Smart, Georgina - NSW Ministry of Health

Response:

Yes, the role of industry does need to strengthened and expanded. NSW Health's engagement with the VET sector is important for both the Health and VET sectors' strategic and operational success. It is critical that VET students in health graduate with the right skills for the right roles to ensure we continue to deliver high-quality health care for the NSW public.
Successful engagement to us means:
•	Regular two-way communication. We believe by working together, we can design, deliver, and offer career and ongoing learning opportunities that enhance the NSW public's lives. NSW Health engagement with the VET sector is required to be meaningful, regular and cyclical to ensure full effect. This engagement relationship encourages NSW Health to offer workforce insights that inform the VET sector of current or emerging opportunities and provides both organisations with valuable information for co-design to identify opportunities, challenges, or areas of risk in the creation of work ready graduates.
•	Encouraging industry ready specifics requires VET to be updating regularly. As adaptions develop across all industry sectors in technology and digitisation, social ethics, global politics and developing communities, so too does the impact of these influences on the health of citizens. Having accessible, relevant, usable course content that upskills a health workforce in areas of need as determined by NSW Health means VET has community impact and relevance.

Response:

Yes

Response:

NSW Health appreciates the opportunity to be represented on several IRCs and have regular engagement with key stakeholders in the VET sector. 

With any industry engagement, it is critical that representative groups have clear requirements for membership and are across the needs of the workforces they represent. Membership of the industry engagement committees could be streamlined to ensure that members are adequately representing the students and requirements for qualifications.

An area for improvement is the timeliness of requests for response from IRC members. The responses are often required within tight timeframes, which means that not all members have a chance to respond and/or consult with their internal subject matter experts. 

Additionally, proposed changes to qualifications could benefit from enhanced horizons scanning and a stronger evidence base to support the rationale. 

Response:

Broadening the pathways with high schools, VET can enable students to start assessing the skills they have and linking those with work opportunities around them. Whilst there are great advantages in the information age, an overload of options means that the practical and relevant options of VET pathways can shine realistically through for the future workforce as a critical stepping stone to work and career development. This includes working with universities on RPL for VET subjects and working with industry on the requirements for job ready graduates. 

Support rural and regional students it would be beneficial to have additional VET delivery sites and offerings for on a face-to-face basis (and also other flexible modes). It would support the training and development of a rural/regional local health workforce which is critical for the sustainability of NSW Health services in these areas. 

Create (interprofessional) networks for connecting current students as they study – library study hubs, social media groups, talent showcase days/forums. This is important for all students but particularly those in rural/remote areas. 

Response:

The future health workforce needs are dynamic and continuously evolving to meet the care needs of the NSW public. This evolving state requires VET programs to be responsive and flexible within their qualification frame to deliver fit-for-purpose graduates now and into the future. 

Ensuring qualifications are fit-for-purpose requires a robust and regular process of qualification review that is informed by industry and learners. NSW Health, as the largest NSW employer, has valuable insights into current needs and future health workforce trends that can inform what and how qualifications are delivered. At the same time, learner experiences during and after graduation can provide prospective and retrospective contributions to this review cycle. Multiple sources of feedback will also offer balance in the qualification review cycle.

The consistency of outcomes and communication of expected standards remains essential for both industry and learners in any qualification. Variation in learner and industry expectations is likely to result in dissatisfaction that challenges the reasons for engagement. 

A common foundation of generic communication, thinking or knowledge skills that covers business, ethics, IT and enquiry is likely to support their success as they navigate their vocational learning and future career and job navigation. This preparation for leaners in these evolving aspects around them will benefit the success of VET qualifications. 

In return, reasonable expectations of the industry to develop and support learners following graduation is suitable. On-the-job training, including access to quality industry training experiences, is vital for the contextualisation of learning. 

Response:

No response provided.