Speak Out June 2020

From the President

One of Belinda Hill’s last duties as Vice President was to close the awards ceremony as a part of our first, completely online, Annual General Meeting (AGM). “On behalf of Speech Pathology Australia, I would like to thank you for your attendance this evening,” she said with a smile, handing back to the Online Facilitator. But if you waited right to the end, just before he turned off the audio, there was a laugh of relief, and you would have heard three final words: “We did it!” I’m not completely sure who it was who said that, but I suspect it may have been Nicole Pantalleresco, Board and Executive Assistant. Nicole had spent months of effort coordinating this new initiative. Working with Gail, Nicole had workshopped through all the possible risks and challenges involved. Having to hold an AGM online is something facing literally thousands of organisations, and not all have been successful. So, as a result, if it was Nicole, she absolutely deserved to utter these last words. And also because these words echo the experience that many speech pathologists are having right now. The ‘Embracing New Ways of Working’ feature article is a fantastic read, pulling together the experiences of speech pathologists across the nation, and the ways in which they moved swiftly and thoughtfully. While the stories are all distinct, the theme of “we did it” rings through each, and in particular the SP2030 aspirations of clients and communities driving service delivery. As a profession, we are uniquely placed to understand the irony behind the term social distancing. While we understand the health connotation behind keeping a physical distance to slow the spread of COVID-19, socially, we’re connecting more than ever. You’ll see in this issue that SPA’s social groups have increased both their memberships and engagement over the past few months. Indeed, some of the stories in our lead article cite that engaging with others over social media was vital in terms of gaining the resources and support needed to respond successfully. Also, now is exactly the right time to check out when your Branch is next meeting in your State or Territory. With all meetings

currently being held online, many Branches are experiencing increased attendee numbers, and the meetings I’ve been lucky to attend are filled with people sharing stories and laughing, as well as progressing the profession in a myriad of ways. It’s great to read that in Queensland, both pre-COVID and during the early days of the crisis, speech pathologists are getting together to share a story or two, and enjoy the collegiality of our profession. So there will be a lot of ways in which, once we start to re-establish what our profession and our wider society becomes in the years after the pandemic’s introduction. There will be some elements that return to us, some new ways of working that will continue to benefit us, and some things that absolutely must change. The Black Lives Matter movement has a particular resonance and importance within our country. Within this issue you will also read the significance of National Reconciliation Week, and meet Tania Harris, Eddie Ong, Louise Taylor, and Pauline Weldon-Bowen, who, with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Committee, the Board, and National Office, continue to drive our Reconciliation Action Plan into its Innovate phase. We cannot deny racism and discrimination throughout the world, and throughout our country, and ‘In This Together’ reinforces the commitment that we all share to eradicate this. I mentioned Belinda at the beginning of this introduction. Both Eddie and Belinda are stepping down from the Board, with Eddie continuing to work within the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Committee, and Belinda moving on to her next challenge– the world of research. We thank them for their significant contributions to the Association. We also welcome Bronwyn Sutton and Alison Smith to the Board of Directors, who will also bring inspiring insights. Yes, we did it. We have proved that we can embrace “new ways of working”. Our next challenge is our “new ways of being”. Make yourself a hot chocolate, and join me, let’s get to it.

Tim Kittel

Tim Kittel National President

3

June 2020 www.speechpathologyaustralia.org.au

Speak Out