1.1 National : Download the 2018-19 NACCHO Annual Report

1.2 National : Our CEO Pat Turner presents to the Joint standing committee on the NDIS 

1.3 National : NACCHO Deputy CEO Dr Dawn Casey chairs a round table to discuss medicines priorities and challenges for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

2. NSW : The November Edition of AHMRC Message Stick is out now!

3.1 VIC : In a Victorian first, the Andrews Labor Government has agreed with Aboriginal health organisations and Health Services to create a new forum to improve the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal Victorians across the state.

3.2 VIC : Ballarat and District Aboriginal Co-operative welcomes first patients into new $8 million medical and regional health hub

3.3 VIC : Deadly opening ceremony for new VAHS Epping Clinic in Melbourne’s northern suburbs

4. QLD : The Queensland Aboriginal and Islander Health Council (QAIHC) hosted their third annual Awards for Excellence , celebrating leaders, organisations and communities within the Sector.

5. NT : Congress ACCHO Alice Springs Care Coordination Team awarded Administrator’s Medal in Primary Health Care 2019

6. SA New traineeship pathway for AHCSA Aboriginal Health Practitioners

7. WA AHCWA’s Mappa team and Ash from Waitj Productions are on set at the Derbarl Yerrigan Health Service shooting the Mappa Promo video.

How to submit in 2019 a NACCHO Affiliate  or Members Good News Story ?

Email to Colin Cowell NACCHO Media 

Mobile 0401 331 251 

Wednesday by 4.30 pm for publication Thursday /Friday

1.1 National : Download the 2018-19 NACCHO Annual Report 

Download  in PDF from HERE 

1.2 National : Our CEO Pat Turner presents to the Joint standing committee on the NDIS 

Ms Turner:  Thank you for the opportunity to appear. We have already made a written
submission to the committee, so I hope that that answers most of your questions.

We are here to elaborate on any other points that the committee may wish to put to us.
It’s important that we point out that we serve Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through our local and regional Aboriginal health services that are community controlled, with some 145 organisations spread throughout Australia.

We represent their interests in terms of policy and leadership. We work closely with both
the bureaucracy in Canberra and the minister responsible, where we have a very professional and productive ongoing relationship.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are twice as likely to experience disability as other Australians. So there are nine per cent with a severe condition compared to four per cent for non-Indigenous people. Currently, 5.7 per cent of NDIS participants are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, with 16,417 active participants as of 30 June this year, which is considerably less than the percentage thought to have a significant disability.

The percentage of NDIS participants who are Aboriginal is indicative of the numbers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with plans; however, it is not necessarily representative of the extent to which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are receiving assistance under those plans as a result of appropriate services not being readily available.

See pages 7-11 for Pat Turners presentation 

NACCHO Pat Turner NDIS

1.3 National : NACCHO Deputy CEO Dr Dawn Casey chairs a round table to discuss medicines priorities and challenges for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

On Friday November 15th, NACCHO – the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations – hosted a round table with Medicines Australia and representatives of its respective members to discuss medicines priorities and challenges for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

The roundtable was also attended by Jo Watson, Chair of the Commonwealth HTA Consumer Consultative Committee.

NACCHO Deputy CEO Dr Dawn Casey  chaired the meeting and Evo Health consultants Renae Beardmore Sharon Musgrave acted as facilitators for the workshop.

The group discussed challenges and solutions to enhance medicines access for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people by improving how PBS medicines are listed and how medicine supplies are maintained. The group also considered how quality use of medicines materials and activities may be improved.

Participants worked constructively to develop a list of co-designed solutions that will be taken back to their respective organisations for

2.1 NSW : The November Edition of AHMRC Message Stick is out now!

Read about Oceania Tobacco Control Conference, success stories from Waminda – South Coast Women’s Health & Welfare Aboriginal Corp. and The Glen Rehab, as well as how to prepare your service for #HIVAwarenessWeek2019.

Read more >> http://bit.ly/34alu2Y

3.1 VIC : In a Victorian first, the Andrews Labor Government has agreed with Aboriginal health organisations and Health Services to create a new forum to improve the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal Victorians across the state.

