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December 2023 newsletter
Message from the President
Welcome to the end of year newsletter for the Osteopathy Council of NSW!
The month of December can mean many things to different people. I hope that 2023 has been a year that you can reflect on with fondness and a sense of achievement. The Council diligently does their best in representing osteopaths as a profession, keeping the public safe as the state regulator and upholding the integrity and reputation of our profession. This takes time and effort, and we would not be able to do it without the help and support from the team at the Health Professional Councils Authority, the administrative body that supports the health professional Councils in NSW. Their knowledge, effort and professionalism is priceless.
As part of our regulatory role, we take a proactive approach to preventing issues before they potentially arise. One of our strategies for achieving this was a recent visit to Southern Cross University's Lismore and Gold Coast campuses to speak to future osteopaths about the responsibilities and obligations of being an Ahpra-registered health care provider. This was well received and perceived as a great success by all involved. Osteopathy is a small profession and to have to opportunity to communicate in this manner is a privilege.
In this newsletter we give an update on the HPCA and Councils joint Aboriginal Cultural Safety Strategy, highlight the recently released Managing health records practitioner resource and provide you with information on de-escalating difficult patients.
Wishing you all a safe, happy, and healthy Christmas and New Year.
Kerrin Murnane
B.App.Sci.(Osteopathy) M.Osteo
President, Osteopathy Council of NSW
Cultural Safety Strategy Launch
On 7 June, the Councils and the HPCA launched their joint Aboriginal Cultural Safety Strategy 2023 – 2024. Attendees heard from several guest speakers including Ms Deb Willcox AM, NSW Health Deputy Secretary, Health System Strategy and Patient Experience. You can read more about the launch here.
The Strategy aims to improve the experiences of Aboriginal people who interact with the NSW healthcare and regulatory system through:
- strengthening cultural safety within the NSW regulatory system
- increasing the participation of Aboriginal people on Councils, in the HPCA workforce, and in the NSW regulatory system, and
- collaborating with our stakeholders to promote best practice in cultural safety, led by the expertise and experiences of Aboriginal people.
The Strategy was developed by the Councils and HPCA Aboriginal Cultural Safety Working Group. The group is comprised of members of the Councils, community members, and representatives from the Ministry of Health's Centre for Aboriginal Health. The Group comprises 50% Aboriginal membership and the Strategy is informed by their generously shared expertise, lived experience and knowledge.
Managing health records (newly released information from Ahpra)
Maintaining good health records helps keep the public safe by contributing to the continuity of healthcare.
The Osteopathy Board of Australia has collaborated with six other health professions to create a new practitioner resource for managing health records. The resource has been published on Ahpra's website.
The managing health records resource includes a summary of what the code of conduct says about practitioners’ health record management obligations, as well as a self-reflective tool to help practitioners consider their record keeping and management processes.
Managing difficult patients - de-escalation
Dealing with difficult patients requires listening, empathy and calmness. When there are signs of anger or verbal aggression it is important to stay calm and be mindful that anger may be a sign that the person is in distress, experiencing fear or frustrated. Remember that it is not possible to reason or problem solve with someone who is enraged. Effective communication skills are the key to settling, resolving and de-escalating a situation.
It is not your job to stop the person being angry, but the below strategies may help to make the person feel calmer. It is only then that you can look at how to deal with the situation and their concerns.
- Listen to what the issue is and the person's concerns.
- Offer reflective comments to show that you have heard what their concerns are.
- Wait until the person has released their frustration and explained how they are feeling.
- Look and maintain appropriate eye contact to connect with the person.
- Incline your head slightly, to show you are listening and give you a non-threating posture.
- Nod to confirm that you are listening and have understood.
- Express empathy to show you have understood.
Tell us what you think
You can send us an email if you have a particular comment or suggestion about this edition or you can have your say via our anonymous survey which is open all year round https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/FGWJJDH
