Endorsement of the New Health Training Package HLT07

Dan Hill, the Chair of the CS&H Industry Skills Council Board, announced the official endorsement of the new Health Training Package HLT07. Endorsed by the National Quality Council on 25 January 2007, the Ministerial Delegates agreed to this endorsement on 12 February 2007.  Click here to read the full media release

Reiki Australia congratulates Industry Skills Council on this wonderful achievement.  Hopefully Reiki treatment practice qualifications will be included in a future HTP.

The contribution made by Wendy Watson, a director of Reiki Australia, who managed a team of dedicated practitioners with a passion for professional standards, was integral to the development of the first draft of the proposed Reiki treatment qualification.   Click here to read about Reiki Australia's Professional Standards Team

Wendy was also appointed by CS&HISC to the Industry Reference Group for Complementary and Alternative Health, whose  role  was to support the review of the Health Training Package project and provide input and advice on key issues .  

 Wendy writes in response to the endorsement:

It is very rewarding to know that at least some of the excellent  work of Reiki Australia's Professional Standards Team has seen the light of day with the endorsement of the units describing the skills and knowledge required to provide therapeutic support  for people with chronic illness and life challenging illness.   The two units on Supportive Care, written by the Professional Standards Team in collaboration with Grace Gawler, are now endorsed in the package and have already been included in four qualifications.   I would also like to acknowledge the significant contribution that was made by other industry experts, to the unit, Provide Services for People with Life Challenging Illness.  Ian Mavor and Deirdre Hanna of the Hopewell Hospice Service on the Gold Coast, were advisers to the development of specific competencies required to care for people who are in the dying stage of their life.  Margaret Gargan, former director of the Bloomhill Cancer Help Centre on the Sunshine Coast, provided valuable advice on the competencies for self-care for the healthcare worker.   

The two units were designed to particularly address the needs of practitioners in the Complementary and Alternative Health sector, whose services are increasingly sought by clients and carers facing chronic, or life challenging conditions.  However, as common units, these workskills can be accessed by any healthcare worker.

Reiki Australia is grateful to all involved, including the Skills Council for their recognition of Reiki Australia's feedback regarding the need for such work skills across a number of health professions, and for their provision of resources to develop the units to final stage.

The CSHISC announced to the Complementary and Alternative Health  Industry Reference Group meeting held on 5th July 06  that  the Certificate IV and Diploma in Reiki Treatment Practice qualifications will not be included in the current review of the Health Training Package.

Events that have led to this outcome are:

October 2005 to April 2006

At a Reiki stakeholders' meeting in October 2005, convened by the Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council (CSHISC), the CEO of the ISC detailed the background to the inclusion of Reiki qualifications in the current review of the Health Training Package HLTO2. The CEO clarified that the CSHISC would be unable to invest any further monies in a qualification that did not have the support of the Reiki community.
 
As members of the National Reiki Reference Group (NRRG), formed following this meeting, a Reiki Australia representative worked with representatives of other member associations, branches of Reiki and Reiki training organisations on the modification of the draft 1 qualification (Certificate IV and Diploma units in Reiki treatment practice) with the aim of attaining a mutually acceptable qualification that would accord with the needs of the Reiki community. 

17th April 2006

A number of members of the NRRG announced as a bloc that they were withdrawing from the NRRG, and would separately submit their own feedback on the qualification to the CSHISC.

24th April 2006

The remaining members of the NRRG, including Reiki Australia, submitted to the CSHISC a revised draft qualification incorporating all of the modifications that had been agreed by the full membership of the NRRG during the November to April meetings.

15th May 2006

NRRG members received a copy of a media release announcing the formation of the Council of Australian Reiki Organisations (CARO), a group comprised of the former members of the NRRG.

June 9th 2006

The CSHISC convened a telephone meeting of representatives of Reiki subgroups, to provide a summary of feedback received to the draft Reiki treatment qualification, and to seek to resolve differences between groups. At this meeting the CEO of the ISC advised NRRG members that CARO had submitted a first draft of an alternative qualification. Reiki stakeholders in the NRRG group were given one week to peruse and prepare feedback on this newly tabled proposal.

June 16th 2006

At a follow-up telephone meeting, verbal feedback on the CARO draft was provided by NRRG representatives of Reiki Australia, the Professional Standards Team, Reiki Jin Kei Do, Gendai Reiki Network Australia and The Reiki Alliance. In essence, all expressed concerns relating to a significantly reduced emphasis on the skills needed in the workplace by Reiki treatment practitioners, and/or to proposed entry requirements that would unacceptably restrict entry to the qualification.  In view of the continuing differences between stakeholder groups, the CEO of the CSHISC informed the group that she would be recommending that the Reiki qualification not be included in the current review of the Health Training Package. The next opportunity will be in approximately 2010.

