The rising demand for skilled health professionals across Australia necessitates active stewardship to respond to existing and emerging workforce challenges. For northern Australia, extra challenges require additional attention and a range of solutions.

As the Jobs and Skills Council for the health and community services sector, HumanAbility’s remit is to deliver effective workforce planning and training to meet the growing demand in the sector as well as respond to workforce challenges.

Emma King OAM, CEO of HumanAbility will present key insights from ongoing workforce research, planning and engagement.

HumanAbility’s recent Workforce Plan reported seven key workforce challenges:
• Labour shortages
• Skills gaps and shortages
• Training and qualifications that meet industry and student needs
• Clear and accessible pathways
• A more diverse and inclusive workforce
• Better data and a stronger evidence base
• Policy and regulations that are fit for purpose.

HumanAbility is addressing the issues faced by the health workforce in Northern Australia. Emma will talk to current projects and priorities, including reviewing health sector training products and exploration of Earn-While-You-Learn models, including traineeships and 'Grow Your Own’ models used in regional and remote settings. These models can reduce attrition rates by up to 30% compared to traditional pathways.

Finally, Emma will provide a platform for participants to ask questions to be more informed about the work of HumanAbility and how to get engaged and inform our work.