The Centre has made a submission asking for the Federal Government to fund intellectual disability health training for health workers in its upcoming 2026-2027 Budget.
This is important because people with intellectual disability have some of the poorest health outcomes in Australia, many of which can be avoided with better access to high-quality and inclusive health care.
What we said in our submission
We said that:
- People with intellectual disability experience the worst health outcomes of any group in Australia
- Providing better training to healthcare workers would help address this
- Now is the time to ensure Australia's primary health care workforce are appropriately equipped to provide quality care to people with intellectual disability through continuing professional development (CPD)
- There is a good range of online training material available to primary health professionals. However, without financial incentives, take-up of this training is low.
What we asked for
We asked the Federal Government to commit $10 million of the Budget over 4 years to fund scholarships for primary health care professionals to undertake continuing professional development in intellectual disability health.
