Sarah Connolly is currently the Director of Allied Health at the Royal Children’s Hospital. We caught up to find out a bit more about what led to Sarah’s career in health, the importance of protecting children and what inspires her to keep doing what she does.

You’re currently the Director of Allied Health, but you’ve previously been the manager of Social Work at the RCH, could you tell us a bit about that?

I joined the Social Work team in 2007 and had the privilege of leading the team as manager for about 9 years.  Social workers at the RCH provide services to children and families across all areas of the hospital and have specialist knowledge in a range of areas such as chronic illness, trauma, grief and loss, family violence and child protection.  Social workers are skilled in counselling, addressing and resolving conflict, working to address barriers to receiving healthcare, advocating on behalf of children and families and acting as a communication link for families with the hospital system and other support services.  One of the things the Social Work department is most proud of is helping to strengthen the RCH’s response to family violence.  The RCH recognises that addressing family violence is everyone’s responsibility and requires a whole of hospital response.  We are committed to supporting our patients, their families and any staff impacted by family violence.

What does an average day look like for you?

My current role is Director of Allied Health – a really varied and interesting role supporting our Allied Health teams to deliver care right across the hospital as part of multidisciplinary teams. Together with doctors and nurses, allied health practitioners are regarded as the third pillar of health care providers in Australia. A typical day for me could involve meeting with Allied Health managers and staff on topics related to workforce needs, improving clinical services, advocating for children with additional needs through our Disability Liaison Officer team or making sure our Allied Health clinical areas are working well and that our staff have the tools they need to do their work.  Allied Health at the RCH makes a significant contribution to the RCH vision – I see examples every day of working towards a world where all kids thrive. Sometimes when I need a break from my desk, I walk through our Allied Health clinic space and observe our clinicians supporting children to live their very best lives – whether that’s through physical movement, support with activities of daily living, communication or coping with medical procedures.

 When did you first know you wanted to work in health?

I always knew I wanted a career working with children, having grown up in a large extended family there were always lots of children.  I originally wanted to be a teacher but decided on a career in social work because of the many varied career paths it offered. I trained in social work in Ireland and worked in a variety of child and family settings including child protection services as well as hospital roles– so I bring my knowledge of children and families, child health and a strong focus on child safety to my role at the RCH  Working at the RCH is really inspirational – being surrounded by experts in children’s health and bearing witness to the resilience of children in the face of serious illness and injury.  It’s definitely a special place to work.

At the RCH, we put children at the heart of our care – how do you see this manifest in your work?

I see this manifest several times every day – at daily team huddles, patient safety discussions, in conversations with colleagues across the hospital.  Strong teamwork and effective communication mean that children remain at the centre, particularly in the busy hospital environment.  The RCH values- curious, courageous, inclusive, and kind – enable us to focus on the voices of children and their families.  For example, our Child Safety and Family Violence Committee meetings open with a patient story to keep us grounded in our work.  The theme of this year’s Child Protection week is ‘every child in every community needs a fair go’ and remembering that ‘every conversation matters’.  These are essential reminders about the importance of keeping children and young people safe and well.

What keeps you going each day?

Being part of a kind and high achieving team is very rewarding.  I enjoy supporting staff, troubleshooting issues, and making sure we all stay focussed on what matters – delivering high quality care to children and their families.  Each day brings new challenges, the opportunity to learn and reflect on what we can do better.