HealthLinked Podcast

A big thankyou to Olwen who is a QLD based Paediatric Speech Pathologist with 20 years clinical experience in the area of paediatric language and literacy acquisition. Olwen's clinical area of interest is in the executive function field, working with children with working memory deficits and complex behavioural issues. We talk about 3 things an SLP student can do during their studies to help get a job in private practise, what are some ideal qualities for private practise SLP's and minimum mentoring requirements for new grads.

Thanks very much to Pearse for coming on the podcast and talking about some recent developments in this fascinating area of technology, where the technology is at right now and what is on the horizon for hand therapists in the next 3-5 years.

Pearse discusses how this fast paced technology will not replace hand therapists, but will require some upskilling and training in the near future. 3D printing and computer assisted design for splinting has some unique capabilities for decreasing costs, improving outcome measures and improving patient outcomes in the private practise clinic, hospital outpatients department and in developing countries...

Credit: Original research by Pearse Fay and Amelia Zulian - Deakin University, Australia

Thanks to Natasha for jumping on and chatting about her work as an early career SLP and doing an interesting mix of private, community and research in Cairns at Wuchopperen Health Service, Cairns. We talk about cultural responsiveness, work life balance and leadership opportunities in regional areas.

Natasha also talks about her research interests and we talk about what other allied health professionals need to know when preparing to make a move to a regional service…

Here I chat with Bec and Danni who trained in nursing and physiotherapy respectively and have since gone on to become GP's...

Whilst at university we identified a need for interdisciplinary learning and built a student network across 3 different universities with students from 11 different health disciplines and held multidisciplinary learning workshops to network and improve our own MDT learning skills.

Here we talk about how to do this for current health students and also talk about why it is easier to be a medical student than a physiotherapy student and the current challenges of being Dr's 3 years out...

This episode is for any student or early career health professional who wants something unique to put on their CV, stand out during interview and get the job they want...

I've had some great questions on what a locum is and how to best go about organising one... So I thought I'd share my experiences and talk about the best way to go about it...

Locums are a fantastic way to get paid to travel nationally and make an impact in a new community. When taking a locum you can often have your accommodation and travel costs covered as well as receive an above award rate...

Work out a start date that works for you, get in touch and we will make it happen!

It has been a fantastic process getting the podcast up off the ground over the last 3 months and what better way to thank the wonderful guests for coming on the podcast by sharing some of their bungles and mistakes - all part of the fun!

Thanks so much for everyone who has listened in and the 1.5k downloads over the first 3 months!

Ben has been working a mix of locum, private practise, aged care and hospital roles since finishing up his studies 7 years ago. He currently works in Hobart doing a mix of private practise and aged care roles and critically has passed the fabled 5-7 year burnout mark as a physiotherapist. We reflect on the ideal work week and the importance of working in a different settings and the benefits of taking the occasional locum and long break for longevity in physiotherapy...

This is a very special chat I had at the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital with Hamish Anderson - AHTA president elect and AFL Hand Therapist for the Hawthorn Football Club.

Hamish gives some great advice on how to get a training position in hand therapy and outlines the differences in training in private practice and hospital positions and what to look for in a good employer. We also talk about the recent changes in the accreditation pathway to becoming an accredited hand therapist and the benefits to training as an AHT. Hamish also shares some memorable moments from working in professional sport with Hawthorn Football Club over the last 7 years and the emerging role hand therapists have in professional sport. We also talk about some recent advances in 3D printing of hand therapy splints, upper limb prosthesis and Hamish's experience working with hand transplant patients…

I recently got some great feedback from Tahlia that the podcast to date had helped her get a job as a new grad SLP working in paediatrics in a community setting – I was compelled to ask Tahlia on the podcast to tell us about her recent job interview and she was happy to help – what an absolute legend!

We debrief over some of her interview questions and some of the great answers she gave and why she was successfully offered the job. Listen in as Tahlia shares her interview experience to date and including the specific questions she was asked for a paediatric SLP role…

In her role as manager of speech pathology and audiology, Amanda has made a significant contribution to the services at Royal Darwin Hospital as well as developing networks between allied health departments and medical teams across the NT.

Here we talk about things students can do at university to help get a hospital job on graduation. We also talk about her experience conducting interviews and selection panels, including 3 hints to prepare for interview as well as a discussion of some common interview questions and how to answer them. Amanda also gives some insight into the advantages and leadership opportunities for early career SLP's training in rural areas including common differences between roles for SLPs in rural vs city hospitals. She also talks about her experience running a telehealth service that supplements 80 community centres across the NT.

Times stamps

0:00 – 0:30 Introduction

0:30 – 3:40 What are 3 things a student can do during their studies to help get a job in the hospital setting? (outside of the course content)

3:40 – 6:00 What are 3 hints you can give for a new graduate to prepare for their interview? What are some common mistakes people make during their interview?

6:00 - 7:15 Reflection on a recent interview

7:15 – 8:30 Common interview questions and language used to answer them

8:30 – 10:30 Trends in physio and SLP moving to the NT

10:30 – 12:45 Where the demand is for SLP currently

12:45 – 15:30 Reflections on a move from Melbourne as an early career SLP and motivations for moving regional work…

15:30 – 17:30 Leadership opportunities abound for rural practitioners as they are required to have a broader range of skills

17:30 – 21:45 A day in the life of the SLP team at the RDH

21:45 – 24:30 Telehealth for remote patients – helps supplement the remote therapists in the NT across 80 remote centres

24:30 – 26:30 Advice for Getting connected when you are in the NT

26:30 – 28:45 Telehealth service specifics

28:45 – 29:45 Sign off