Dr Ross Goldstone1, Mr Ian Buczynski1
1Health Education England,
Health systems globally are experiencing workforce shortages across all workforce domains, with paramedicine one notable area of shortage. The English National Health Service (NHS) is no stranger to such workforce challenges and has tasked its workforce arm, Health Education England, to create innovative, sustainable, and ethical international solutions working in partnership with in-country organisations to promote and facilitate health professionals to spend time working and developing in the NHS. This presentation will present on one such solution – the Australasian Paramedic Ethical Migratory Pathway Project – and initial evaluation findings.
This project involved Health Education England working in partnership with the Council of Ambulance Authorities, Australasian universities, English Ambulance Services and regulatory bodies to create migratory opportunities for paramedicine graduates from Australia and New Zealand. We opted to base the pilot on Australia and New Zealand given the identified surplus of paramedicine graduates at project inception, alignment in educational standards, and common language. The Australasian paramedics were provided with a relocation package, encompassing pastoral support and clinical training, and will be supported to complete the Newly Qualified Paramedic (NQP) Programme during their 3-year NHS employment. The project facilitated 78 Australasian paramedics to migrate to work in the English NHS, thus exposing them to global health learning opportunities in a different health system and a wide range of clinical and management skills development opportunities. The project garnered considerable organisational and NHS system learning to inform the future development of solutions to address workforce challenges in paramedicine in and beyond the NHS.
Biography:
Ross Goldstone is Research & Development Manager and Ian Buczynski is Senior Programme Manager – Ethical Migratory Pathways at Global Health Partnerships, Health Education England, which pilot the development of ethical migratory pathways to facilitate opportunities for Medics, Nurses, Paramedics and other Allied Health Professionals to work in the NHS.