EXPERTS have warned that people with a disability face continued exclusion as they struggle to access the support they need from allied health professionals.
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A Bendigo academic said the allied health sector faces an ongoing shortage of regional and rural practitioners.
LaTrobe Rural Health School acting head Teresa Iacono called for more training opportunities for students, to improve the quality of practitioners into the future.
Read more: Boost to expert input in health services
Professor Iacono said National Disability Insurance Scheme participants were often unable to access the allied health services included in their plans, because of the shortage.
She said regional Australia already had an allied health workforce shortage prior to the NDIS, but the scheme was creating new impetus for addressing the problem.
Professor Iacono said the shortage meant children lost precious time to get the right supports to help them through school, and adults would lack help to get into the community.
"For the NDIS participants, either they don't get the supports that they need, or they get supports and they're not quality supports," she said.
"They basically just miss out, and they'll continue to be excluded."
Professor Iacono said experts also wanted to increase the skill level of people working disabilities.
She said giving the allied health trainees experience in the sorts of places they would work was a key issue in the sector.
Professor Iacono said LaTrobe wanted students to have more opportunities through clinical placements and work-integrated learning opportunities.
She said this was a joint responsibility between education providers and industry.
Professor Iacono spoke at a summit for disability, education and community health experts in Bendigo on Wednesday, aiming to workshop some solutions to the problem.
NDIS participant Michelle Barton - an amputee - has been forced to wait months, even years to access allied health services she needs.
A prosthesis Ms Barton is having made has taken six years, as she has been forced to wait for funding arrangements through the NDIS.
She normally needs a new prosthesis every three years.
The wait has left Ms Barton with a lot of pain, meaning she needs to see a psychologist, a physiotherapist and an occupational therapist.
She has experienced a delay of three to 12 months getting appointments, meaning everything has taken longer than need-be.
Ms Barton said she must travel to Melbourne to visit a prosthetist, with just one covering the region between Bendigo and Mildura.
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Elspeth Kernebone
Accident brought me to journalism, but every day convinces me again that strong media is more important than ever. After a starting off as the sole reporter in a tiny NSW town, I’m loving the teeming metropolis that is Bendigo. Focussed on health, business and education. Got a tip? Email elspeth.kernebone@bendigoadvertiser.com.au.
Accident brought me to journalism, but every day convinces me again that strong media is more important than ever. After a starting off as the sole reporter in a tiny NSW town, I’m loving the teeming metropolis that is Bendigo. Focussed on health, business and education. Got a tip? Email elspeth.kernebone@bendigoadvertiser.com.au.
