Allied Health Care – Past, Present and Future

The Past

It has only been about 60 years since the term “allied health” was coined. Not necessarily intended to introduce new occupations, this term was initiated in order to identify a large body of health- related personnel working in the healthcare system. Individual occupations now under the allied health umbrella certainly existed before this time, such as that of Medical Laboratory Technician, which was developed in the 1920s.

For those interested in assisting, facilitating and complimenting the work of physicians and other specialists, allied health care professions held, and continue to hold much appeal, as they provide intellectual stimulation, and economic security, are a way to perform a service for society, and also offer geographic mobility.

The Present

According to the Oglethorpe University web site, there are more than 6.7 million workers currently employed in medical services in the United States, and physicians are only 8% of that total number.

Throughout the US, there are currently 6,500 training programs in allied health occupations. Some of these accept students directly from high school, while other programs require one or more years of college prior to admission.

But despite the proliferation of programs, the demand for allied health care workers greatly exceeds the supply, at this time. Case in point — in 3,000 hospitals surveyed by the American Hospital Association, 90% reported they have difficulty recruiting one or more types of allied health professionals.

More and more hospitals and other health care facilities are looking for ways to grab the attention of high school students, and steer them towards pursuing an occupation in allied health care. One resource geared toward high school students who may be interested in exploring the allied health care arena is the Health Opportunities for Today and Tomorrow (HOTT) web site, from the Michigan Health Council. This informative and multifaceted site has received a National eHealthcare Leadership Award for Best Interactive Site.

Looking to the future

Whether you are currently employed in an allied health care profession or are considering an occupation in the field, you can have input, and possibly an impact on some of the changes which are afoot.

Take a look at the American Medical Association Web site, where a plea is posted to support two separate legislations.

One is S.2491, the Allied Health Reinvestment Act, which was introduced in the Senate early this month, on January 4, in the 109th Congress.

The general purpose of this Act is to amend the Public Health Service Act to promote and improve the allied health professions.

More specifically, “It is the purpose of this Act to provide incentives for individuals to seek and complete high quality allied health education and training and provide additional funding to ensure that such education and training can be provided…”

You can visit the Association of Schools of Allied Health Schools web site at www.asahp.org, and read the complete Act, as it was presented.

In an attempt to benefit employers, employees, and the public, this Act includes, among others, the following sections: “Grants for Health Career Academies;”"Allied Health Education, Practice and Retention Grants;” a “Developing Models and Best Practices Program;” and more.

One section which may be of interest, especially to women in the work force who have young children, is “Sec. 799c-3. Allied Health Recruitment Grant Program.” Under this section, which addresses several ways to assist health education programs, is a statement which reads: “meet the costs of child care and transportation for individuals who are taking part in an allied health education program at any level.”

Individual allied health care professions included in the definitions section of this Act are: Dental hygiene; Dietetics or nutrition; Emergency medical services; Health information management; clinical laboratory sciences and medical technology; Cytotechnology; Occupational therapy; Physical therapy; Radiologic technology; Nuclear medical technology; rehabilitation counseling; Respiratory therapy; Speech-language pathology and audiology; and “any other profession determined appropriate by the Secretary.”

Look over this Act, then click on the link on the same web site and e-mail your representative to voice your opinion.

Change is afoot, and now is the time to get involved and affect the future of allied health care, whether by choosing to pursue any of the many occupations in which more allied health care professionals are needed, or by speaking out and affecting the environment in which current and future employees learn and work.

– Rachel Baruch Yackley is a Daily Herald Correspondent. If you have an idea for a future health care story or topic, please email: healthcarepulse@@dailyherald.com.