A Work Readiness Scale for Allied Health Graduates

Purpose: The transition for allied health graduates from university to the workforce has been perceived to be difficult and overwhelming, leading to early attrition within healthcare professions. Work readiness is a crucial aspect of successful transition to the workforce, however, the elements of work readiness are not clearly defined. The purpose of this project was to refine the measurement of work-readiness in allied health graduates. Method: A 62-item Work Readiness Scale for Allied Health Professionals (WRS-AH), based on a work readiness scale for a generic population of graduates, was validated and refined using an exploratory factor analysis. Results: Participants were 245 Australian allied health professional graduates who completed the WRS-AH. An exploratory factor analysis supported a four-factor solution with domains (interpersonal capabilities, practical wisdom, personal attributes, and organisational acumen) similar to the original WRS. The final WRS-AH32 had 32 items, demonstrated good reliability, and explained 38% of the total variance. Using the WRS-AH32, on average, the Australian allied health graduates reported an overall work readiness score of 80% (SD 8) with scores highest for practical wisdom (Mean 90%, SD 8) and lowest for personal attributes (Mean 65%, SD 14). Conclusions: The WRS-AH32 confirms that work readiness is a multi-dimensional construct, reflecting that work within a dynamic, 21st century healthcare system requires more than just profession specific work competence. The WRS-AH may provide a more targeted approach to interventions to improve work readiness in future allied health professional graduates. Recommendations: The WRS-AH32 is a reliable scale to measure the perceived work readiness of allied health graduates as they transition from university to the workforce however ongoing validation is needed to establish construct validity.