Allied Health

182 Pages·2006·4.45 MB·English

Australia wide
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Allied Health l
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From the bustle of a busy metropolitan hospital to jumping in a 4WD to see W
patients in the outback, allied health offers a wide variety of occupations i
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and work settings to match your interests. d
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Career FAQs Allied Health tells the story of the professionals who attend
to all aspects of patient care – from pre-hospital care of the acutely sick
or injured (ambulance offi cer), to assisting the diagnosis of medical and
Allied
surgical conditions using x-rays (radiographer) to the physical rehabilitation
Allied
of patients (physiotherapist). Learn what it’s like to play these important
roles in the physical, emotional, and cognitive health of patients.
Health
A qualifi cation in one of the allied health professions is a passport to
opportunity and employment all over the world. If you want to help patients
Allied
in a hands-on environment that offers a great variety of clinical experience,
Health
this is the book for you.
Health
Other titles:
Building & Construction
Education A realjobs realpeople realexperiences
Foreword by Dr Rosemary Stanton OAM l
Engineering The author of over 20 books, Dr Rosemary Stanton is one of Australia’s l
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leading experts on food and nutrition. She was awarded an Order e
Human Resources of Australia Medal in 1998 for her work, and is also a member of the
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Dietitians Association of Australia, the Nutrition Society and the
Information Technology Australian Institute of Food Science Technology.
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Investment Banking Dr Stanton continues to lecture on the importance of healthy eating to students, medical
professionals and the general public. e
Medicine a
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Nursing t
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Psychology
Teaching
The Sporting Arena This book gives a great overview of what professions are
actually out there, especially for school leavers just looking
Travel & Tourism
for a place in the industry – whether it’s as a podiatrist, an
and more ... optometrist, a physiologist, or any other ‘ist’!
Rebecca Bhagwandas, Holder of Health Support Services Certifi cate III,
www.careerfaqs.com.au Senior dental nurse, Melbourne Royal Children’s Hospital
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AlexWilde
Published by Career FAQs
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Allied Health
By Alex Wilde
Australia
Published by Career FAQs Pty Ltd
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Copyright Career FAQs Pty Ltd
First published in 2006
This book is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study,
research, criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part
of this publication may be reproduced by any process or by any means, electronic,
photocopied, recorded or otherwise without prior written permission of the
copyright owner. Inquiries for reproduction should be addressed to the publisher.
Published by
Career FAQs Pty Ltd
Suite 76, The Hub
89–97 Jones Street
Ultimo NSW 2007
[phone]
www.careerfaqs.com.au
National Library of Australia
Cataloguing-in-Publication entry:
Wilde, Alex.
Allied health: national.
ISBN 978 1 92110 631 6.
ISBN 1 921106 31 X.
1. Allied Health personnel – Vocational guidance Australia.
2. Allied Health personnel – Employment – Australia.
I. Title.
362.10994
Publisher: Sue Stevens
Author: Alex Wilde
Managing editor: Emma Grahame
Publishing coordinator: Louisa Veidelis
Editor: Christine Eslick
Publishing assistants: Darryn King, Alison Edwards and Bill Birtles
Cover and internal design: Terri Marzullo, H2M
Illustrations: Nigel Beard, Ainslie Beard Creative
Desktop publisher: Helene Carroll
Proofreading: John Sims, Sims Editing & Proofreading
Printed by Paragon Printers Australasia
Advertising sales enquiries: Stefan Harland
Career FAQs acknowledges the following copyright owners for permission to
reproduce their work.
ABS data used with permission from the Australian Bureau of Statistics,
www.abs.gov.au
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW)
Graduate Careers Australia, www.graduatecareers.com.au
NSW Offi ce of Industrial Relations
Every effort has been made to contact copyright owners and obtain permission.
However, should an infringement have occurred, Career FAQs apologises for the
omission and requests that the copyright owner contact them.
