View
213
Download
0
Category
Preview:
Citation preview
ACT allied health market capacity building project
Final report 31 August 2017
Progress overviewNational Disability Services (NDS) received a grant from the ACT Government
through funding from the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). The aim of
this grant was to improve the capacity of the ACT allied health (AH) sector to
respond to the opportunities and demand for services under the NDIS and to
establish a host entity to continue this work and sustainably support the ACT allied
health sector.
All milestones of the project have been achieved.
A steering group and stakeholder group were established to guide and support the
work of the project. The stakeholder group chose seven deliverables for the project:
Institute some speed dating/(i.e. networking) events,
prepare a list of AH practitioner/practice listings,
undertake and publicise a market scan of the delivery of AH therapies to NDIS
participants,
create an on-line NDIS AH information hub,
conduct information webinars relevant to AH NDIS practice
stage a conference to more formally share experience and
support an interest-based working group to facilitate discussion about student
placements.
The speed dating events were successful with at least two more to be organised
after this project ends.
The list of AH practitioners listings has been created and incorporated in the ACT
allied health NDIS Hub which was launched at the NDIS in Practice conference in
August 2017.
At the NDIS in Practice conference the results of the market scan were presented.
The conference presentations (where we received permission to share) can also be
found on the ACT allied health information hub as are the recordings of the three
webinars delivered during this project.
National Disability Practitioners (NDP) will continue develop, update and host the
information hub and support networking events in the future. NDS will support
networking events by making its office available as a venue (if needed). NDS and
NDP will also continue to work together to organise, record and caption a fourth
webinar with the NDIA and the ACT Human Services Registrar on registering as an
NDIS provider in the ACT.
In order to develop and sustain the momentum generated by the project we
recommend:
(i) that the Office for Disability permits NDS and NDP to publicise and share this
report with interested stakeholders.
(ii) the Office for Disability work with AH stakeholders in a collaborative model to
develop a project to address the lack of opportunity for allied health students
to gain disability sector experience or exposure during their training.
Key activities
Establish the steering group
After signing of the deed of grant between NDS and ACT Government, a group of
ACT representatives of AH associations was reconvened in February. This was the
AH working group during the Disability Workforce Innovation Network (DWIN)
project. This group agreed to be the steering group for this project and met
approximately every three weeks from commencement (See Appendix A for steering
group members). The final meeting was held on 18 August 2017.
Establish the stakeholder group
The steering group decided that a wider stakeholder group was needed to guide the
project. They assisted the project manager to identify key stakeholders and actively
encouraged them to be involved in this project. The first stakeholder group meeting
was in March 2017. In this and subsequent meetings the stakeholder group has
provided clear guidance on the direction of this project and its deliverables. The last
stakeholder group meeting was on 24 May 2017. After four meetings the project
deliverables were clearly identified. The steering group decided to no longer have
stakeholder group meetings, but did invite stakeholders to join working groups for
development of the deliverables. While only a few stakeholders took this opportunity,
many remained supportive of the project and assisted it by distributing project and
event information to their networks.
Decide on deliverables of the project
The stakeholder group considered what would be most beneficial to improving the
capacity of the ACT AH sector to respond to the opportunities and demand for
services under the NDIS. Three key requirements were identified: (i) knowing the
market, (ii) supporting practitioners to enter and succeed in the market and (iii)
increasing exposure of students to the disability sector.
Knowing the Market: Good knowledge of the NDIS AH market is needed for AH
practitioners (AHPs) to be able to refer clients to other AHP’s, form multidisciplinary
teams around a client and identify service gaps and market the opportunity to enter it
or expand their services. The establishment of an online networking platform was
discussed but rejected as a way of sharing such knowledge. This had been one of
the solutions coming out of the DWIN sponsored AH forum held in 2016, but
stakeholders doubted if they would engage with such a platform and questioned its
sustainability and longevity. Also, for AHP’s to feel comfortable to refer clients to
others they wanted to have personally met the professionals to whom they were
referring: they did not want to only know them from their online profile. It was
therefore decided to develop three deliverables to increase market knowledge of the
nature and scale of AHPs practicing in disability support:
Speed dating (networking) events: Stakeholders were keen to expand their
network and to meet other AHP’s providing NDIS funded services. Networking
events with a speed dating format were suggested and widely supported.
