The Chief Executive Officer of Osteopathy Australia, Antony Nicholas spoke with Australian Health Journal about:

– Involvement in the Strengthening Medicare Task Force
– The unique skills osteopaths have that can address the chronic disease burden
– Current workforce issues around osteopaths and if enough are coming through via student placements
– How uploading data to My Health Record by osteopaths could assist team-based care of patients
– How the value of osteopaths in Residential Aged Care Facilities (RACFs) could be better understood and better access for residents
– The recommendations around aged care access to allied health services, including osteopathy
– The recommendations around consumer access to osteopaths and GP referrals
– Other osteopathy recommendations in the upcoming Federal Budget

In the lead up to the Australian Federal Budget in May 2023, Australian Health Journal reached out to peak health industry bodies to hear about their priorities, either noted in pre-budget submissions lodged with Federal Government in January 2023 or in recent forums such as the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce.

New evidence from the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA) indicates that older adults who experience a stroke for the first time will have substantial immediate and accelerated long term-cognitive decline. 

The Australian Federal 2026–27 Budget included several significant announcements relating to allied health services for veterans, largely tied to the Government’s response to recommendations from the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide.