Get ready to deliver health services in remote and rural areas
22 November 2024
In response to feedback received from outreach health service providers, CheckUP has developed – Going all OUT for Outreach – an innovative online micro-credentialing course that address a range of workforce issues in the rural health sector.
Funded by the Queensland Government, the course was designed and developed by health professionals and organisations currently engaged in the delivery of outreach health services in Queensland, although the course is relevant for health professionals and health facility staff involved in the delivery of services in any regional location in Australia.
The aim of the Going all OUT for Outreach micro-credential program is to ensure that health service providers working in regional, rural and remote communities have the appropriate knowledge and skills to respond to the complexity of Outreach health service delivery. Additionally, host facility staff will learn how to effectively host a visiting Outreach health service.
CheckUP CEO, Ann Maree Liddy, describes Going all OUT for Outreach as an innovative and unique online course that will significantly improve the skills, knowledge and confidence of health providers who travel to rural and remote communities to deliver much needed health services.
Ms Liddy said, “We know that delivering health services in regional areas is incredibly rewarding for our outreach health providers, but we recognise that this work can be very challenging and difficult at times. We consulted with many of our current Outreach health providers to develop a free online course that is engaging and interactive, and full of practical tips to enhance the healthcare delivery experience for our providers. We believe this will ultimately contribute to high quality care for the recipients of this care – those people living in remote communities.”
The course has four key objectives:
1. To enhance Outreach health service delivery with a focus on local solutions. This includes training in upskilling to address skills gaps and skilling needs of local health professionals.
2. To ensure timely, local responses in the rural and remote health workforce by delivering training to assist health providers to work at top of scope and improve quality of care by promoting multi-disciplinary team-based models.
3. To address the maldistribution of the health workforce in Queensland by increasing the attraction and retention of health professionals and assistants in rural and remote locations.
4. To improve facility efficiencies in the hosting of visiting Outreach health providers.
The training is centred around three key areas – Onboarding, Upskilling and Teaching (OUT) with participants trained in practitioner health and safety, outreach readiness, working in multi-disciplinary teams, skill needs identification, upskilling and student supervision, and hosting visiting Outreach services.
Share Going All OUT for Outreach with your colleagues, students, health providers and network.
Download the Going All OUT for Outreach Media Kit here.
Going All OUT for Outreach launch
CheckUP hosted several events online and in-person to launch Going All OUT.
Above: Highlights from the launch of Going all OUT.
CheckUP Australia
CheckUP is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to improving the health and wellbeing for people and communities who need it most. CheckUP is committed to supporting communities and reducing inequities by strategically collaborating at a regional and local level to lead improvements and deliver a range of initiatives in the health and community services sectors. With a strong network of partner organisations and health providers CheckUP has an established presence in over 170 communities across Queensland.