List of AH practitioner/practice listings: Listings of AHP’s and/or the practices in
which they work already exist. Several allow searchers to search on location and
find out if the AHP or the organisation is registered for/provide services under the
NDIS. However, experience had shown that stakeholders were not aware of the
range of listings both with and across different areas of practice. It was
considered that a list that collated the different, more restricted and profession-
based listings would provide an overview where AHP’s could find others with
practices providing services to people with disability that might be complementary
to their own.
Market scan: To gain insight into the current ACT AH NDIS market stakeholders
decided to develop and test a market scan. This scan would capture the kind of
providers and professionals working in the NDIS market, their client groups and
the existence and scale of any waiting lists.
Entering the market: AHP’s, both those entering the market and those already in it,
need information to successfully set themselves up as a provider and thrive under
the NDIS. Stakeholders identified that a lot of information is available in the sector,
but this is not easy to find or access. It was decided to develop three deliverables to
support this:
NDIS information hub: Collation of relevant NDIS information into one place was
seen as important to support the ACT AH market. The project was to develop an
online clearing house to centralise, identify and host NDIS information and
resources for ACT AHP’s. Key features of this were that it would be publicly
accessible and that it hold NDIS relevant information for all professions - be it
current NDIS practitioners, new entrants to this market or students.
Webinars: Stakeholders expressed a desire to gain expert knowledge from
outside but especially also from within the ACT AH market on NDIS related
business and clinical topics. Webinars were seen as the most efficient way to
deliver on this for high level topics e.g. setting up a business and registering as
an NDIS provider.
Conference: To gain and share knowledge on more specific topics stakeholders
asked NDS/NDP to organise an AH NDIS conference to address key topics in
more depth than a webinar could and to hear from ACT based providers and
practitioners about what works for them and what does not when operating under
the NDIS - from both a business and clinical perspective.
Increase student exposure to the disability sector: The DWIN AH working group had
previously identified that the ability of the sector to offer students opportunities to
gain exposure to and experience in the disability sector will impact the ACT AH
market capacity to respond to the service demand under the NDIS in the future. The
steering group and stakeholder group confirmed that this is an issue that needs
collaborative action for it to be resolved. It therefore advised and requested NDS to
bring together an interest based group of service providers/practitioners and
education providers for information facilitation and discussion on what is the best
model for student and industry placements in the disability sector given the current
environment.
Development of the deliverables
NDS worked with the steering group and National Disability Practitioners (NDP) to
develop the different deliverables. NDP operates as a separate division of NDS.
NDP’s mission is to be a professional membership association dedicated to
informing, developing, recognising and connecting individuals working in the
disability sector. Given its focus it was agreed that NDP was the suitable and logical
stakeholder to be the host agency that could continue to support the ACT AH sector
and the developed deliverables of this project.
Speed dating events: The idea of a speed dating event was welcomed with great
enthusiasm by the stakeholder group. Several stakeholders offered to host a speed
dating event at no cost to the project. The first event was hosted by Neurospace on
18 May, the second by CIT on 27 June and the third by Therapy4Kids on 20 July.
NDP organised and facilitated these events.
List of listings: Several steering group members researched listings of AHP’s to
contribute to the combined list. The combined list now includes the AH professional
associations, NDIA provider listing and the ACT Community Directory. The
finalisation of the list was undertaken by the ACT representative of Australian New
Zealand Art Therapy Association (ANZATA). The list is available on the ACT NDIS
information hub. It has been shared with stakeholders who have been granted
permission to share it on their websites as well.
