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BACKGROUND: The ageing population and increasing rates of chronic disease create many challenges to the delivery of high-quality care for older adults and adults with disabilities. Allied health professionals provide a critical role in supporting quality of life and independence in both the aged care and the adult disability sectors, yet recruitment and retention of allied health professionals in these sectors remains a major health workforce concern. This scoping review aimed to identify the enablers and barriers influencing allied health professionals to work in the aged care or adult disability sectors in Australia, as well as to highlight successful strategies for their recruitment and retention. METHODS: This scoping review was conceptualised using the Population Concept Context Framework and conducted using methods as described by Arksey and O'Malley 2005 and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). A search of electronic databases, including Medline, Emcare, CINAHL, Scopus, Psych Info, university platforms EbscoHost and ProQuest Health and Medicine, ProQuest Business and grey literature databases was undertaken initially in March-June 2023 and repeated in August 2024. Content and thematic analysis of the key findings were employed to provide a contextualised and comprehensive understanding of study aim. RESULTS: Twenty papers met the inclusion criteria, including 5 cross-sectional studies, 13 qualitative studies, 1 mixed-method study, and 1 senate enquiry. From the included articles several workforce related enablers and barriers, related to allied health professionals working in the aged care and adult disability sectors, were reported. As a result of the thematic analysis, four overarching themes were identified that incorporated both enablers and barriers, including: (a) supporting clinicians to work in diverse and complex environments, (b) developing the pipeline to build workforce capacity, (c) navigating system-wide challenges, and (d) appreciating the added complexity of rural practice. CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this review provide sector employers, government, and policy makers with an understanding of the potential enablers and barriers encountered by allied health professionals working in the aged care and disability sectors in Australia. The review suggests that some barriers could become enablers when appropriately supported, which highlights the need for future research on this topic. This information may also help to inform the National Allied Health Workforce Strategy in Australia.
Robson et al. (Thu,) studied this question.