Submissions in response to Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability.
Public Hearing 10 focused on education and training of health professionals in relation to people with cognitive disability. AHPA’s view is that any health professional may be called upon to provide services for people with cognitive disability, and so all practitioners and associated workers should demonstrate core competencies. A competency framework should also recognise that some professions and practitioners work more commonly with people with cognitive disability and so require more advanced levels of competency.
We support the inclusion of people with cognitive disability in the development and delivery of curricula for all registered and self-regulating health professions. Training and education of health professionals must also address accessibility, adjustments, communication knowledge and skills, together with supports for decision making and providing consent.
Other aspects of AHPA’s submission emphasise the importance of interprofessional collaboration and coordination, supervised clinical placements, and various ways to enhance a more holistic approach to treating people with cognitive disability.