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Primary Care Transformation Project
What is EWHS doing
East Wimmera Health Service is developing a community-based model of primary care to address the healthcare challenges our communities are facing.
We are strengthening our community-based primary care services because our communities are facing multiple challenges, including ageing populations, declining numbers, and high levels of a range of health conditions, including heart conditions, diabetes and obesity.
Strengthening community-based primary care will mean we can treat more of these conditions in the community and reduce the strain on our hospitals.
St Arnaud is our largest town with a population of approximately 3,500 and the smallest, Birchip with approximately 700 people. EWHS provides healthcare services to an approximate population of 10,000 people.
What is primary care?
Primary care includes services like regular check-ups, treatment for common illnesses and injuries and help managing chronic conditions like diabetes and asthma. It’s an important service because it helps people stay healthy and addresses health problems early on before they become more serious.
Types of primary care include general practice and allied health services such as physiotherapy, dietetics and podiatry, maternal and child health services, community health centres and nursing clinics.
Primary care services are usually:
- the pathway people generally take to other services
- a point of coordination between other services
- located in the community
- directly connected to people’s daily lives and to the management of their wellbeing.
What services are provided through primary care?
Types of primary care include general practice and allied health services, maternal and child health services, mental health services and community health centres and nursing clinics.
Primary care services currently provided by East Wimmera Health Service include general practice, planned activity groups, cardiac rehabilitation, counselling, mental health services, diabetes education, social work, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, podiatry and dietetics.
How is EWHS addressing these challenges?
Our mission is to work together with our community to achieve better health and wellbeing outcomes. To do this we need to address the challenges in our operating environment, which means East Wimmera Health Service needs to change.
We need to:
- Change the way we deliver services;
- Change our focus from treating illness to investing in wellness; and
- Change the focus from providing care in the hospital to care in the home.
Our aim is to build community capacity, resilience and health by adding community-based health services to each of our local communities. We will address chronic health challenges in our communities by investing in people, services, and infrastructure – creating a more sustainable health service that meets the needs of the communities it serves.
What is EWHS doing?
East Wimmera Health Service is transitioning to a community-based model of preventative care. We are embarking on a two-year journey to strengthen primary care for our communities by delivering healthcare through GPs, nurses and allied health professionals.
Investing in a new model of primary care will build capacity in communities across the region and help East Wimmera Health Service change our focus from treating illness to investing in wellness.
During the next two years we will gradually increase primary care services, establishing a new model of care that will deliver more primary healthcare to our communities.
Our primary care services will include:
- General practice
- Allied health services delivering cardiac and respiratory rehabilitation, exercise physiology, obesity and chronic disease management
- Access to specialist clinics through alliances with larger hospitals and private practitioners.
- Community health services such as mental health, sexual health, alcohol and other drugs, paediatrics, community palliative care and community rehabilitation.
This investment will help to make sure people across the region can access the care they need at the right time, as close to home as possible.
What are the benefits on strengthening Primary Care services?
A more resilient hospital system
By strengthening our primary care services, we can help relieve pressure on our local hospitals, so that people who do need urgent care in hospital have improved access.
Better access to personalised care for all stages of life
At East Wimmera Health Service, we see you as a person with individual needs. There are a variety of health professionals that are important to your individual health journey.
By strengthening our primary health care service we will provide more accessible care to our communities. This means more affordable, personalised care regardless of location, for all generations.
This means:
- More access to maternity services and paediatric care for expectant or new parents
- More aged care services delivered in the home, to keep our older community members living independently for as long as possible.
- Access to telehealth and remote patient monitoring technologies
A stronger and more sustainable East Wimmera
A stronger primary care network also means a stronger East Wimmera. Providing more services closer to home will help to sustain and grow our communities by attracting more people to the region, creating more jobs for medical professionals and giving residents a reason to stay, rather than relocate to more metropolitan areas.
How is EWHS transforming Primary Care?
We have appointed a Primary Care Transformation Lead and established a Steering Committee to develop a project plan for the implementation of an integrated model of primary health care.
Our Transformation Lead will work closely with the Steering Committee to consult with staff, GPs and consumers over the two-year transformation to deliver the change.
East Wimmer Health’s new model of primary care will be shaped by the following principles:
- Delivering patient-centred care that prioritises the needs and wishes of our patients
- increasing the accessibility of care for all patients, regardless of their location or socio-economic status
- Building multidisciplinary teams of health professionals that deliver care appropriate for our diverse locations and communities
- Building a strong health workforce that gives our communities access to the care they need, where they live and creates a more sustainable East Wimmera
- Integrating technology to streamline the coordination and delivery of care for patients
How can I find out more about the Primary Care Transformation?
Contact the Primary Care Transformation Lead yvonne.wrigglesworth@ewhs.org.au.
