Occupational therapist Aden Raffaldi relocates to Airlie Beach to work

A move back to Australia and incentives have played a role in Occupational Therapist (OT) Aden Raffaldi now working at Airlie Beach.

His boss Tom McMillan, a co-owner and director of PhysioPlus, used a campaign by Health Workforce Queensland (HWQ) in partnership with Northern Queensland Primary Health Network (NQPHN) to a build a sustainable allied health workforce through the recruitment and retention of allied health professionals.

OT Aden Raffaldi was recruited by HWQ and was provided with funding through NQPHN and HWQ’s initiative to help move to Airlie Beach, including travel.

Mr Raffaldi said he enjoyed living and working at Airlie Beach.

“I was doing research online while living overseas. I was interested in returning to Australia to work as an OT. I was keen to challenge myself by working in a new and exciting location,” said Mr Raffaldi.

He said the incentives provided played a role in the decision to relocate.

“Having some financial assistance was really helpful with the initial costs of moving, especially with the rising cost of living.

“The position is mostly what I expected. It’s good having a diverse caseload, which challenges me every day. It really helps to build my experience and knowledge in different areas of OT.

“It can be difficult to manage my time effectively, but I have the support of another OT (Hayden Conner) at PhysioPlus.”

Mr Raffaldi said he had helped patients receive equipment that made a difference to their daily lives.

“Also, some patients have progressed well in their rehabilitation to where they have returned to previous occupations,” said Mr Raffaldi.

“I would highly recommend the campaign to others, particularly if considering moving to a rural location.”

The targeted allied health campaign is focused on recruiting and orientating incoming allied health professionals to help enhance and grow the current workforce while also enhancing in-situ their capability by upskilling.

One target area is the Mackay region where there is recruiting for occupational therapists (Mackay, Whitsundays, and Bowen), physiotherapists (Whitsundays and Bowen), and a speech pathologist (Whitsundays).

Mr McMillan became involved with the allied health campaign because of the difficulty of attracting staff.

“The main reason for getting involved was because we were not being successful with our recruitment using existing methods,” said Mr McMillan.

He needed an OT at PhysioPlus Airlie Beach.

“Support from NQPHN and HWQ provided the incentive we needed to recruit and retain high health professionals and grow our multi-disciplinary service in our community,” Mr McMillan said.

“The program provided support for those key recruitment concerns for candidates like relocation and immediate accommodation.”

Mr McMillan said PhysioPlus was able to provide full-time OT services in locations including Cannonvale, Airlie Beach, Bowen, and Hamilton Island.

“We have been able to provide services to areas that previously didn’t have them, and the community has benefitted from having this extra support,” said Mr McMillan.

“Aden is working with the full support of our clinic, and supervised mentoring. The recruitment support has facilitated our practice and community to have the services of a resident OT.”

Mr McMillan said he had used the campaign many times and fully recommended it to other employers.

“The partnership with NQPHN and HWQ has been very beneficial. HWQ has an excellent recruitment process and NQPHN has the local area knowledge which together produces a fantastic recruitment incentive,” said Mr McMillan.

“It’s a great policy for recruitment and has enabled us to provide services to the community that it previously did not have.

“I have taken this program to other professional organisations such as Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA), Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHRPA), and National Rural Health Alliance (NRHA) as an example of good rural workforce policy by strengthening existing proven providers while not being anti-competitive.

“A younger clinician like Aden may not be able to work solo and this program helps provide the support, supervision, and mentoring that only a proven local provider can provide.”

Picture shows: Hayden Conner, Aden Raffaldi and Tom McMillan at work.