Healthcare Growth Podcast by Affekt explores the ideas, evidence and issues shaping healthcare businesses today. Hosted by Dr Daniel Jess, short episodes unpack important news, emerging research and developments worth knowing, while longer episodes go deeper through expert conversations, presentations and analysis.
This podcast is for founders, leaders and decision-makers across healthcare and human services who want to understand what is changing, what matters, and what it means for growth. While it primarily focuses on businesses in Australia, it has far broader application for leaders in other Western countries including New Zealand, the United States of America and the United Kingdom.
A strong focus on allied health, disability, aged care, mental health and medical clinics and practices ensures the podcast stays relevant for leaders today who need to have the capacity to make multidisciplinary leadership decisions for their teams, patients and clients, and stakeholders.
Ep 5 - Are Healthcare Professionals Working Below Their Potential?
Could healthcare organisations improve productivity without hiring more staff or increasing workloads?
Australian research into a transdisciplinary allied health assessment model found that reorganising how clinicians work together saved an average of 37.6 minutes of staff time and an estimated $379 per patient, without detecting a deterioration in measured patient outcomes.
In this episode, Dr Daniel Jess examines research published in the European Stroke Journal and Journal of Interprofessional Care, alongside Australia's national Scope of Practice Review, to explore how traditional professional boundaries, duplicated assessments and workforce structures may be limiting healthcare efficiency.
The discussion considers what these findings could mean for healthcare, allied health, aged care and disability service providers, including the opportunities and risks of redesigning professional roles.
For healthcare leaders facing workforce shortages and rising costs, this episode offers a research-informed perspective on making better use of existing professional capability.
Research and reports discussed:
Martin et al. (2026). Acceptability, Appropriateness, Feasibility, and Translation Potential of Transdisciplinary Assessment Models. Journal of Interprofessional Care.https://doi.org/10.1080/13561820.2026.2647248
Martin et al. (2024). Does an Allied Health Transdisciplinary Stroke Assessment Save Time, Improve Quality of Care, and Save Costs? European Stroke Journal.https://doi.org/10.1177/23969873241258000
Martin et al. (2022). Allied Health Transdisciplinary Models of Care in Hospital Settings: A Scoping Review. Journal of Interprofessional Care.https://doi.org/10.1080/13561820.2022.2038552
Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care (2024). Unleashing the Potential of Our Health Workforce — Scope of Practice Review: Final Report.https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/scope-of-practice-review
11 Oct 2026
Ep 4 - Where Will Your Next NDIS Participant Come From?
The Australian Government's proposed changes to NDIS support coordination could significantly disrupt the referral relationships that many disability service providers rely on to attract new participants.
With support coordination expected to move to a commissioned model from July 2028, provider owners face an important question: where will their next participants come from?
In this episode, Dr Daniel Jess explores the proposed reforms and shares three practical business development strategies to help NDIS providers reduce their reliance on traditional support coordination referrals.
From generating direct enquiries through Google and improving website visibility, to building new professional referral networks and preparing for the commissioned service model, this episode offers practical steps providers can take now to strengthen their referral pipelines.
Government reform information:
NDIS Support Coordination and Connection Reform — Consultation Paper (2026)
https://consultations.health.gov.au/disability-and-carers-group/scc-reform/user_uploads/consultation-paper---support-coordination-and-connection-reform--2-.pdf
10 Oct 2026
Ep 3 - Does Aged Care Need a Different Kind of Leader?
Are we expecting too much from aged care managers?
A 2026 Australian study published in the Journal of Nursing Management examined what happened when residential aged care facilities separated clinical and operational leadership responsibilities.
In this episode, Dr Daniel Jess explores the findings, including significant changes in how managers spent their time, improvements reported by staff and residents, and the absence of statistically significant improvements in measured care outcomes.
The discussion considers whether traditional management structures place unreasonable demands on individual leaders, and what aged care, disability and other healthcare providers might learn from a different approach to leadership.
Research discussed:
Radford, K., et al. (2026). Rethinking Middle Management in Residential Aged Care: Evaluation of a Dyad House Leadership Model Intervention. Journal of Nursing Management.
https://doi.org/10.1155/jonm/3098235
5 Oct 2026
Ep 2 - Why Are 1 in 3 Disability Support Workers Thinking of Leaving Your Business?
Almost one in three disability support workers in a recent Australian study said they had considered leaving their role in the previous 12 months. But what makes this research particularly useful is what workers said providers could do about it.
In this episode, Dr Daniel Jess looks at new research into the wellbeing of Australian disability support workers and the practical factors affecting their experience at work. From training and supervision to administrative workload, management support and recognition, many of the issues identified sit within the direct control of providers.
What if part of the disability workforce problem isn't simply a shortage of workers, but how organisations design, manage and support the work itself?
4 Oct 2026
Ep 1 - Changes to the NDIS in October 2026
The NDIS has changed again, and for providers, the bigger question isn't simply what changed. It's what those changes tell us about the future of the market.
In this episode, Dr Daniel Jess from Affekt examines the October 2026 NDIS funding changes and what they mean for provider growth. He looks beyond the immediate funding reductions to explore exposure, utilisation, referral conversion, operational efficiency and whether the growth strategies that worked in an expanding NDIS market are still fit for what comes next.
With further reforms to registration, plan management and support coordination already on the horizon, this episode asks a more important question: how capable is your organisation of adapting when the environment changes?
For NDIS founders, executives and leaders thinking seriously about sustainable growth.
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