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We’re excited about improving primary care in Tasmania’s East Coast.
On the East Coast of Tasmania GPs are facing huge demand for health care from an ageing population and people with chronic health issues.
Everyone has the right to access the health services they need, when they need them, regardless of their postcode or their bank balance. But people living in rural and regional communities, those living on low incomes or facing other disadvantage often miss out on healthcare, despite having a higher rate of chronic health problems.
Tasmania has some of the lowest bulk billing rates in the country. People on the East Coast struggle to find a local specialist and are forced to travel to Hobart or Launceston.
We know that fewer people would end up in hospital if they got affordable healthcare when they need it, close to home.
“We’re thrilled to be welcoming cohealth to Triabunna and Bicheno to support our community to improve their health and wellbeing. Working with a multidisciplinary team of health professionals, people get the healthcare they need, right when they need it” – Teegan Parker, Practice Manager, East Coast Health.
There is a better way to deliver health services on the East Coast of Tasmania and it’s called community health.
The Federal Government has provided funding for cohealth via a PRIMM grant to work with the Glamorgan Spring Bay area to develop a new community health model that will make it easier to get the health services people need, when they need them.
Community health helps people live healthy lives by improving their mental health, physical health, social connections and environmental circumstances.
Community health means that many different health and support services all work together as an integrated whole – a team-based approach.
In practical terms, a person who goes to see their GP can also connect with a wide range of other services such as physios, nurses, podiatrists, alcohol and drug workers, mental health workers.
Developing a community health service for the Glamorgan-Spring Bay area won’t be an overnight process.
We’ll be working with the community over the next two years to find ways to improve access to services and boost the capacity of local healthcare professionals.
The Federal Government has awarded a Primary Care Rural Innovative Multidisciplinary Models (PRIMM) grant to cohealth to work with organisations on the East Coast of Tassie to co-design a local, multidisciplinary community health service.
The PRIMM grant consortium partners are:
The East Coast Tasmania, Primary care Rural Innovative Multidisciplinary Models (PRIMM) Project project is developing a community designed plan for multidisciplinary primary care services and innovative workforce solutions for the Glamorgan Spring Bay area in Tasmania. The PRIMM Project has four phases which are scoping, consultation, service design and consolidation, and we are now in the ‘consultation’ phase.
As part of the scoping phase of this project cohealth developed four key background documents:
Literature Review (PDF, 435 KB) – to explore Tasmanian primary healthcare-related research and grey literature from rural and remote contexts, with a particular focus on the GSB LGA
Needs Analysis (PDF, 219 KB) – to provide a broad overview of the primary health needs
Funding Mapping (PDF, 288 KB) – to identify key sources and amounts of primary health funding into GSB LGA
Service Mapping (PDF, 258 KB) – to identify all primary health services delivered in the GSB LGA
We are now in the consultation phase of the project, and you can click to download the Consultation Report.
Building a Connected System of Healthcare (PDF, 949 KB) — an overview of the PRIMM project and Glamorgan Spring Bay Community Health Service Model
For media enquiries please email media@cohealth.org.au or call 0499 101 638
cohealth is a not-for-profit community health organisation. We provide essential health and support services in Melbourne’s CBD, inner-north and inner-west, and the east coast of Tasmania.
Collingwood