Market scan: The market scan built on the ACT Government AH mapping initiative
conducted in March 2016. We thank the ACT Government for sharing their
questionnaire, telephone script, dataset and analysis. Based on these resources, the
steering group developed a scan with eight questions that was handed out at the
speed dating events. The idea was to gather a first rough overview of the ACT NDIS
AH market. The results of the market scan were presented at the ACT allied health
NDIS in Practice Conference. Now that the scan has been tried and tested it has
been handed over to the steering group to take back to their professional association
to coordinate and align a potential periodic scan amongst their respective
membership bases. The steering group realised that this will not result in a full
overview of the ACT AH market, but it has the virtue of providing a sustainable way
to coordinate data collection between these different organisations in a simple and
practical way.
NDIS information hub: The development of this hub has been taken up by NDP. It is
placed within the NDP website and publically accessible (NDP ACT Allied Health
Hub). It was launched at the ACT allied health NDIS in Practice Conference. It
already holds a range of resources in five different categories: NDIS business
resources, NDIS clinical resources, Discipline specific resources, List of practitioners
and Education and event. NDP will continue to include updates and checking for new
and relevant information after project end.
Webinars: NDP has organised and offered three webinars during the project.
Recordings of the webinars will shortly be available via the ACT NDIS information
hub. The first webinar covered the topic of creating your vision for starting a private
practice (6 June) and the second followed on from that with the topic of preparing
yourself to start a business (14 June). Both these webinars were delivered together
with Maida Learning. The topic for the third webinar was on A snapshot of the ACT
AH workforce (29 June). This was delivered by NDS’ National Manager Workforce
and Carecareers. A fourth webinar is planned for October on how to become a
registered NDIS provider in the ACT. This webinar will be delivered jointly by the
NDIA and the ACT Human Services Registrar. NDP regularly runs webinars on a
wide variety of topics relevant to disability practitioners. A selection of these will be
offered to ACT AHP’s following the project via the ACT allied health hub.
Conference: NDS and NDP organised the NDIS in Practice conference for ACT
allied health practitioners on Saturday 12th of August with a view to creating a
sustainable model for a program that NDP can continue to host on an annual basis
following the end of the project. The aim was to provide a forum for ACT allied health
practitioners (from a variety of disciplines) to be informed of changes that are
transforming the ACT disability sector and hear how others are responding to the
opportunities and challenges. Stakeholders from several professions formed the
conference working group. A call for papers was sent out in early June urging
potential speakers to come forward with their ideas for a presentation. This was sent
out through NDS’ and NDP’s networks and the professional associations and other
stakeholders. A total of eight proposals were submitted. These were reviewed by the
conference working group and based on these a conference program was developed
and additional speakers were approached. The final program (see Appendix B) had
a total of nineteen speakers from nine different allied health professions and other
backgrounds, two facilitators, an opening by Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith MLA
and a welcome to country by Matilda House. Unfortunately, days before the
conference and on the day itself three speakers had to withdraw including the
speaker from the NDIA.
Interest based group on student sector exposure: Discussions within the stakeholder
group made it clear that service providers were (i) not aware of the different ways
students can gain experience during their studies in an industry and (ii) that the way
student placements were set up within disciplines differed with some more suited to
the disability sector than others. Responding to this, the University of Canberra
mapped how student placement are set up within the different disciplines as a basis
for discussion with service providers on how placements and other opportunities can
best be tailored to make it more attractive for providers to take on students in their
organisation. The steering group tried to find a stakeholder to run this discussion as
this would need leadership beyond the end of this project and bring together
interested providers to join it. Unfortunately, interest from providers in this discussion
at this point in NDIS transition was low. The steering group therefore decided to no
longer pursue the establishment of this group and concentrate efforts on the other
deliverables.
ACT Disability Network Facebook page: Following the final speed dating event it was
recognised that there was still appetite for more allied health networking events and
stakeholders willing to host more events. However, with the end of this project in
August 2017 there was the question how interested practitioners could receive
regular updates about new events and updates to the ACT information Hub.
Therefore the ACT Disability Network Facebook page was created and launched at
the NDIS in Practice conference. At present the page has 23 members and is being
administered by NDS and NDP staff.
