“A few years ago I just realized that there wasn't enough support, inspiration and recognition within the allied health industry”, says Sarena Jones. “Individual professional bodies do some (awards), but they're all academic. There are only a handful and often they’re only held every couple of years. There's not enough of that recognition. I wanted every Allied Health professional in the country to be able to apply for an award, and to feel recognition and pride in what they do.”
The Australian Allied Health Awards, now in their third year, is looking to change all that and give outstanding practitioners, practices and teams in the Allied Health space the recognition, and sense of community they deserve. Sarena Jones, an Occupational Therapist specialising in Neurology is the founder of the AAHA. Over her years of clinical practice and through her passion for networking and breaking down industry barriers that prevent collaboration, Sarena noticed the overall lack of recognition in the Allied Health space.
The allied health community is an integral part of the healthcare system, but for the most part it is one that doesn’t receive the recognition and support it deserves. To many people outside of the healthcare sector, allied health is a mysterious phrase that they may have seen as part of their health insurance, not realising that they have most probably seen a number of allied health professionals in their life.
MyHealth1st has long been dedicated to helping the Allied Health community connect with patients across Australia. We represent more Allied Health professionals than any other online booking website, so understand both the intricacies and need of the Allied Health space when it comes to driving bookings, patient outreach and retention.
In addition to recognition for their individual or team work, the Australian Allied Health Awards is a place for Allied Health professionals to interact and form a real, interdisciplinary community. “I'm very passionate about networking and breaking down barriers between different sectors within the allied health community”, explains Sarena. “Everybody goes into that industry to help people. There's some really amazing work that happens, and a lot of other health professionals within the community don't know what other people are doing. This is a really large, passionately engaged audience within the Allied Health community that doesn't really exist anywhere else.”
What started as a small operation has transitioned into a large scale affair with a team organising the event itself and a robust selection and judging panel made up of 30 experienced members of the Allied Health community. The judges are drawn from all facets of Allied Health, both clinical and non-clinical. Each submission is put in front of at least three judges who score it based on specific selection criteria. These criteria are weighted depending on the category, allowing for all awards to be judged as accurately and transparently as possible. The top five scorers in each category become the finalists, with the winner being announced and award presented at the ceremony.
The awards categories include awards for individual practitioners across each profession that falls under the Allied Health banner, individual awards for excellence in broader categories, such as business or Allied Health education, and awards for teams.
Any Allied Health professional is able to enter themselves for an award, or nominate a colleague (with their permission). Each year the number of submissions has grown massively. The 2019 awards had around 450 nominations for awards. The 2020-2021 awards - last year’s awards were postponed due to COVID - are judging over 750 nominations.
While nominations are closed for the awards, that doesn’t mean that you or your practice can’t still be involved. Tickets to the event, to be held September 25 at Dockside on Cockle Bay in Sydney are currently available for purchase. More importantly for members of the Allied Health community is the opportunity for networking, collaboration and comradeship that is available through the Australian Allied Health Awards social media, email network and, of course, the awards event itself.
Not only does a ticket to the Australian Allied Health Awards open the door to the event, it also opens you up to the vast networking and educational opportunities that mingling with other members of the Allied Health community may offer, from learning how different professionals are attracting new patients to their practice, to simply sharing waiting room ideas. So far over 14,000 Allied Health professionals have joined the AAHA community, and that number will surely grow, and the chances for learning will only grow with it.
If you are interested in purchasing tickets to the event, or would like to speak to Sarena and the team about sponsoring a category, simply click the link below:
Australian Allied Health Awards
AWARDS CATEGORIES
Individual Professional Awards
Physiotherapist of the year
Occupational Therapist of the Year
Exercise Physiologist of the year
Speech Pathologist of the year
Dietitian of the year
Podiatrist of the year
Psychologist of the year
Social Worker of the year
Chiropractor of the year
Audiologist of the year
Orthoptist of the year
Osteopath of the year
Optometrist of the year
Music Therapist of the year
Medical Radiation Practitioner of the year
Arts Therapist of the year
Genetic Counsellor of the year
Sonographer of the year
Perfusionist of the year
Prosthetist / Orthotist of the year
Rehabilitation Counsellor of the year
Individual Professional Awards
Allied Health Assistant of the year
Allied Health Early Career Excellence Award
Allied Health Educator Excellence Award
Allied Health Excellence in Management & Leadership
Allied Health Impact & Innovation Award
Allied Health Rural & Remote Excellence
Allied Health COVID Champion
Team Awards
Allied Health Adult Team Excellence Award
Allied Health Paediatric Team Excellence Award
Allied Health Team Culture Award
