Collaboration Agreement Signals New Era for Allied Health in Australia
The first Collaboration Agreement between Indigenous Allied Health Australia (IAHA) and the Australian Council of Pro-Vice-Chancellors and Deans of Health Sciences (ACPDHS) was signed last week at the IAHA 2013 national conference, held at the Hilton Adelaide.
“The goal of the agreement is to contribute to improving the health and well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through allied health education, research and workforce development,” said ACPDHS Chairperson, Professor Ian Wronski. “The Council intends to work collaboratively with IAHA to share knowledge, information, experience and resources to meet the objectives of the Agreement. Such collaboration is in line with our aim of strengthening the training of allied health practitioners in Australia to meet the needs of communities.”
“Ultimately we want to work together to increase the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander allied health student enrolling in and graduating from allied health courses,” said Ms McMillan. “We also want to see improvements in allied health students’ awareness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and wellbeing needs and an increase in the cultural responsiveness of staff within allied health schools and faculties.”
Both IAHA and ACPDHS look forward to building a sustainable working relationship over the next two years of this agreement, within the context of improving the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Media Contact – Ms Donna Murray, IAHA D/CEO, (02) 6285 1010 or Anna Leditschke, Senior Policy Officer, 0404 003 795.
