To ask the Minister of Health to detail any steps his Department is taking to ensure that allied health professional workforce planning reflects (i) rising cancer incidence; (ii) growing survivorship needs; and (iii) increasing complexity of care.

The Allied Health Professions (AHP) workforce provides critical input to cancer care pathways, with many of the fourteen Allied Health Professions offering practical clinical and therapeutic support to those requiring cancer treatments.

My Department published the Cancer Strategy in March 2022, and it sets out the key steps to achieving the overall vision for improved cancer outcomes for the people of Northern Ireland. It presents a comprehensive and challenging programme of service stabilisation and improvement, reliant on collaborative working and new and innovative approaches to the delivery of care.

Since this, work has been ongoing to review and develop cancer services through the Strategic Review of Radiotherapy Services, the Breast Service Review and the review of the AHP Cancer Rehabilitation workforce. These, and other workforce reviews, will consider the factors identified around increased incidence, increased complexity, and, importantly, improved survival rates when assessing the required workforce levels for AHP services.