IPE Colloquium outcome statement 2026

Empowering voices: Educating health professionals for respectful and inclusive conversations

We recognise the privileged position that health professionals hold in the healthcare system and the community. We understand the importance of us providing support and respect to patients and other health professionals in the way we work and communicate.

We acknowledge the key role that education and training plays in building the skills and behaviours of health care professionals to support the needs of Australia’s diverse population.

We commit to:

• Contributing to a health system culture that values the lived experiences of patients and strives to meet their needs through trust, empathy, awareness and advocacy

• Supporting person-centred care, by focusing on the needs of individuals, their families and communities and recognising they are part of the collaborative team, experts in their own experiences and where shared decision making is developed in partnership

• Amplifying the voices of people with diverse abilities, needs, identities, cultures and lived experiences in the education of health professionals, and in the development and quality improvement of health systems

• Fostering inclusive, respectful conversations by health professionals in the workplace to enhance patient care and support practitioner wellbeing

• Ensuring that health professional education provides opportunities for students to build skills for respectful and inclusive conversations and provide a sense of collective identity

• Creating a workplace where everyone feels they belong and are listened to, and feel safe, valued, and empowered to succeed

Signed

Professor Sarah Roberts-Thomson 

Chair

Bronwyn Clark

Chief Executive Officer

Australian Pharmacy Council