Episode 11: Elizabeth McDonald
Elizabeth McDonald is the new director of Allied Health in the northwest of Tasmania.
The health care issues in rural and remote areas are amplified when compared with the mainland and the cities. There are staff shortages and access to specialised services is very challenging.
Innovation is very important as is strong leadership. She is helping to change the way health services are delivered.
One of the changes that is occurring is the openness to telehealth and video conferencing style of consultation. Physiotherapists are using this method. The idea is now open that the patient does not have to be directly in front of the specialist and practitioner all the time.
In general medical practitioners are used to seeing patients face to face.
Australia has many remote areas. In the past, the patient has taken long car drives or fly in for an appointment. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced a change in how services are delivered.
The big discovery is that the variety in service delivery works.
The skills set to change now required for allied health professionals is a flexible mindset. On top of this, professionals need to learn about the necessary technology so that services can be delivered remotely. Some of these skills can be trained but a mindset change requires an individual to want to change and do things differently.
The pandemic has forced change resisters to come along with the new ways. Now that they have experienced the differences and seen that they work, they accept the changes.
One way is to tell professionals that the change is coming and then asking what support each person needs to help them get to the new paradigm.
The conversation is now happening on how best to deliver services in the future. In the next few years, the service level will increase for patients because there is not reliance on face to face consultations. The health care system will innovate and become more efficient without the lost time and massive cost of driving long distances and flying. The professionals need technical skills for remote consultation and an ability to embrace change. Change is the new normal in Allied Health.
Medical information changes very quickly, and the professional has to make a more significant effort to change and adopt new ways of delivering services.
Key points:
• COVID has forced changes in the Allied Health service profession
• How can we leverage for the future?
• Services need to be more convenient and efficient for remote patients
• Health professionals need to be flexible in the way they think and act