Rehab reaps rewards

Every career comes with its share of challenges, and for occupational therapist Ellie Murphy, one concern is the issue of staffing shortfalls when people leave the public sector in favour of private work.

Murphy works for Victorian public service Monash Health in the home-based rehabilitation team as well as runs her own business, servicing people privately through Home Care Packages and the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

Having worked as a health professional for over a decade she can understand why the public sector workforce is often lean.

“We have an under experienced workforce because once they get to a point where they know enough, they’ll earn more money in private,” Murphy tells Australian Ageing Agenda.

“The way of the future is to encourage people to do both. You’ll keep people in roles to be educators for younger staff, but they’ll also have a little taste of private work. There needs to be something in place that aims to retain people who are more experienced.”

Murphy has been with Monash Health for four years in a role she considers vital role for people over 65 who have experienced strokes. Rehabilitation is her goal, ensuring independence is achieved long-term for her patients.  

“It’s about assisting them to remain living at home. Looking at things like modifications to the home equipment, supporting confidence and relearning things, such as how to get in and out of a car or a bed,” says Murphy.

“A lot of them are very determined to be independent so it gives you motivation to help them maintain their lifestyles.”

You have to understand many different areas of funding

The complexity of the clients she treats can prove challenging on a daily basis. Not surprisingly, funding is often a consideration for Murphy and her clients, especially as not all of them are eligible for the NDIS, with little financial help for those who may become disabled after they turn 65.

“A lot of our clients are from very low socioeconomic backgrounds. You have a lot of funding constraints in public hospitals. There’s only so much you can provide as a therapist, so when they come from these backgrounds, that’s where it gets quite hard.”

Murphy hopes to see change arrive in the future, especially when two “completely different services” are being provided to 64-year-olds and 66-year-olds.

“It’s okay for those that get on the NDIS before they turn 65 because they can carry that over. If they become disabled after 65, on the aged care system that’s significantly lower than what you get on the NDIS. In contrast, you look at our 65-year-olds nowadays and they’re not even retired,” Murphy says.  

“You have to understand many different areas of funding because it depends on what [an individual] client’s needs are and what funding they have, to know what you’re navigating to get that for them.”

Murphy’s journey in health and aged care began at 18 as a personal care attendant while studying nursing. She then transitioned into occupational therapy.

 “I’ve been in the health area for 13 years and having fallen into it from a very young age, it’s what I know,” explains Murphy. “I feel a lot of empathy for the elderly and gain a lot from them too in their wisdom they have to share.”

Based out of the Kingston Hospital in Cheltenham, south-east of Melbourne’s central business district, Murphy travels 30 minutes north to work from her home in Frankston. Each day is varied, says Murphy, who explains that being in a multi-disciplinary team, they have every base covered when it comes to providing care.

“We spend 30 to 40 per cent of our day with a client,” she says. “And 60 per cent of the day dealing with paperwork, red tape, funding applications, allocating and prioritising our waitlist and liaising with other staff members.”

Seeing people gain their independence back is highly rewarding

Murphy says she can see longevity in her current career now she is balancing her own business and maintaining the stability that comes with being employed by the hospital.

“Having flexibility of both keeps things interesting and different,” she says.

Despite her career being highly “taxing” and at times “distressing” Elly tells AAA “the good days” keep her going.

“Appreciation from your clients and seeing how the results have impacted their lives are the days I work for,” says Murphy.

“Especially those who may have had big strokes and one of their goals might have been to pick their grandchild up and they end up being able to. Seeing people gain their independence back is highly rewarding.”

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