Output measures
Engagement
Steering group: The first steering group meeting was attended by eight people.
Engagement after that varied with one member withdrawing from the steering group
due to overloaded work schedule. Six members regularly attended steering group
meetings. The steering group met ten times over the course of the project.
Stakeholder group: The contact list for the stakeholder group consisted of 40 people.
A total of 23 people attended or dialled into the first stakeholder meeting and eight
were an apology. Attendance steadily dropped after that with an increasing amount
of late on the day apologies due to work commitments. Stakeholders indicated that
as the months progressed time pressure increased for providers in the thick of the
NDIS in the ACT. The stakeholder group met four times.
Speed dating event: A total of 44 people registered for the first speed dating event
with 31 actually attending. For the second speed dating event 28 practitioners and
three students registered and 26 practitioners were in attendance. All but three had
not attended the first event. The third event was smaller with 18 registrations and 14
attendees.
Webinars: For the first series of two ‘Starting a Private Practice’ webinars (6 June
and 14 June) 20 ACT practitioners registered and 9 attended. All registrants were
sent follow-up materials. The third webinar was called ACT allied health snapshot
(29 June). For this webinar 11 ACT practitioners registered and 4 attended the live
event. All registrants were sent the recorded link (most of those unable to attend
requested this). Two people requested the link post registration.
Market scan: In total 33 people completed and returned the Market scan survey.
Most respondents answered all the questions. See Appendix C for the results.
Conference: A total of seventeen speakers and two facilitators contributed to the
conference program free of charge. The total number of attendees was 51.
Effort and commitment to produce outcomes
A range of stakeholders and steering group members have significantly contributed
in both commitment and ongoing support to deliver the outcomes of the project.
Three stakeholders put their hand up to host a speed dating event at no-cost to
the project. Another has offered to host two networking events after project end.
Steering group members put in time and effort to the development of the market
scan, ACT Allied Health information Hub, conference program and list of listings.
Steering group members also assisted during the conference with registrations,
timekeeping, audio/video assistance and roving microphones.
Several steering group members have agreed to be part of a reference group to
assist NDP in the continued updating of the information hub.
Multiple stakeholders have actively promoted the speed dating events, webinars
and the conference to their networks and members.
There is interest from an ACT service provider to be involved in organising the
next ACT AH NDIS conference.
Feedback
Speed dating events: A total of 43 people provided feedback on one or more of the
speed dating events (see Appendix D). Overall feedback was that the events
encouraged attendees to network with other allied health practitioners, the format
helped to facilitate networking and new and/or relevant sector contacts were made.
All but four participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they would like to attend
another ‘speed dating’ networking event with allied health practitioners. At the first
event some participants struggled with the pace, but after adjustments complaints
about this diminished and were gone at the last event.
Conference: The conference was very well received (see Appendix E). All but one
attendee who provided feedback rated the conference as ‘excellent’ or ‘good’.
Almost three quarters (73%) ‘fully’ or ‘mainly’ achieved their aim for attending the
conference and 70% ‘strongly agreed’ that they would like to attend other networking
events with ACT allied health practitioners.
Highlights and challenges
Highlights
Speed dating: We were planning to organise two informal face-to-face networking
events during the project, but because of the interest to host the speed dating events
it was decided to do at least three hosted by Neurospace, CIT and Therapy4Kids.
One stakeholder has already indicated that they want to host two more networking
events after project end. The steering group see these events evolving into regular
e.g. quarterly networking events with a guest speaker.
Commitment and support to produce outcomes: Steering group members and
stakeholders have shown active support and commitment to guide, develop and
organise key deliverables of this project. Through their efforts this project has
received clear guidance on its deliverables and was able to deliver more than we
had planned for. By actively promoting the events organised through this project
stakeholders have helped us to reach far wider and deeper into the ACT AH market
than we could have done ourselves.
