The Department of Health says a meeting of some of the State’s most prominent leaders is to be held to consider how to future-proof the front-line health and mental health workforce.
Minister for Health, Amber-Jade Sanderson is to convene the WA Health Workforce Summit on 7 August where current challenges facing nursing, midwifery and the medical workforce in general will be considered.
The summit will complement comprehensive recruitment activities already being undertaken by the Department of Health and the hospitals, amid global workforce shortages.
It will be followed by a series of roundtables, focusing in on areas of high need, to deliver practical solutions.
The Department said industry leaders, including peak bodies, unions, clinician training colleges and registration bodies, will be invited to participate in the summit.
Ms Sanderson said the aim was to work with stakeholders who all had a lever into the workforce pipeline and the capacity to provide practical and sustainable solutions to the challenges currently being faced.
“Undeniably, we all have a collective responsibility and we want to make sure we have the right mix of staff working in a flexible, safe and supportive environment,” Ms Sanderson said.
She noted the Department and the Health Service Providers were already delivering a comprehensive suite of staff attraction and retention initiatives.
“However, this summit will invite industry leaders to collaborate on additional solutions to continue to foster a strong, dedicated healthcare workforce and entice young people to take up a career in medicine, especially in the regions,” the Minister said.