Establishing a state-wide body has been identified by Victorian Community as a vital step towards ensuring all parts of the Victorian health system are working together to improve health outcomes for Victoria’s Aboriginal people.

At last week’s roundtable senior representatives from the Victorian Government met with Aboriginal community controlled health organisations (including our Acting CEO Trevor Pearce), other health associations, peak bodies and the Australian Government.

It was a chance for Government to hear from leaders in Aboriginal health about their key priorities and to discuss how a future forum could work to advance initiatives that will have a real impact on Aboriginal lives.

VACCHO Chair and CEO of Ballarat and District Aboriginal Co-operative Karen Heap said “Finding effective solutions to the issues facing Aboriginal people must be driven by Aboriginal people working closely with Government and I am confident the new Forum will provide a much needed, high-level voice to ensure the most appropriate and effective way forward.”

3.2 VIC : Ballarat and District Aboriginal Co-operative welcomes first patients into new $8 million medical and regional health hub

The new dedicated stand-alone medical clinic and district health hub has welcomed its first patients and is now bringing communities throughout the greater western region of Victoria together.

With Aboriginal themes at the forefront of the design, this hub brings together high quality medical, health and community services under the one roof, so patients can get the treatment they need in a culturally welcoming environment.

Featuring ceiling lights curved in linear snake patterns, the facility also boasts a range of Aboriginal art as well as portraits of Elders and Founding Members to celebrate Aboriginal culture and promote understanding and respect within the community.

 

Integrating general practice rooms with specialist mental health and alcohol and other drugs consulting rooms allows for better coordinated care planning and greater interaction of services, including smoother cross referrals to the different services and programs offered by the Ballarat and District Aboriginal Co-operative.

Funding regional health infrastructure

The Victorian Government’s Regional Health Infrastructure Fund invested $6m towards this project, with the remaining $2.5m contributed by the Ballarat and District Aboriginal Co-operative to purchase the adjoining land.

The total investment allowed for the expansion of the existing premises and the build of the new facility to expand and create additional space for specialist medical and health-related services.

The Victorian Government established the Regional Health Infrastructure Fund to rebuild and refurbish rural and regional health facilities, ensuring all Victorians can access high quality care and facilities, no matter where they live.

3.3 VIC : Deadly opening ceremony for new VAHS Epping Clinic in Melbournes northern suburbs 

Deadly opening ceremony for VAHS Epping Clinic. Officially opened by Life Member, Alan Brown, Long term board member, Tony McCartney and long term local community member resident, Tina Wright.

On behalf of VAHS, we acknowledge our ancestors work and in the spirit of community control, this clinic owned by the community, for the community.

4.QLD : The Queensland Aboriginal and Islander Health Council (QAIHC) hosted their third annual Awards for Excellence , celebrating leaders, organisations and communities within the Sector.

Established to recognise the hard work, determination and growth of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community Controlled Health Sector (ATSICCHS), the awards acknowledge those that are making a real difference throughout their communities.

QAIHC Chairperson Gail Wason said the organisation was impressed by the number of nominations in each category for this year’s awards.
“The volume of nominations received by the Sector this year demonstrates the growth and success experienced in rural and remote communities across Queensland,” said Ms Wason.

“I am truly inspired by the dedication and commitment of the people who work within our Sector.”

“It is important to acknowledge individuals and organisations for the work they do in improving health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Queensland,” she said.

QAIHC Chief Executive Officer, Mr Neil Willmett is proud of the Sector and acknowledges the tireless work of individuals working for ATSICCHS in Queensland.
“Staff at our Member Services often go above and beyond to work towards providing their clients with exceptional care through every stage of their life,” said Mr Willmett.

The winners of the QAIHC 2019 Awards for Excellence are:

• QAIHC Partnership Excellence Award – Institute for Urban Indigenous Health
• QAIHC Innovation Excellence Award – Cunnamulla Aboriginal Corporation for Health
• QAIHC Patient Satisfaction and Service Excellence Award – NPA Family and Community Services Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporation
• QAIHC Leader of the Year Award – Veronica Williams and Gary White
• QAIHC Member of the Year Award – Galangoor Duwalami Primary Healthcare Service.

The QAIHC Awards for Excellence were proudly sponsored by CheckUP, Health Workforce Queensland, Mazars, Hunter Promotional Products & Uniforms and Griffith University First Peoples Health Unit.

