Rachel Resuggan1
1St John Of God Health Care Inc., Osborne Park, Australia
St John of God Health Care (SJGHC) is one of the largest private sector (not-for-profit) health services in Australia operating 24 facilities (3,407 hospital beds) across acute, sub-acute and mental health services, as well as home-based community care, disability services and social outreach programs in Australia and New Zealand.
A review of the allied health governance structures in 2015 identified inconsistency in our approach to clinical training and professional support of allied health professionals (AHPs). SJGHC has since employed a Project Manager- Allied Health Governance and one of the priorities has been to enhance the training and professional development support of allied health professionals as part of our commitment to safe care and clinical excellence. Attempting to implement multiple reforms to enable the Professional Development Pathways incorporating the different practices of 10 Allied Health professions, considering numerous clinical specialties and modes of care/treatment across several states is an ambitious and complex undertaking.
This presentation will describe the 10 building blocks of the conceptual framework used to guide the reform process, engage AHP steering committees, create and successfully implement a National Professional Development Pathways Framework. The presenter will share her learnings from the discovery phase, building the foundations and scaffolding and she will detail some of the highlights that came from the participation, refinement, testing and implementation phases.
Elements contributing to success include use of technology solutions to ensure active participation by subject matter experts (the pathways being designed by AHPs for AHPs) from across the nation. The use of evidence based on-line learning programs as a key component of the pathways framework ensures that allied health professionals have access to training they need in real time, all the time and in a cost-effective manner.
Biography:
Rachel Resuggan is a highly regarded for her extensive expertise in allied health governance and leadership. Working for St John of God Health Care as the National Project Manager – Allied Health Governance, she is leading the development and delivery of a comprehensive project focused on strengthening allied health leadership and governance structures across the organisation. Rachel thrives on pioneering allied health services and creating strong foundations that provide optimum environments for allied health professionals so that they can deliver excellence in care. Rachel has led the commissioning and establishment of allied health services for two greenfield hospitals (St John of God Midland Public and Private Hospitals and Fiona Stanley Hospital in Western Australia). Her passion for allied health governance comes from years of leading allied health services, including the North Metropolitan Area Health Service in Western Australia.