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Improving the Way We Engage with the APT Workforce
Improving the Way We Engage with the APT Workforce - official AAPT Council mission statement
The Association of Anatomical Pathology Technology exists to represent and support the interests of our membership, but also has a similar and very real responsibility to the profession as a whole.
We believe that the way we communicate, both with members and non-members, is key to our success in the advancement and protection of the APT workforce, and the direction in which the profession develops in the future.
Because this is such a vital area, both to the AAPT’s future and to you as individual members, but also because we haven’t always got it right, we have been working hard to review and improve the way we engage and communicate as a professional body, as well as making sure we are as accountable and transparent as possible.
As a result, AAPT today announce the following commitments to change the way we operate.
1. We will create a ‘Professional Engagement and Communication Committee’, which will be led by a Council Member, and will have direct and focussed responsibility for meeting your needs in this subject.
2. We have introduced a single, easy and clear way for you to contact the AAPT Council: council@aaptuk.org.
Once your e-mail has been received, you will be sent an automatic reply acknowledging receipt of your message and promising to respond within 10 working days. The e-mail will then be passed to the most appropriate person for response within that timeframe.
3. Information requested by you via the above route will be fully disclosed, unless there are specific reasons why this is not possible. In that case, such reasons will be communicated clearly and honestly to you, and you will be updated as soon as the situation changes.
4. We will clearly set out and document the types of information and decisions that will be subject to member consultation.
5. We will improve the section of the website where such information is placed for consultation with members, and include it within the main navigation menu.
6. One of the three Council meetings held per year will be relocated to a venue outside of London. We understand that this is where many APTs live and work, and do not want an issue like distance to discourage you getting involved. We will also ensure that training and other such events are regularly available outside of London.
7. We will audit all of the previous years’ HTA reports, share any good practice identified within, and ensure the APTs involved receive the recognition they deserve. A Council Member will lead this project, and will be releasing further information on this shortly.
8. We will organise an annual event for Mortuary Managers (or Senior APTs responsible for the day-to-day running of a mortuary), with the opportunity to discuss and obtain support on non-technical management-related issues. These roles can feel isolated, with little training available, and we recognise the importance of peer support. It is hoped that more formal refresher training in this area could be offered in the future.
9. We will contact members and non-members, region by region, to ensure they are being listened to in a meaningful way, and any opinions they may wish to express regarding their profession are being taken on board. This will hopefully also have the effect of strengthening any existing Regional Networks (or helping to create new ones, where necessary).
10. We will expand the Trainee Support Network to include the Lead holding details of which mortuaries specialise in each discipline, enabling them to provide such details to those Trainees seeking experience unavailable in their own mortuary.
Through this piece of work, we have identified several areas that, although not directly related to this subject, stood out as areas on which we could improve. As a result, we will be looking to implement the following points over the coming months:
• In addition to the information already published at the AGM regarding Council expenses, we will publish the criteria and rules relating to Council expenses on the AAPT website, and we will publish a monthly diary of any official AAPT duties undertaken by Council, to give you a clear understanding what we are doing on your behalf and why such expenses are incurred.
• We have reviewed the Council code of conduct and will publish it on the AAPT website.
• We will look to make the AGM held as part of the annual conference a more substantial event, and will be asking members to submit topics or motions in advance. This is an ideal opportunity for members to make their voices heard by proposing topics to be discussed or motions to be voted upon, giving a more democratic feel to the operation of the AAPT.
• We will look at ways in which we can offer useful, impartial and non-judgemental support and advice to APTs experiencing problems or difficult circumstances.
• We will review the process of electing and re-electing Council Members, with a view to making the process more accountable and democratic.
We are hopeful that, through these actions, you will feel more connected to the decisions and actions that impact on you and your profession, and that more APTs will recognise that the AAPT is working hard on behalf of the profession as a whole and feel encouraged to join us – we are undoubtedly stronger together.
If you have any comments or suggestions (positive or negative) please feel free to contact me via the general enquiry AAPT Council e-mail (council@aaptuk.org) anytime.
John Pitchers
AAPT Vice-Chair
& Lead Professional Engagement and Communication Committee