Hunter New England - Supporting Allied Health Professionals Working with Children
This is a collaborative project of the Greater Eastern and Southern Child Health Network (GESCHN) and the Northern Child Health Network (NCHN).
Aims and Objectives
The main aim of the project is to develop and implement a cost efficient model of support for allied health professionals (AHPs) working with children in the GESCHN and NCHN incorporating recommendations from the Collaborative Child Health Network project “Improving Education and Clinical Support to Allied Health Professionals Working with Children”. These recommendations are categorised into clinical supervision, performance appraisal, caseload, access to education and training, and access to technology.
A secondary aim for the GESCHN is to coordinate, on a one day a week basis, the secondment of AHP’s from within GESHN to SCH for professional development, clinical supervision and other needs as requested.
The objectives are to:
- Coordinate, on a one day a week basis, the secondment of AHP’s from within GESHN to SCH for professional development, clinical supervision and other needs as requested
- Review the recommendations from the Child Health Network Project and prioritise with Steering Committee
- Identify existing models of support for AHPs working with children and those requesting education and clinical support
- Recruit senior clinical AHPs to assist in the provision of education and clinical support
- Identify AHPs working with children in the Networks who need assistance in education and clinical support
- Develop a database of currently available clinical information and management guidelines by professional discipline as a Network wide resource
- Identify specific clinical areas where education and clinical support is required and coordinate the development of resource packages of information
- Ensure that AHPs working with children are provided with the opportunity to utilise Telehealth as a means of networking, providing education and clinical support, and supervision
- Identify and distribute to AHPs working with children information about educational opportunities relating to clinical work and the use of technologies
- Facilitate the implementation and ongoing maintenance of discipline specific list server to enhance communication and support within professions
- Identify AHPs working with children in Networks as clinical leaders in the provision of clinical supervision and provide linkages with those requesting support
- Develop, circulate and collate an evaluation tool for the program
- Investigate and identify funding options to ensure long-term sustainability of the program
Description of Project
In 2004, the three Child Health Networks successfully collaborated in a project to identify the needs of AHPs working with children in NSW in relation to education and clinical support.
The project was of 6-months duration and was undertaken by a Project Officer. A final report was produced which identifies 21 recommendations relating to clinical supervision, performance appraisal, caseload, access to education and training, and access to technology.
Whilst some recommendations can be facilitated by Area Health Services, Children’s Hospitals, and allied health professionals on an individual basis many will need coordination to assist in their implementation.
This project would provide a coordinator from each network to assist in the implementation of specific recommendations identified and prioritised from the report and develop a professional support programme for AHPs working with children across the Networks. The Northern taking a predominantly rural focus and the GESCHN a predominantly metropolitan. There are distinct differences in the demographics between the two Child health Networks requiring the project to have two foci, however collaboration will ensure that the outcomes have broad statewide relevance. The two project officers will work closely together in all aspects of the project to ensure consistency in development, documentation and evaluation.
A steering committee, chaired by a Network Coordinator, consisting of senior AHPs from Area Health Services within the boundaries of the two Networks and other representatives as required eg from GWCHN Remote AHS would be established to assist and guide the work of the project coordinators, who will bring somewhat different focuses to the project to enable its application across the state in the future.
Professional support is defined as “a working alliance between two or more professional staff members where the primary intention of the interaction is to enhance the knowledge, skills and attitudes of at least one staff member, so that the quality offered to their clients is enhanced” (Spence, Wilson, Kavanagh, Strong, Murdoch, Krasny 2000).
This professional support programme would be a structured program open to any AHP working with children in the two Networks. AHPs would include those from Dietetics, Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, Psychology, Social Work, Speech Pathology and others as appropriate.
Each AHP identified as requiring support would be matched with an appropriate senior clinician in their discipline. An agreement would then be developed which would outline the content, type and frequency of contact in which they will engage. This may include face-to-face, video conference, telephone/teleconference and email contact.
The target group for this project are AHPs working with children across GESCHN and NCHN. Preliminary work has been done to identify issues and develop recommendations in order to assist in the provision of education and clinical support to this population. The funding of this project will be pivotal to the coordination of the implementation of the recommendations and the development of a professional support program for clinicians.
