensure content alignment with interprofessional practice competencies and format changes to promote workshop-style sessions in line with communities of practice. It is concluded the ECP plays a fundamental role in the transition of allied health graduates into the workforce.