Why did they leave and what can they tell us? Allied health professionals leaving rural settings

2010 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 66 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin O'Toole ◽  
Adrian Schoo ◽  
Andrea Hernan
Keyword(s):  
Health Professionals ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Allied Health ◽  
Management Style ◽  
Work Experiences ◽  
Allied Health Professionals ◽  
Recruitment And Retention ◽  
Work Arrangements ◽  
North East ◽  
Personal Community

The aim of this paper is to explore the lack of retention of allied health professionals in rural areas in Victoria, Australia. A structured telephone interview was used to elicit responses from 32 allied health professionals from south-west, central-west and north-east Victoria about their working experiences and reasons for resignation. The data revealed that work experiences in rural areas can be summarised within three domains: organisational, professional and personal/community. Under the organisational domain the participants were mainly focussed on the way in which their work arrangements require them to be both more generalist in their approach to day-to-day work, and more expansive in shouldering management style functions in the workplace. Under the professional domain there were three major issues; clinical, career and education/training. The personal/community domain focussed on issues to do with their affinity for their workplace as well as their location in a rural place. The attempts by government to address some of the leading factors for retention of allied health professionals are perhaps too narrowly focussed on the public sector and could encompass a wider approach. What is known about the topic?Although recruitment and retention of allied health professionals in rural areas is widely discussed, the professionals have not been interviewed about their experiences once they have left rural employment. What does this paper add?This paper provides detailed insights into the reasons why allied health professionals leave their positions in rural areas and the positive and negative aspects of living and working in a rural area. The results of this study contribute to the development of better policy models for recruitment and retention of allied health professionals in rural areas. What are the implications for practitioners?The factors that influence whether allied health professionals stay or leave rural areas is of concern for health policy makers at state and federal levels. This paper provides information for the extension and development of programs to attenuate rural leakage of professionals.

scholarly journals Recruiting and Retaining Allied Health Professionals in Rural Australia: Why is it so Difficult?

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janet Struber
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Allied Health ◽  
Health Service Delivery ◽  
Rural Practice ◽  
Allied Health Professionals ◽  
Attrition Rates ◽  
Recruitment And Retention ◽  
Health Related

Rural communities in Australia have particular health needs, and the recruitment and retention of Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) is a significant concern. Despite the increasing number of AHPs being trained, vacancy and attrition rates in rural areas continue to rise. Professional and social isolation combined with rapidly changing health service delivery structures are identified as major deterrents to long-term rural practice. While strategies are now being implemented, endeavours to resolve the issues lag well behind initiates offered to Medical and Nursing staff. Given the wealth of political, professional and health related issues underlying the recruitment and retention of AHPs to rural areas, total resolution of this issue may not be possible. A unified approach by AHPs combined with concerted effort and collaboration on the part of all the stakeholders may, however, allow management at a level required to sustain a viable rural AHP workforce.

scholarly journals Context Matters: Findings from a Qualitative Study Exploring Service and Place Factors Influencing the Recruitment and Retention of Allied Health Professionals in Rural Australian Public Health Services

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (16) ◽  
pp. 5815 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine Cosgrave
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Health Workforce ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Allied Health ◽  
Public Health Services ◽  
Allied Health Professionals ◽  
Recruitment And Retention ◽  
Public Sector Health

Chronic health workforce shortages significantly contribute to unmet health care needs in rural and remote communities. Of particular and growing concern are shortages of allied health professionals (AHPs). This study explored the contextual factors impacting the recruitment and retention of AHPs in rural Australia. A qualitative approach using a constructivist-interpretivist methodology was taken. Semi-structured interviews (n = 74) with executive staff, allied health (AH) managers and newly recruited AHPs working in two rural public health services in Victoria, Australia were conducted. Data was coded and categorised inductively and analysed thematically. The findings suggest that to support a stable and sustainable AH workforce, rural public sector health services need to be more efficient, strategic and visionary. This means ensuring that policies and procedures are equitable and accessible, processes are effective, and action is taken to develop local programs, opportunities and supports that allow AH staff to thrive and grow in place at all grade levels and life stages. This study reinforces the need for a whole-of-community approach to effectively support individual AH workers and their family members in adjusting to a new place and developing a sense of belonging in place. The recommendations arising from this study are likely to have utility for other high-income countries, particularly in guiding AH recruitment and retention strategies in rural public sector health services. Recommendations relating to community/place will likely benefit broader rural health workforce initiatives.

scholarly journals Factors influencing recruitment and retention of professional nurses, doctors and allied health professionals in rural hospitals in KwaZulu Natal

2017 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. L. Haskins ◽  
Sifiso A. Phakathi ◽  
Merridy Grant ◽  
Christiane M. Horwood
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Allied Health Professionals ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Recruitment And Retention ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Kwazulu Natal ◽  
Professional Nurses

Introduction: In South Africa fewer health professionals (HPs) work in rural areas compared to urban areas, despite rural communities having greater health needs. This study explores factors influencing recruitment and retention of three categories of HPs in KwaZulu-Natal and has implications about how to retain them in rural areas.Methods: A cross-sectional, descriptive survey was conducted in 8 hospitals, 5 rural and 3 urban, in one district in KZN in 2011. Data were collected on single day in each hospital and all HPs on duty were requested to participate. We compared responses from rural and urban based HP as well as professional nurses (PNs), doctors, and allied HPs.Results: 417 questionnaires were completed: 150 from HPs in rural and 267 from HPs in urban hospitals. Perceptions of living/working in rural areas is negative and the quality of health care provided in rural areas is perceived as poor by all categories of HP. Rural-basedHPs were more likely to report living apart from spouse/partner (72.1% vs 37.0%, p < 0.001)and children (76.7% vs 36.9%, p < 0.001), and living in hospital accommodation (50.8% vs 28.9%; p < 0.001).Conclusions: Decisions made by HP about where to work are complex, multifactorial and should be tailored to each category of health professional.

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