Allied health graduate program: developing the future mental health workforce.
Astrid Ferreira1, Margaret Dietz11Monash Health, Dandenong, Victoria, Australia
Abstract
Background and purpose: The 2021 Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System identified the need for an early career pathway to be developed for allied health professionals (AHP’s) targeting mental health specialist competencies. This case report describes the implementation and impact of an allied health mental health graduate program (AHMHGP) in a large public health service with limited pre-existing entry level positions.
Method: An iterative process loosely following the plan-do-study-act (PDSA) framework across two cycles was applied. The statewide AHMHGP framework characterised by substantial clinical educator presence was rapidly localised. A 1-year graduate program for early career social workers and occupational therapists was implemented. Quantitative and qualitative survey data was collected from key internal stakeholders and graduates to evaluate impact and quality of the program.
Findings: The program has successfully been implemented and has employed three cohorts of AHP’s. Workplace context factors, including non-allied health management structures and over-representation of generic roles, posed challenges to implementation. Stakeholder feedback highlighted themes regarding ‘future workforce investment’, ‘program integration challenges’ and ‘discipline specific activity’. Graduates identified self-perceived improvement in discipline specific competencies. Program aspects most valued by graduates were (1) clinical work exposure, and (2) protected learning time. Program adjustments were made across both PDSA cycles in accordance to feedback and project up-scaling including incorporation of speech pathologists, dieticians and exercise physiologists.
Discussion: There is a paucity of literature exploring AHP student-to-practitioner transition. Learnings made through the development and implementation of the AHMHGP may support programs targeting early career workforce attraction and retention.
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