Conclusion

Despite differences, all Reiki industry stakeholders who have been involved in this process are passionate and committed to their practice of Reiki. It would appear that the way forward is for the Reiki community to engage in further discussions regarding the purpose of a national Reiki treatment qualification, and for Reiki industry stakeholders to participate in facilitated, group mediation and team building processes with the desired outcome of team synergy and shared goals. Throughout the negotiations, from November 2005 to April 2006, this was regularly suggested by Reiki Australia and by other NRRG representatives to support us all in this healing journey within the Reiki community.

Appreciation

Reiki Australia would like to take this opportunity to thank all of those people around Australia who have contributed to the process of developing the qualification during the 5 years since the idea was originally proposed:

• To the very many Reiki practitioners who have attended and presented at meetings, forums and conferences, who have participated in surveys, and have so generously shared their experiences and ideas;
• To worksites who have provided us with feedback and with expert advice on the integration of complementary and alternative health approaches into the healthcare system;
• To our members, and particularly project team members, who have contributed untold time to the process, having some remarkable experiences and developing wonderful friendships along the way;
• And especially to the Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council: for their welcoming of input from the Reiki community to the Health Training Package review since June 2003, and for their subsequent advice, technical support, patience, facilitation, cooperation and understanding.

Confirmation of Feedback to Draft 2 Cert IV and Diploma of Reiki Treatment Practice Qualifications has been received from the Skills Council.

Dear members,

Reiki Australia has been working with other Reiki industry stakeholders in a collective known as the National Reiki Reference Group (NRRG), to develop the draft qualifications for Reiki treatment practice.  This group was formed after the release in 2005 of Draft 1 Reiki Treatment Practice qualifications and agreed to collaborate on progressing the qualification. This has, naturally, been challenging at times due to varying stakeholder perspectives and interests. Nonetheless, all NRRG members agreed that a national standard for professional Reiki treatment practitioners was in the best interest of the health and wellbeing of Australian consumers of health care services. Your Reiki Australia representatives have worked with other stakeholders in a spirit of goodwill and expectation of industry readiness, to help develop this standard.

The following NRRG members are some of the authors of the original draft of the Reiki treatment practice qualifications which were developed after extensive national consultation with practitioners and worksites:

• Eileen Chapman, representing Dr Ranga J. Premaratna and the International Reiki Jin Kei Do and Buddho/EnerSense Training Institute
• Sharron Mackison, representing Reiki Australia members
• Annabel Muis, representing Phyllis Furomoto and Usui Shiki Ryoho students of that lineage
• Wendy Watson, representing Reiki Australia - Professional Standard Team - Reiki practitioners, worksites and other stakeholders who participated in the process of consultation initiated by Reiki Australia to support the development of a Reiki treatment practice qualification, and who are not members of Reiki Australia or other Reiki organisations.
• Karen Workman, representing Hiroshi Doi and Gendai Reiki Network Australia

The above NRRG members were unexpectedly notified, on 17th April of a decision by the other NRRG members to work amongst themselves to prepare a separate submission on the draft qualifications.

Following this announcement the CSHISC responded that they were willing to receive feedback on Draft 2 from all parties.

The above mentioned NRRG representatives presented a detailed submission to CSHISC by the due date of 24th April 2006, which aimed to preserve the consensus agreements that had been made by NRRG representatives prior to 17th  April, as well as maintaining the principles that are important to Reiki Australia.

We are confident that there will be enough agreement to enable progress to endorsement of the Certificate IV and Diploma qualifications for Reiki treatment practice.

A Certificate IV and Diploma in Reiki?

The system of Reiki is one of the fastest growing energy therapies worldwide. In Australia, it is already available in some hospitals, palliative care units, and other community settings.

In July 2005 the Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council (CS&HISC) issued Draft 1 qualifications for a Certificate IV in Reiki Treatment Practice. These qualifications, if implemented, will lead to a Certificate IV and Diploma training for Reiki practitioners who wish to work in the fields where communication between Reiki and other practitioners (complementary as well as orthodox healthcare) would be required.

Draft 2 of the qualifications was issued in February of this year, with the last draft, Draft 3, to be made available later this year.

A change of name in relation to the Certificate IV in Reiki Treatment Practice has been submitted as feedback in the validation process. The suggested name would be a Certificate IV in Reiki Treatment Practice in Community Services and Health Care Settings, which it is felt more accurately reflects the draft's contents.

Who is the CS&HISC?

The CS&HISC is a Government funded body whose role is to support, develop, implement and continuously improve the quality of nationally recognised products and services, including Training Packages.

Its role is to ensure appropriateness of Vocational Education & Training (VET) to meet the skills and knowledge of the industry workforce and it is currently conducting a review of the Health Training Package. Part of this package review is the inclusion of a new qualification for Reiki Treatment Practice in Community Services and Health Care Settings.