Expected Outcomes
The Child Health Network project “Improving Education and Clinical Support to Allied Health Professionals Working with Children” identified, via survey and focus groups, many issues of concern relating to clinical supervision, performance appraisal, caseload, access to education and training, and access to technology. As part of the proposed project, AHPs working with children, across the Networks would be re-surveyed within 18 months of project implementation in order to identify changes in the previously identified areas of concern.
Performance indicators
The following performance indicators will be used to measure the success of the project:
- Review the recommendations from 2003/2004 project.
- Identify existing models of support for AHP’s working with children and those requesting education and clinical support.
- Develop a database of currently available clinical information and management guidelines by professional discipline as a Network wide resource.
- Identify specific clinical areas where education and clinical support is required and coordinate the development of resource packages of information.
- Ensure that AHP’s working with children are provided with the opportunity to utilise Telehealth as a means of networking, providing education and clinical support, and supervision.
- Identify and distribute information about educational opportunities relating to clinical work and the use of technologies to AHP’s working with children.
- Facilitate the implementation and ongoing maintenance of discipline specific list server to enhance communication and support within professions.
- Identify AHP’s working with children in Networks as clinical leaders in the provision of clinical supervision and provide linkages with those requesting support.
- Develop, circulate and collate an evaluation tool for the program.
Progress
Due to difficulties in recruitment the project officer did not commence until in February 2007, therefore this project will continue until February 2009. The Child Health Network project “Improving Education and Clinical Support to Allied Health Professionals Working with Children” identified, via survey and focus groups, many issues of concern relating to clinical supervision, performance appraisal, caseload, access to education and training, and access to technology. As part of the proposed project, AHPs working with children, across the Networks would be re-surveyed within 18 months of project implementation in order to identify changes in the previously identified areas of concern.
- The recommendations from the 2003/04 project have been reviewed by the Project Management Committee and the needs analysis has been conducted with AHP’s within the NCHN and small focus groups have been formed. A mentoring initiative in NCHN is currently being piloted for staff requesting professional support.
- IT and Clinical Resources Working Group meetings continue to occur. They are currently investigating the option of a single front page for the three NSW Child Health Network web sites that would lead users to the individual network web sites, as well as planning for the creation of discipline web pages.
- Specific clinical areas where education and clinical support is required have been identified by information provided through the needs analysis survey and small focus groups. Coordination is occurring with a concurrent HNE project through David Rhodes.
- An ‘Allied to Kids’ newsletter – a collaboration between the 3 CHN’s to provide Allied Health professionals with clinical information has been created and is available from the NCHN website.
- Marketing of telehealth opportunities for staff occurs through the established workforce database. Information has been distributed regarding GESCHN Telehealth sessions that are available for purchase.
- A NCHN AHP workforce database has been created and is being maintained. Discipline specific email distribution lists have been created for dissemination of information.
- Facilitation, implementation and ongoing maintenance of discipline specific list serves to enhance communication and support within professions is to be addressed by the IT and Clinical Resources Working Group. List serves are operational for Psychology, Social Work, Speech Pathology, Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy. One for Dietetics is expected to be operational shortly. The Genetic Counsellors list serve has been advertised in the ‘Allied to Kids’ newsletter.
- Information regarding areas of expertise/interest was obtained through the needs analysis survey. The mentoring initiative aims to link Allied Health staff with clinical leaders who possess specific skills.
- Further needs analysis will be conducted to evaluate the project. Work on the final report has commenced.
Discussion
The Project Management Committee continues to meet regularly to provide strategic direction for the project and support for the project officers. An Overarching Steering Committee has been convened to ensure coordination and reduce duplication between the projects occurring in the three Child Health Networks. The NCHN Steering Committee meets monthly to ensure that the project is specifically tailored to the needs of AHP’s in the NCHN.
Abstracts have been submitted and accepted for the Inaugural Child Health Network Conference and the Children’s Hospitals of Australasia Conferences.
Contact
For more information on this project contact:
Sonia Hughes
Project Officer
02 6592 9705
sonia.hughes@hnehealth.nsw.gov.au