Conference: The NDIS in Practice conference was a fitting way to close this project
and share the resources and learnings. It also allowed the sector to showcase its
learnings and share the knowledge that ACT providers have gained from engaging
with the NDIS and its participants. In its reflection on the conference the steering
group highlighted the significant change in tone compared to the ACT allied health
forum last year. Where the latter was strongly focussed on issues and what was not
working, this year’s conference showed how the sector was getting on with things
and were making it work. It had a clearly more positive message with a focus on
learnings rather than problems.
Challenges
Level of engagement in stakeholder meetings: The level of engagement in
stakeholder meetings steadily dropped with each meeting.
Organising registration webinar :The original plan was to have the first webinar cover
the topic of becoming a registered provider under the NDIS. This ran into a range of
logistical and some policy problems which are only now slowly being resolved. To fill
the gap NDP gave access to two webinars on setting up a private practice to ACT
AHPs.
Student exposure working group: Despite its efforts to bring together key
stakeholders around the issue of the lack of opportunities for students to gain
exposure to and experience in the disability sector, this is the one intended objective
that the project did not achieve. Even though both the stakeholder and steering
group acknowledged the importance of this issue to the future market capacity, the
level of commitment from stakeholders to invest time and effort in finding solutions
through a working group was low. With the still evolving business and quality and
safeguarding framework of the NDIS, providers are hard pressed to keep up and
catch on.
RecommendationsThe project team and steering group recommends to all stakeholders including
Governments, NDS and NDP that the following deliverables be supported into the
future:
Continue development and updating of the NDIS information hub - NDP has
agreed that subject to resources it will continue to develop and add content to the
Hub as those resources come out.
Continue informal network meetings - NDP and NDS are keen to be able to
continue to support stakeholder hosted networking events. As resources permit
they will assist with organising of the events and the NDS meeting room will be
made available as a possible venue.
Stage a registration webinar - NDP and NDS will continue to work together to
organise, record and caption a webinar with NDIA and ACT Human Services
Registrar on registration as an NDIS provider in the ACT.
Hold another ACT allied health NDIS conference - NDP and NDS are willing to
pursue the possibility of staging another ACT allied health conference in 2018 or
2019 by partnering with an ACT service provider keen to explore this option.
We recommend that the ACT Government Office for Disability :
Make this report publicly available: Several stakeholders in and outside the ACT
have requested this report to be shared as the deliverables and lessons learned
are relevant or could be adopted by others. It could either be placed on the ACT
Government website or we ask permission to make it publically available via the
ACT allied health Hub and share it with interested stakeholders.
Support the development of different time/ways to find opportunities for student
sector exposure: The steering group and stakeholder group confirmed it is
important to offer students opportunities to gain exposure to and experience in
the disability sector as part of the ways to respond to the service demand under
the NDIS in the future. This issue needs collaborative action, but at the moment
allied health and general provider focus is mainly on navigating and managing
their business in the evolving NDIS environment. We therefore recommend to
consider bringing together key stakeholders around this issue at a later date
when the market is somewhat stabilised to consider other ways to stimulate
interest and innovation around this topic.
Milestone status
Milestone Due date Status Summary Action being taken to resolve red or amber
Contract Signed January 2017 The deed of grant was signed 24 January 2017
Reconvene DWIN AH
group
February 2017 The DWIN AH group was reconvened on 10
February 2017Bring together key
stakeholder group
March 2017 The first stakeholder group meeting was held
on 16 March 2017
Choose deliverables April 2017 Seven deliverables were endorsed by the
stakeholder group on 12 April 2017Run 1st ACT networking
event
May 2017 The first face to face networking event was held
on 18 May 2017Develop deliverables July 2017 Development of deliverables has been
completed by project endLaunch deliverables August 2017 Deliverables were launched on 12th of August at
the ACT AH NDIS in Practice conferenceRun 2nd ACT Networking
event
August 2017 The second face to face networking event was
held on 27 June and the third on 20 July. On
Saturday the 12th of August a conference was
held to mark the end of the project.
