Workforce and Leadership Support (WALS)

The success and leadership in Aboriginal health is driven and maintained by the quality of our sector’s workforce, so the WALS team continues to provide programs and projects that address the workforce priorities of AMSANT’s member services.

WALS works with, supports and ‘grows’ Aboriginal health services by collaborating with a wide range of industry and health partners ~ including those in education, training and rural workforce ~ under the direction of AMSANT’s members and Board.

We recognise that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers bring profound cultural, linguistic and familial strengths to their jobs as they are often employed in the communities they were born in and grew up in. Crucially, they know the people who visit the clinics and they instil confidence and trust in clients and people where they work.

AMSANT’s member services employ many Aboriginal people as nurses, CEOs, doctors, outreach workers, midwives, health practitioners, admin workers and support staff … the WALS team strives to increase this Aboriginal workforce to deliver clinically and culturally safe health practices and services to people and communities.

Education pathways, professional development, career pathways, mentoring and peer support networks are central elements for us to grow our own workforce, which is now recognised as essential to sustain the primary health sector.

WALS is a team that manages a range of initiatives that address workforce education and training, research, health leadership, integrated team care (chronic disease), cultural safety, GP registrar support, the NDIS and tobacco control.

We also contribute to workforce and health policy development at the NT and national levels, and promote quality evidence-based research, as prioritised by Aboriginal people.

Our aims are to:

Increase the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people working in all health service professions across the NT;
Promote the workforce interests and priority issues of AMSANT members at meetings and seminars, and advocate those priorities to governments, bureaucrats and other stakeholders;
Strengthen health leadership among Aboriginal staff at our member services, and help facilitate their professional progress and career development; and
Address the needs of allied health groups ~ such as outreach, healthy lifestyle and tobacco action workers.

Career Pathways

Aboriginal Leadership

Integrated Team Care

NDIS Ready

Tobacco Control

Workforce Trainee Program