Allied Health Professions Federation Scotland calls for an ‘ equitable primary care offer ’ for all AHPs
Above : Alison Keir
The Health , Social Care and Sport Committee is undertaking an inquiry into how patients access primary care in Scotland . On 15 March , Alison Keir RCOT ’ s Professional Practice Lead – Scotland , gave evidence to the committee on alternative pathways to primary care .
Primary care services provide the first point of contact in the healthcare system , acting as the ‘ front door ’ of the
NHS . When a person seeks healthcare their first point of contact is usually with a general practitioner ( a GP or family doctor ). The committee ’ s inquiry , however , is focused on other sources of healthcare that exist in the community , which it terms ‘ alternative ’ pathways .
Representing allied health professionals in her role as Professional Practice Lead for the Allied Health Professions Federation Scotland , Alison joined a discussion about public awareness of primary care and access to GPs .
Talking about some of the issues raised in the inquiry , Alison noted there is a ‘ patchy picture ’ around Scotland , where people might see a different AHP in different practices , meaning that people don ’ t experience the same thing across the country .
Alison told OTnews : ‘[ We would like to see ] enhanced multidisciplinary teams , with a robust primary care offer for all allied health professions , which is equitable across Scotland .
‘ We have an increasing evidence base of the value the occupational therapists make in primary care and want to grow our numbers and presence . We have evidence that we are making a different to service users who have access to an occupational therapists in primary care – the importance of early interventions can be demonstrated .’
‘ We know that in some health boards physiotherapists now have cover in 100 % of GP practices ; in the last quarter , for occupational therapists this figure has increased from 6 % to 9 %.
‘ We await the outcome of the committee report and continue to work with the Scottish Government on our primary care offer and how this will be shaped in the future .’
Watch the meeting clip at https :// bit . ly / 3qMcE8S .
[ We would like to see ] enhanced multidisciplinary teams , with a robust primary care offer for all allied health professions , which is equitable across Scotland ...”
Nomination outcomes for 2022 BAOT / RCOT Council elections announced
Thank you to everyone who nominated themselves in the recent BAOT / RCOT Council nominations .
RCOT is delighted to welcome Paul Dunning as our new Council Member , Wales , who will join Council at June ’ s Annual General Meeting ( AGM ), after we received one nomination for the role .
Six members nominated themselves to stand for Chair of Council . As a BAOT / RCOT member , you ’ ll be able to vote for your chosen Chair of Council in our upcoming election .
You will have received voting papers from Civica , our independent scrutineer , by post in early April . These will include election statements from each nominee , so you can find out what they can offer you , our members and organisation .
You will need to make sure you return you ballot paper by 12noon on Friday 29 April 2022 .
We didn ’ t receive any nominations for Council Member , Northern Ireland and Council Member , Research and Development . These vacancies are now available Above : Paul Dunning as one-year interim roles ( see page 45 ).
Find out more and nominate yourself by 5pm on Monday 16 May 2022 at www . rcot . co . uk / baotrcot-council-election-2022 .
12 OTnews April 2022