The induction process is a critical step in welcoming and integrating new employees into an organisation. 

A well-structured induction not only helps employees settle into their roles quickly but also improves engagement, retention and productivity. 

An increasing number of companies offer AI-based clinical scribes—tools that record the interaction between clinician and patient and subsequently produce documents including summaries, reports and letters, using natural language processing and generative AI.

The start of the year is often a prime time for recruitment. 

Organisations are gearing up to meet fresh business goals, expand teams and secure the right talent for the months ahead.

However, recruitment is more than just filling vacancies—it’s about finding candidates who align with your organisation’s culture, values and goals. 

As physiotherapists, we play a vital role in helping injured workers recover and return to work. Recent evidence highlights the significant impact of psychosocial factors on recovery outcomes, offering us tools to streamline our work and achieve better results.

Once upon a time, physiotherapy students did most of their training at state-based colleges of health sciences like the Lincoln Institute of Health Sciences in Melbourne (which merged with La Trobe University in 1987) and Cumberland College of Health Sciences in Sydney (which became part of the University of Sydney in 1989).

Both employers and employees have rights and responsibilities when it comes to leave entitlements under the Fair Work Act 2009.

Understanding these entitlements ensures that employees can take necessary time off for rest or personal matters, while employers can meet their legal obligations and promote a positive work environment.

At this time of year, when APA members are renewing their membership, there’s a question that will cross many minds.

What is the value of membership and what does it mean to you?

The concept of value is subjective and is assessed in different ways over the course of a professional life.

By way of illustration, take Errol Lim, who has clocked 30 years of APA membership and recently shared his thoughts about it on LinkedIn.

Workplace conflict is something every employer will face and how it’s handled can greatly affect productivity, employee satisfaction and the overall work environment. 

Conflict arises from differing attitudes, opinions, approaches or perspectives on a situation, issue or person. 

The APA recently hosted its second Industry Leader Group meeting in Melbourne, bringing together diverse insights from various sectors, including hospitals, community care, multidisciplinary practices, large corporations, occupational health, aged care and primary health, with representation from across Australia.

Strategically, we wanted to expand our advisory lens and ensure that we are authentically representing a broad spectrum of professional visions.

The day was intense as we delved into the topical issues that face our profession in Australia and beyond.

A few months ago I had the opportunity to attend my first large APA event as CEO—the Victorian Branch Winter Breakfast.

We had more than 250 attendees and it proved to be a wonderful event on a number of levels.

It was a great pleasure to reconnect with so many physiotherapists that I had not seen for some time—friends, former colleagues and many others who had taught me or with whom I attended university.

The opportunity to catch up and to hear their stories was energising, both personally and professionally.