Disclaimer
The opinions and statements made by people who contributed to this book from
the allied health professions are their own and are not those of Career FAQs. The
publishers do not claim to represent the entire extent of the allied health professions
and career choices. The aim has always been to provide a broad overview of the
possibilities available. As such Career FAQs Allied Health does not purport to be a true
and accurate record of the allied health professions, relying on the voices of those
working in the industry to tell their stories. Inaccuracies may arise as a result of the
nature of this book. Users should follow the links to actual websites of organisations
to ascertain current allied health professional practices.
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Foreword
After fi ve years of university study completing a science degree and
then postgraduate studies in nutrition and dietetics, I began my
career in the mid-1960s as a nutritionist for the New South Wales
Health Department. Unlike our dietitian colleagues, most of whom
worked in hospitals, those of us working in public health were called
nutritionists. These days, all dietitians are nutritionists, although all
nutritionists are not necessarily trained in dietetics.
When I left the department to start a family, I continued working,
Rosemary Stanton
writing material for the Health Department and giving occasional
PhD (Public Health); BSc; DNutr/
lectures to nurses, teachers, the general public and various sporting Diet, GDipAdmin. OAM.
teams. A university professor phoned me one day to ask if I would Rosemary is a leading
spokesperson in nutrition and
give him some individual advice about his diet as the only alternative health, and is a well-known face
on TV as presenter and expert
was to sit for hours in the outpatients department of his local hospital. commentator in the fi eld of
health, especially nutrition. She
From this, I began the fi rst private practice in dietetics in Australia.
is the author of more than 30
books from scientifi c textbooks to
Many dietitians still work in dietetic departments in hospitals, and books for the general public and
has had 3000 articles on health
greater numbers are now engaged in community health. Others and nutrition published.
are involved as researchers in universities, while private practice is She regularly consults with state
and federal governments on
thriving as a career option with some dietitians specialising in sports health and nutrition issues. In
1998 she was awarded the Medal
nutrition, diabetes, kidney disease, cardiovascular problems or of the Order of Australia for her
services to community health,
cancer. Many dietitians play a team role with medical and other allied particularly through education
in the fi eld of nutrition and
health professionals. A small number are involved in various media
dietetics.
roles.
Allied health professionals have been around for a long time, but
their valuable roles are now more readily recognised and their unique
skills better appreciated. With the public becoming ever more mindful
of various aspects of health that are relevant to the allied health
professions, the future role of practitioners in these areas is assured,
with likely expansion of their role and infl uence.
The future is likely to offer many exciting possibilities. For me, the
best part of working in my discipline is that each day brings the
opportunity to help someone to a healthier and more enjoyable
lifestyle. This is undoubtedly also true for the other professions in this
category and it makes for excellent job satisfaction.
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Contents
About Career FAQs ix
How to use this book xi
The big picture
Why allied health? 1
Who are allied health professionals? 2
What do allied health professionals do? 4
What makes a good allied health professional? 6
What’s happening right now? 7
Current size of the allied health care industry 7
Gender balance 9
What are the job opportunities? 9
Allied health disciplines 10
Urban, regional or remote opportunities 10
Overseas opportunities 11
International recognition 12
How much can I earn? 13
Who are the main employers? 15
Public health services 16
Community health 16
Private health services 17
Private hospitals and clinics 17
Aged care facilities 18
Rehabilitation facilities 18
Self-employment 19
Government 20
Non-clinical areas of employment 20
Universities and research institutes 20
Sports clubs and fi tness facilities 21
Schools 22
Retail and manufacturing industry 22
Media 23
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Allied Health
What are employers looking for? 24
Meet some employers 26
Michelle Williams – Ryde Hospital, New South Wales 26
Rhonda Coleman – Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, Western
Australia 27
Sue Larter – Thompson, Larter & Associates,
New South Wales 28
What support organisations exist? 30
Health Professions Council of Australia 30
Australian College of Ambulance Professionals 30
Audiological Society of Australia 30
Australian Institute of Radiography 31
Australian Sonographers Association 31
Dietetics Association of Australia 31
Australian Association of Exercise and Sports Science 32
Australian and New Zealand Society of Nuclear Medicine
Technologists 32
Australian Association of Occupational Therapists 32
Optometrists Association Australia 33
Orthoptic Association of Australia 33
Pharmaceutical Society of Australia 33
Australian Physiotherapy Association 33
Australasian Podiatry Council 34
Australian Orthotic Prosthetic Association 34
International Society of Prosthetics and Orthotics 34
Australian Psychological Society 34
Australian Association of Social Workers 35
Speech Pathology Australia 35
Insider info
What jobs could I do? 41
What do people say about their jobs? 32
Kay Kempthorne – Ambulance paramedic 33
William* – Flight paramedic, 45
Fiona Sutherland – Audiologist 48
Dan* – Diagnostic radiographer 51
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Arlene Normand – Dietitian 55
Sandra Nokes – Senior remedial therapist 58
Matthew Dean – Health and lifestyle coordinator 61
Amie Culverson – Nuclear medicine technologist 66
Darren Beeston-Jones – Occupational therapist 70
Sue Larter – Optometrist 74
Robin Wilkinson – Orthoptist, private practice 77
Diane Booth – Hospital pharmacist 81
Erica Whitehead – Remote area physiotherapist 85
Kylie Robertson – Sports physiotherapist 89
Jane* – Podiatrist 92
Rebecca North – Prosthetist orthotist 95
Megan* – Senior clinical neuropsychologist 99
Katherine Langham – Radiation therapist 104
David* – Social worker 108
Itab Antar – Medical sonographer 111
Paula* – Research fellow, speech pathology 114
Robyn Chapman – CEO, Physical Disability
Council of New South Wales 118
Ready, set, go for it!
What qualifi cations do I need? 121
University courses 123
What can I expect to learn? 124
Bachelor of Health Sciences (Paramedic) at Flinders
University 124
Bachelor of Physiotherapy, Monash University 126
TAFE courses 126
What can I expect to learn? 127
Diploma of Paramedical Science (Ambulance),
TAFE Victoria 127
Diploma of Community Services (Community
Welfare Work), TAFE Queensland 128
How do I get that job? 129
How are people recruited? 129
Advertised positions 129
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Allied Health
Direct approaches to employers 130
Clinical placements 130
Recruitment agencies 130
Networking 130
What are recruiters looking for? 131
Associate Professor Vijaya Manicavasagar – Black Dog
Institute, University of New South Wales 131
Robyn Chapman – Physical Disability Council of NSW 133
Rhonda Colman – Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, WA 136
Michelle Williams – Ryde Hospital, New South Wales 137
Stand out from the crowd 138
Create an outstanding application 139
The résumé 139
Tips: Résumé writing 141
The cover letter 142
Tips: The cover letter 143
Selection criteria 143
How do I respond? 144
Tips: Selection criteria 145
How can I stand out at the interview? 146
Preparation 146
Presentation 148
Performance 148
Tips: The interview 150
What can I do right now? 152
Buzz words 153
Appendix 1 155
Comparative starting salaries of various professions 155
Appendix 2 156
University courses in allied health 156
Appendix 3 161
Sample job advertisements 161
Appendix 4 165
Sample résumé 165
Appendix 5 168
Sample cover letter 168
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About Career FAQs
Whether you are just starting out, changing jobs, moving up the
ladder or returning to work after a break, Career FAQs books give the
inside story on just about any job you can imagine.
Don’t end up in someone else’s life.
A career choice is really a life choice.
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recruiters and industry experts tell their
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You also fi nd out how to stand out from the crowd and get that dream
job, with our industry-specifi c résumé, cover letter and interview tips
and examples.
Career FAQs is Australia’s leading careers publisher, with a dynamic
new approach to making career choices.
I started Career FAQs because of my own diffi culties in fi nding
empowering, high-quality, up-to-date career information to help
me make career decisions.
I wanted to change careers in my 30s, but trying to research a
new direction led to a dead end – there was no interesting and
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most importantly, what the work would be like once I got there.
I know that our books can make such choices easier by giving
our readers the information they need to fi nd a career that
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meets their dreams and aspirations.
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