What do these Qualifications entail?

The draft qualifications are made up of units of competencies. In the Reiki Certificate IV package there are currently 16 competency units. This is comprised of 15 compulsory units and one elective.

Nine of these are Common Units and six are specialised Reiki Units and one is an elective unit.

The draft qualifications can be downloaded from the CS&HISC website www.cshisc.com.au. Follow the link Health Training Package HLTO2 Review. If you have difficulty downloading the units contact project co-ordinator sarah.fuller@cshsc.com.au who will arrange to post a CD Rom of the units to you.

Who will be able to study the Certificate IV and Diploma?

People who wish to learn Reiki will still be able to do so with whomever they wish. It is after they receive their Reiki training that they may decide to attain a Certificate IV or Diploma in Reiki Treatment Practice in Community Services and Health Care Settings.

Reiki is unique as an energy therapy in that it is both a healing art and a spiritual practice. It has been an important aim of the qualification design to support and preserve the personal spiritual practice by keeping Reiki I, Reiki II and Master training outside the scope of the qualification. The spiritual aspect of Reiki training is not part of these draft qualifications and will remain the Reiki teacher's responsibility.

The focus of the qualification is on appropriate treatment delivery in a professional environment such as a clinic, hospice, or hospital. To that end, part of the Health Training Package, which Reiki will become a subset of, deals with such things as being able to interpret simple medical terminology, basic anatomy and physiology, hygiene, taking case histories etc. For practitioners who may be dealing with orthodox medicos and working in clinic type environments such knowledge and skills are important.

If these draft Cert IV and Diploma qualifications are endorsed, they will become the nationally recognised standard for Reiki practitioners who wish to work in community services or health care settings in Australia. Participation in the validation of the Draft qualifications by stakeholders such as Reiki practitioners, and potential employers and associations, is vital to ensure broad industry acceptance of qualifications.

The National Reiki Reference Group

On the 12th of November 2005 a number of Reiki industry representatives developed a working party calling itself the National Reiki Reference Group (NRRG). The NRRG is liaising with the CS&HISC in the creation of the Certificate IV in Reiki Treatment Practice in Community Services and Health Care Settings. Their aim is to ensure that the standards of competency for Reiki training are equitable, inclusive, sound, comprehensive, appropriate and accessible.

The Creation of a National Reiki Umbrella Group

Looking to the future, the NRRG has agreed in principle to support the formation of a national Reiki umbrella group, encompassing Reiki organisations throughout Australia. This body would work in conjunction with government bodies and provide self-regulation of the Reiki treatment industry.

Validation Period - Have YOUR Say

If you would like to have your say about Draft 2, it will be available at the end of February, 2006 on the CS&HISC website. Following this a validation period will be held by the CS&HISC where feedback on the draft will be welcomed for possible input.

To keep yourself up to date on matters pertaining to the Health Training Package you can also subscribe to the CS&HISC newsletter via the website www.cshisc.com.au

The above excerpt is from an article on the National Reiki Reference Group website
www.nrrg.org.au.

DRAFT 1- Reiki Treatment Practice Qualifications

We are very pleased to announce that the vocational qualifications are now at Draft 1 stage. Thank you to those who have contributed so far. The Qualifications are based on material collated from all stakeholders within the Reiki industry: lay Reiki practitioners, vocational Reiki practitioners, health and community care facilities, Lineage Bearers and Founders of practices of Reiki.

Now you have an opportunity to support the qualification by participating in the industry validation feedback.

The purpose of the validation of Draft 1 is to:

• review the proposed qualifications and competency units
• check that the proposed qualifications and units reflect the specific needs of the relevant work roles in your workplace
• suggest appropriate changes to inform the development of Draft 2.

The Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council (CSHISC) have designed easy-to-follow support material to assist any individuals or groups to give feedback.

Watch for the release of industry validation documents for Draft 1 feedback. Estimated timing is the end of July on the CSHISC website www.cshisc.com.au. Go to Current Projects and follow the link to Health Training Package HLT02Review.

The qualifications when endorsed will become part of the Health Training Package and will be publicly owned by the Department of Education, Science and Training. This will benefit of all who choose to access Reiki treatments to support their healing process and all those who seek professional skill and public acceptance as Reiki treatment practitioners.

Reiki Australia conducted extensive national consultation between 2000 - 2005.  The output of this consultation with Reiki masters, practitioners and community service and health facilities informed the development  of standards for Reiki treatment practitioners. Experienced Reiki practitioners worked with the technical writers from the Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council ( CSHISC) to develop Draft 1, Cert IV and Diploma qualifications for  inclusion in the review of the Health Training Package. . 

To learn more click the active links below

National Consultation

Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council

Reiki Australia's Professional Standards Team and industry consultants