: the milestone is on track or completed
: there is an issue affecting progress but Contractor can resolve it; no adverse consequences for progress, outcomes or reputation
: there is an issue affecting progress and Contractor cannot resolve it alone and/or risk of adverse consequences for overall progress,
outcomes or reputation
Appendix A – Steering group membership
Australian Association of Social Workers: Cassandra Hanbridge
Australian New Zealand Art Therapy Association: Su Hanfling
Australian Physiotherapy Association: Diana Perriman
Australian Physiotherapy Association: Alexandra Edmondson / Lara Bowyer
Australian Physiotherapy Association: Jenny Robertson
Australian Psychology Society: Judith Buchholz (withdrawn)
Dietitian Association Australia: Annette Byron
Dietitian Association Australia: Shannon Butler
Occupational Therapy Australia: Jan Yarrington
Speech Pathology Australia: Susanne Moore
Appendix B - Conference program
Appendix C – Market scan results
• 33 respondents – 32 NDIS providers – 28 registered NDIS providers
• 6 Sole traders – 12 working in a small practice – 13 working in a large practice
• Most respondents worked in organisations with OT’s (21), physio’s (16) and/or
physiologists (12)
• Most experienced an increase in staff in the last 12 months
• All respondents except one increased their number of clients over the last 12
months
• Most have a broad client base, only 2 specialised in one type of diagnosis
• 8 worked with all age groups
• Waiting list: 50% had a waiting list and the majority with a waiting list did not
have one 12 months ago
• ACT AH market appears to be growing with an increased number of staff, but
demand continues to grow as well
Appendix D – Feedback on speed dating events
18 May 2017 hosted by Neurospace
Responses to evaluation questions (22 responses in total):
Q1. All but one participant ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the event encouraged
them to network with other allied health practitioners. One attendee was unsure.
Q2. All participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they met new and/or relevant
sector contacts.
Q3. All but one participant ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the format of the event
helped to facilitate networking. One attendee was unsure.
Q4. All but four participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the pace of the event
was appropriate. Two attendees felt that the timing of the speed dating rounds were
too quick, two others felt three minutes was too long.
Q5. All but one participant ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the venue and facilities
were adequate. One attendee was unsure.
Q6. All but two participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the time of the event
encouraged participation. Two attendees were unsure – one indicated the time of the
event was ‘too early’, another ‘too late’.
Q7. All but three participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they would like to
attend another ‘speed dating’ networking event with allied health practitioners. Three
attendees were unsure.
Q8. All but four participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they would be
interested in attending a one-day conference to discuss issues relevant to ACT allied
health practitioners. Two attendees were unsure and two attendees were not
interested in attending a conference.
Recommendations for future speed dating events
Reduce the number of forms practitioners needed to complete; an evaluation,
post-it boards and environmental scan was a bit much.
Provide some seating for participants to sit, should they wish.
Split practitioners into the type of client serviced rather than discipline (e.g.
adults, adolescents and children).
Provide discussion cards to assist with conversation starters (some attendees
indicated that speed dating was difficult for introverts).
Increase the speed dating rounds from 3 minutes to 5 minutes.
A number of participants requested that representatives from the NDIA be invited
to attend.
Provide a list of event attendees at the conclusion of event (allow an opt-out
during the registration process).
27 June 2017 hosted by CIT
Responses to evaluation questions (15 responses in total):
Q1. All participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the event encouraged them to
network with other allied health practitioners.
Q2. All participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they met new and/or relevant
sector contacts.
Q3. All participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the format of the event helped
to facilitate networking.
Q4. All but two participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the pace of the event
was appropriate. One attendee was unsure, another indicated that 5 minutes was
not long enough.
Q5. All but three participant ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the venue and facilities
were adequate. Two attendees were unsure, stating that the room was difficult to
find. One participant disagreed that the venue was appropriate, stating that the
mezzanine open-plan style was a bit noisy for those with a hearing impairment.
Q6. All but two participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the time of the event
encouraged participation. Two attendees were unsure.
