A national priority
Flexible funding enables Country SA PHN to commission services in response to the identified national priority of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health.
The range of services being commissioned by the Country SA PHN include:
Holistic management
Funding has been provided to some Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations to deliver a more holistic Chronic Disease Management (CDM) program within their communities.
The funding provides increased access to Allied Health Professionals and Specialist Services, additional staff to existing CDM teams to assist in the coordination of health services in chronic conditions and training and development of staff in these areas, as well as Ngangkari Services.
Service Providers include:
Increasing the quality of health care services
Workforce Support and Capacity Building funding is available to Aboriginal primary health care providers inclusive of Integrated Team Care Providers. Activities aim to:
Services who receive Workforce Support and Capacity Building funding change as according to the organisations communicated needs.
For more information go to our Digital Health and Practice Support pages.
Supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander understandings of health
The activity aims to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander understandings of health and the complex interplay between cultural, spiritual, physical, social and emotional health. This is targeted at Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs) to provide Ngangkari Services as part of a holistic health framework. It is to support the clinical activities undertaken and can serve to improve participation and engagement in lifestyle programs and education that needs to be undertaken.
Service providers who have access to these services via other funding areas include:
Supporting the Aboriginal community
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health services provide access to effective high-quality health care services in regional, rural and remote locations. This includes through Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs), wherever possible and appropriate, as well as through mainstream services delivering culturally appropriate primary health care.
This program enables Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people access to mental health services that are joined up, integrated, culturally appropriate and safe, and designed to holistically meet the mental health and healing needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people at the local level.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health and AOD programs are designed to better support substance abuse services to identify and treat coinciding mental illness and substance abuse disorders (including those involving methamphetamine or ‘ice’) by greater service integration.
The program ensures culturally appropriate use of triage systems and processes to identify clients with mental illness and substance abuse disorders and where clients present with co-morbidities to integrated and coordinated care across these services.
Improving patient service navigation
The aim of the activity is to improve patient pathways of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in systematic discharge, referral and follow-up between hospital and primary health care services.
The objective of the activity is to develop a sustainable platform which identifies and addresses barriers to Aboriginal patient navigation through primary, secondary and tertiary health services.
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There is a list of MBS Items available for Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations and Primary Health Care Providers who deliver services to Aboriginal and Torre Strait Islander people from the Department of Health. MBS Online also provides information on specific MBS items.
Online learning resources are also available:
Cultural Awareness Training is available through your local service providers delivering the ITC program. Please contact your local provider to access this assistance.
There are some things that can your Practice can do to start moving your Practice to one that is culturally responsive to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patient needs which have been completed by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care.
Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care
The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care will be updating the standards required of health care providers in 2018. In these standards, Improving Care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People will be undertaken and will affect accreditation processes in the future. For more information please go to Improving care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People.
Overview: Guide to better care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Consumers (Word 503KB)
As the first step in providing culturally safe care that is tailored to the needs of patients, you first must know whether your patients identify as being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin. You cannot tailor care if you do not know. To do this, there are resources dedicated to assist this process. The question must be asked in the exact same manner every single time and there are different ways that it could be implemented. The strategies which are more suitable are largely dependent on your local area and your own practice context.
Indigenous Health Project Officers in your region, can assist you with Quality Improvement cycles in identification as well as providing you with local strategies that are the most appropriate.
Health Pathways South Australia is an online portal that provides general practitioners and other health professionals with easy access to comprehensive, evidence-based assessment, management, and localised referral resources for specific health conditions. HealthPathways is both a model of working; bringing together clinicians across the health care sectors to co-develop pathways, and a tangible product in the form of an online health information portal.
There are clinical care pathways that are different for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people across a range of health topics. Some of these are currently located in Health Pathways South Australia and are localised to the South Australian context. Different aspects to management and referral pathways are highlighted with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags.
The Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet is a specific Website that delivers Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander specific health information and resources across Australia to support practice in the delivery of care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It is extensive.
It contains many resources that cover a range of topics either specific to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander context in South Australia, across other jurisdictions or nationally. If using resources that are either national or from other jurisdictions, please check with Indigenous Health Project Officers regarding local relevance of these resources.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations, and migrant groups from developing countries, have a higher prevalence of ARF and RHD compared to the general Australian population. ARF and RHD are notifiable under the South Australian Public Health Act 2011. For more information about the State-wide RHD Control Program, please see the SA Health website New Australian Guidelines were released in February 2020 and are available from the RHDAustralia website along with a diagnosis calculator app and accredited E-learning modules.
There are a range of resources that are available for Cancer, however, a few have been provided to assist with specific care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Optimal Care Pathway for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people- Cancer Australia Report
Quick Reference Guide for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People with Cancer
There are a range of resources available to support the provision of Diabetes care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
There is a current project to deliver South Australian Aboriginal specific film resources currently underway and will be included on completion.
Ear Health is a public health issue within the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population within Country South Australia. HealthPathways South Australia provides a range of relevant resources regarding Otitis Media for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children.