...to gain clarity on COVID-19 and work towards a return to business
As an introduction to the webinar on Advocacy on Wednesday 13 May 2020 Sharan Simmons, PAA President gave a summary of the work done by the PAA so far to gain clarity on COVID-19 announcements and to work towards return to face to face practice. The following is taken from her presentation notes.
PAA COVID-19 Advocacy Webinar 13 May 2020
PAA consultant, Elaine Abery, Director of Unravelling Red Tape joins us today to discuss the current PAA COVID-19 advocacy work with Commonwealth, State and Territory government departments to clarify the guidelines for Pilates instructors across the country.
Elaine has 2 decades of experience working with large government departments, companies, consulting services and not-for-profits.
The PAA have engaged Elaine to tailor and direct our strategy to educate and engage government departments to advocate for a return to face to face practice for accredited Pilates professionals (within approved guidelines).
These ongoing government communications will also continue to build a stronger recognition of our profession and industry.
Outline of PAA advocacy to date
Sunday 22 March, PM Scott Morrison announced the shutdown directive for all but essential services.
23 March, the shutdown directive came into force for all but essential health services. Pilates studios and gyms were required to close.
The PAA immediately placed calls and sent emails to State and Commonwealth Health Ministers offices to seek clarification. We were referred to contact other Departments and Ministries as well to get more details and information. The advice was that Pilates studios were included in the shut downs.
In the early days of shutdown it seemed that the government directives were issued and then the details for implementation decided. This made it very difficult to get consistent information even from the same source. Each State implemented the guidelines individually so there were, and still are differences across Australia.
Moving forward, the PAA executive team met and collaborated with the APMA executive team and sent formal letters to all State and Commonwealth Health Ministers /department offices and State Chief Medical Officers. This was taking an enormous effort by our volunteer committee.
Following a recommendation from another association, the PAA sought advice from Elaine Abery and the PAA have since engaged her services to direct our advocacy work. With this assistance we have now had further communications with Health and Small Business departments in each State and followed up with a second letter.
As part of this work, we have compiled and distributed/ published a table with the current guidelines and restrictions for each State, although the government info is in many cases still unclear for Pilates instructors and studios. This table is updated as any new information is available or as changes are announced with restrictions easing.
There has also been increased communication with members and the broader Pilates community providing updates and resources as they become available. We have introduced regular webinars to keep members informed and to share their knowledge and experiences.
The PAA are also looking at the longer term benefits of our current efforts.
The advocacy and communication with Ministers and government departments builds stronger relationships and helps position the PAA to engage in consultation in the future.
There are also benefits in terms of:
- Professional recognition for Pilates
- Government understanding and awareness of the diversity of Pilates Industry
- Recognition of the high standards of education for PAA members and courses
- Plus, the reinvigorated support from across the Pilates community
The journey continues…
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