New National Health Workforce Data—a step in the right direction

Australia has a new national system for registering a number of key health workforce groups. The AIHW, in collaboration with Health Workforce Australia, is the custodian of the National Health Workforce Data Set (NHWDS) that describes these professionals and the work they do.

The NHWDS combines data from the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme (NRAS) with health workforce survey data collected when annual registrations are renewed. The mandatory registration process is administered by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) and includes an optional survey that collects additional demographic and workforce information.

All practitioners in these professions must be registered with the AHPRA to practise in Australia, and this applies whether they trained in Australia or overseas. The AHPRA manages the NRAS, which replaced jurisdiction-based registration with a single national registration and accreditation system. As part of this scheme, the AHPRA supports National Health Practitioner Boards, which regulate registered health professions under nationally consistent legislation. Registration for each profession is granted by the relevant boards, subject to applicants meeting the standards and policies set by each.

At its introduction, the NRAS covered registration for 10 health professions, with another four scheduled for inclusion from 1 July 2012 (see below). In all, this represents more than 530,000 registered health professionals.

Professions included in the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme

Since 1 July 2010, these professions have been regulated:

chiropractors

dental practitioners (including dentists, dental hygienists, dental prosthetists and dental therapists)

• medical practitioners
• nurses and midwives
• optometrists
• osteopaths
• pharmacists
• physiotherapists
• podiatrists
• psychologists.

From 1 July 2012, these health professions will be included:

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health practitioners
• Chinese medicine practitioners
• medical radiation practitioners
• occupational therapists.

First results already released

The first report produced by the AIHW using this new data set was Medical Workforce Survey 2010, released in April this year. It provides nationally consistent estimates of the medical workforce, and data not readily available from other sources, such as: the types of work medical practitioners do and their job setting; the number of hours worked in a clinical or non-clinical role, and in total; and the numbers of years employed in the medical workforce. The survey also provides information on registered medical practitioners who are not undertaking clinical work or employed.

Its key finding followed those of previous surveys, which showed that the number of medical practitioners in Australia was increasing (13% between 2006 and 2010) and the supply of doctors in outer regional areas had improved.

The proportion of women in the workforce also continued to grow, from 34% in 2006 to 37% in 2010, while the average age of all practitioners remained stable at 46.

The average weekly hours worked by employed practitioners decreased slightly from 43.5 in 2006 to 43.3 in 2010. Average hours worked by men decreased slightly, while those worked by women increased.

The supply of practitioners varied across areas of remoteness, ranging from 400 full-time equivalent practitioners per 100,000 people in Major cities to 185 per 100,000 people in Outer regional areas.

Between 2006 and 2010, the number of employed practitioners in Major cities increased by 10.0% and in Outer regional areas by 11.9%, which was more than the population growth in these areas.

10 new publications in 2012

During the remainder of 2012, the AIHW Labour Force Unit will publish reports on each of the 10 professions re-registered in 2011, starting with nursing and midwifery due for release in June. Each report will outline demographic information, as well as provide important information on work patterns and locations.

Workforce needs for the future

The NHWDS is a key component of the data collected in the health sector, which helps describe existing practitioners and plan for future needs. Health Workforce Australia uses the data set for its planning and projections to ensure Australia has a sustainable health system to meet existing and emerging health-care needs.