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17 Sep 2018
The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) has commissioned a social research project to inform our work implementing the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme (the National Scheme).
AHPRA CEO Martin Fletcher said, ‘July marked eight years since the National Scheme began, during which time the number of regulated professions has grown from 10 to 15. We are here to serve the public so it is important that we understand the perspective of those we serve and their understanding of how the National Scheme works and what it can – and can’t – do. This will help inform our future work to ensure the public has access to a safe registered health workforce.’
From late 2018, paramedics must be registered with the Paramedicine Board of Australia and meet the Board's registration standards in order to practise in Australia. This will take the number of registered health practitioners in Australia to over 715,000, a significant increase of some 300,000 since AHPRA started in 2010. This research project is being conducted by an independent consultant and includes a short, anonymous survey to a random sample of registered practitioners from across the regulated health professions. An anonymous survey will also be sent to a sample of members of the public across communities in Australia. Results from this research will help AHPRA and National Boards to better understand what the community, regulated professions and our stakeholders think and feel about us, particularly in areas of understanding, confidence and trust. Ian Bluntish, Optometry Board of Australia Chair and co-convener of the Chairs Forum, said, ‘Insights gained from the project will be invaluable to National Boards in understanding how registered health practitioners view what we do and ways we can improve our engagement with both the professions and the community.’