Q7. All but one participant ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they would like to attend
another ‘speed dating’ networking event with allied health practitioners. One
attendee was unsure.
Q8. All but three participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they would be
interested in attending a one-day conference to discuss issues relevant to ACT allied
health practitioners. Two attendees were unsure, one attendee was not interested in
attending a conference.
Additional comments:
“Met some awesome people and had some ideas for future funding”
“Met a wide variety of practitioners that I never knew were round the ACT”
“Location a bit difficult”
“I would also like to network with Orthoptists, Audiologists and Psychologists”
“I enjoyed learning about Allied Health Assistants”
20 July 2017 hosted by Therapy4Kids
Responses to evaluation questions (6 responses in total):
Q1. All participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the event encouraged them to
network with other allied health practitioners.
Q2. All participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they met new and/or relevant
sector contacts.
Q3. All participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the format of the event helped
to facilitate networking.
Q4. All participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the pace of the event was
appropriate.
Q5. All participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the venue and facilities were
adequate.
Q6. All participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that the time of the event
encouraged participation.
Q7. All participants ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they would like to attend
another ‘speed dating’ networking event with allied health practitioners.
Q8. All but one participant ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they would be interested
in attending a one-day conference to discuss issues relevant to ACT allied health
practitioners. One attendee was unsure.
Additional comments:
“New networks”
“Insight into other service providers”
“Great to put a face to a name. Greater awareness of others who are offering
services in the profession.”
Appendix E - Conference evaluation
Responses to evaluation questions (27 responses in total):
Overall 63% rated the conference to be ‘excellent’ and 96% rated it ‘excellent’ or
‘good’.
The content of the different sessions was rated ‘excellent’ or ‘good’ by 64% to
92%. 80% to 92% of attendees rated the presenters of the various sessions
‘excellent’ or ‘good’. The duration of the sessions was ‘excellent’ or ‘good’
according to 65% to 90%.
The main aim for most respondents in attending the conference was ‘networking’.
Other aims mentioned five or more times were ‘gaining practical advice’,
‘receiving NDIS information’ and ‘hearing about the challenges’.
Almost three quarters (73%) ‘fully’ or ‘mainly’ achieved their aim for attending the
conference.
The evaluation also showed the main gains in attending the conference were
‘expanding their network’, ‘hearing about lessons learnt and tips from other
providers’, ‘learning more about the difficulties faced by providers’, ‘gaining
insight into how to manage the relationship with the clients’ and ‘the advice to
stay true to their profession and the clients that they want to work with’.
Considering this it is no surprise that two thirds ‘strongly agreed’ that the
conference allowed them to network with other allied health practitioners and all
attendees ‘strongly agreed’ or ‘agreed’ with this statement.
Almost two thirds ‘strongly agreed’ that the conference provided them with
opportunity for discussion with peers and again all ‘strongly agreed’ or ‘agreed’
with this statement.
Three quarters of attendees ‘strongly agreed that the conference was well-
structured and 70% ‘strongly agreed’ that they would like to attend other
networking events with ACT allied health practitioners.
Over 80% ‘strongly agreed’ that the venue and facilities (Great Hall at ANU) were
adequate for the event.
Some additional comments:
The conference was great! I learned so much and don't feel so alone in my
profession. I feel hopeful for the future.
Thank you it was great, we need more events like this.
Good opportunity to meet with other disciplines and professionals. Couldn't think
of anything that would make it better.
Good healthy menu. Not over catered. Solutions for families with complex needs,
low literacy and language challenges would be a useful topic for future
discussions. Good that you included people with a disability as speaker.
I think the NDIS/NDIA missed an opportunity to discuss some of the issues with a
group of providers - can they be provided with the feedback about the project
conference and issues raised and discussed.
We need to look at supporting woman/men to return to allied health profession
after time out with family - ie supervision to meet AHPRA or psychology
supervision requirements.
Managing the transition section was interesting but very long. Glad it was so
varied, not too repetitive.
Recommended