Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health outcomes final report released

The Health Professions Accreditation Collaborative Forum in conjunction with the Australian Dental Council has released the final report for The role of accreditation in improving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health outcomes project (the Project). 

To understand the role accreditation plays in improving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health outcomes and to producing a culturally safe workforce, the Project surveyed all accredited health practitioner programs across Australia. Programs delivered in New Zealand, which are accredited by an Australian accreditation authority, were also surveyed. 

For the Australian Dental Council (ADC), the Project holds special significance, with the organisation taking a leadership role for the review. 

The survey gathered data on 188 accredited health practitioner programs across Australia and New Zealand, a response rate of 18 per cent. Data was collected for at least one program for the 14 professions included in the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme at the time of the survey. 

Dentistry had the highest response rate of the health professions participating in the Project, with 75 per cent of accredited programs responding to the thematic review. Thank you to all the accredited programs that responded.

The Project found that the majority of education providers involve Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People in the design and delivery of their programs. The extent and types of involvement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples varied from program to program. A number of challenges were identified, including ensuring that students gain clinical experience of providing culturally safe care and representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples in the health workforce.

Findings from the survey reinforce the importance of accreditation as a lever for change, with the majority of respondents agreeing that the accreditation standard for their discipline requires education providers to assure the cultural safety of graduates. The majority of respondents considered accreditation has at least some influence on curriculum design in the area of cultural safety. 

The final report can be viewed here.

The Forum is using the findings from the Project to establish an action plan for the next two years, in-line with the work of the National Scheme Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Strategy Group. This plan will help ensure the collective efforts of the Forum focus on the areas where accreditation can effect change and improve the health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

The findings will inform the work of the ADC, including an ongoing review of the Accreditation standards and work to increase the participation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples in decision making.

To learn more about the Forum and its work, visit hpacf.org.au