Media release 10 July 2024
The national peak body for health and medical research and innovation, Research Australia, is calling for better support for clinician researchers.
In its response to the Department of Health and Aged Care’s consultation paper on a draft outline of the National Allied Health Workforce Strategy, Research Australia, is calling for better recognition of the role of allied health professionals as clinician researchers in creating a self-improving allied health sector. Doing so will support the retention of allied health professionals, a primary goal of the Strategy.
In supporting clinician researchers, the Strategy needs to:
• Create a more research aware and research active allied health workforce.
• Provide resources and training to allied health professionals so they can rapidly translate evidence into clinical practice
• Better partnerships between universities and healthcare agencies to enable clinical research to be done in clinical settings, with support for allied health professionals to undertake education and training, including higher degrees on topics relevant to health industry partners.
• Allow for better pathways to support allied health practitioners to upskill, particularly in research.
• Provide more opportunities for AH practitioners to become allied health clinician researchers and find ongoing employment.
“Australia needs more experts to bridge the growing divide between medical science and healthcare delivery. Clinician researchers, especially those in allied health, are crucial in connecting our knowledge with practical healthcare to ensure the best outcomes for everyone,” Nadia Levin, CEO & Managing Director of Research Australia said.
“Despite this vital role in the healthcare workforce, allied health clinician researchers are often overlooked and poorly understood”.
Read Research Australia’s submission to this consultation here.