5. NT : Congress ACCHO Alice Springs Care Coordination Team awarded Administrator’s Medal in Primary Health Care 2019

Pictured (L-R): Rachel Godley and Balpalwanga Louise Maymuru (Laynhapuy Homelands Health), Her Honour the Honourable Vicki O’Halloran AO, Kathleen Hauth (Central Australian Aboriginal Congress) and Michelle Dowden (One Disease).

These awards celebrate and recognise the Northern Territory’s exceptional health workforce.

The Administrator’s Medals in Primary Health Care 2019 were presented on Thursday 21 November by Her Honour the Honourable Vicki O’Halloran AO, Administrator of the Northern Territory, at an official awards ceremony at Government House.

These medals recognise and reward health professionals, teams and whole practices/health services that have contributed significantly to the provision of primary health care in the Northern Territory.

The 2019 recipients are:

Individual Medal – Michelle Dowden, One Disease

Team Medal – Care Coordination Team, Central Australian Aboriginal Congress

Whole of Practice/Health Service Medal – Laynhapuy Homelands Health

Nominations were received for people, teams and practices/services from right across the Territory, including Darwin, Alice Springs and surrounding communities, Tennant Creek, Nhulunbuy and Galiwin’ku. The nominations also covered a diverse range of specialty areas, including nursing, dentistry, medicine, optometry, podiatry, physiotherapy, mental health, health promotion and health literacy.

‘Effective collaboration between individuals and teams working in primary health care in the Northern Territory is particularly important due to the inevitable challenges that remoteness poses to the delivery of high-quality health care,’ said Northern Territory PHN CEO Nicki Herriot.

‘The medal recipients are all fine examples of how to adopt innovative service delivery models to overcome these challenges.’ She continued, ‘it’s wonderful to have this annual opportunity to recognise them.’

More information on the winners:

Michelle Dowden – CEO, One Disease

Michelle has worked for 25 years in primary health care in the Northern Territory. Prior to her current role as CEO of One Disease, Michelle spent time managing the Ngalkanbuy Health Clinic and held the position of Director of Primary Health Services at Sunrise Health in the Katherine region. Michelle is admired for her innovative management style and people-centred approach to health care. She passionately delivered health promotion in the early days at the grass-roots level, travelling door-to-door in remote communities. She has worked on initiatives ranging from infant nutrition strategies to awareness campaigns designed to eliminate scabies and RHD. Michelle is commended for her long-term commitment to primary health care and her breadth of experience within the Northern Territory.

Care Coordination Team, Central Australian Aboriginal Congress

The Congress care coordinators go the extra mile in providing culturally appropriate and safe health and social services to their clients in Central Australia. They focus heavily on involving clients’ family and carers as this is central to providing holistic comprehensive primary health care. The care coordinators often bring up issues and identify gaps in service provision for their most vulnerable clients. For example, appropriate housing is an obvious and long-standing issue for many of the complex and often elderly clients. The care coordinators advocate heavily for those clients to ensure that their social needs are met, which is an essential step to improving their health outcomes.

Laynhapuy Homelands Health

The team at Laynhapuy Homelands Health is holistic, friendly and extremely passionate about their job. They service the homelands of East Arnhem Land for all primary health care needs. They drive hundreds of kilometres to service Homelands and deliver up to date clinical care, building incredible rapport with patients. Laynhapuy are commended for always searching for innovative ways to improve the health of those living in the Homelands. For example, they have begun running local grocery stores in homelands, keeping prices as they are at Woolworths. This allows people better access to food without paying up to a large taxi bill to get into town.

More information
The Administrator’s Medals in Primary Health Care are proudly sponsored by Northern Territory Primary Health Network, Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance Northern Territory, Health Providers Alliance Northern Territory, the Centre for Remote Health, CRANAplus, Northern Territory General Practice Education and the Northern Territory Government Department of Health.

6. SA New traineeship pathway for AHCSA Aboriginal Health Practitioners

 

7. WA AHCWA’s Mappa team and Ash from Waitj Productions are on set at the Derbarl Yerrigan Health Service shooting the Mappa Promo video.