Retention of Nursing and Allied Health Professionals in Rural and Remote Australia: summary report
Retention of Nursing and Allied Health Professionals in Rural and Remote Australia: summary report Report
- Author(s): Health Workforce Australia
- Published: 2014
- Publisher: Australian Government
Abstract: Australia-wide there is a shortage of nursing and allied health professionals working in rural and remote locations. This shortage is likely to become more apparent in the future given the ageing population, growth in burden of chronic disease and subsequent increased emphasis upon multidisciplinary service delivery. The Rural Health Professionals Program (RHPP) is a new workforce scheme designed to increase the nursing and allied health workforce in rural and remote Australia. RHPP is an initiative of Health Workforce Australia (HWA) which is funding Rural Workforce Agencies (RWAs) to attract and recruit nursing and allied health professionals from Australian metropolitan and approved overseas locations. Each RWA is responsible for identifying vacancies within their jurisdiction and providing a fully case managed recruitment service to eligible candidates including retention support for up to two years. The national rollout of this program in 2012 provided an opportunity to undertake independent research amongst both locally and overseas-trained professionals currently working in rural and remote Australia. Whilst substantial literature exists regarding issues affecting retention of medical practitioners, there is little research pertaining to nursing and allied health professionals, particularly in an Australian rural and remote setting. Objectives: The overall objective of this research project is to identify factors related to the retention of nursing and allied health professionals in rural and remote Australia. These retention factors were initially identified through a qualitative research phase and then quantified amongst a larger representative sample. From this, recommendations can be made regarding strategies to enhance retention amongst nursing and allied health professionals working in rural and remote Australia.