Implementation of Care in your community

Page content: Overview | Consultation on the development of an Ambulatory Care Policy and Planning Framework (ACF) | Project management | Stakeholder workshop | Appointment of Phillips Fox to assist trials | Download documents

Overview

The Hon Bronwyn Pike MP, previous Minister for Health, and the Hon Gavin Jennings MLC, previous Minister for Aged Care, jointly launched Care in your community: a planning framework for integrated ambulatory health care at the Grand Hyatt on 27 April 2006. The launch was attended by around 250 representatives from health services and health care providers, local government, General Practice, peak and professional bodies, and the department.

Minister Pike emphasised that the framework provides an opportunity to think differently about health care and to focus on how we can work together to prevent avoidable illness. She encouraged attendees to grab hold of the vision and to capitalise on the framework as a way of moving from reactive to strategic planning for the health of the community. Minister Pike also announced locations for trials of integrated area-based planning using the Care in your community framework. Trials will be conducted in 2006-07 in Eastern metropolitan region, Southern metropolitan region and Gippsland Region (see the Information Resource – Summary of Care in your community planning framework).

Minister Jennings noted that the framework provides fundamental building blocks to organise thinking on the delivery of health care. He said that the framework appropriately builds from a principle basis, identifies the enablers needed to support these principles, and sets out specific actions to address these enablers. He spoke about how the framework contributes to the principles of Victoria: A better state of health, and stressed the need to focus on people’s experience of health care – ensuring that it is both an affirming experience for people who need health care, and a fulfilling experience for the people providing the care.

Dr Chris Brook, Executive Director Rural and Regional Health and Aged Care Services, then spoke about some of the key implementation work that was now commencing. He noted that the department was undertaking a high level planning activity across metropolitan Melbourne as part of the Metropolitan Health Strategy Refresh. He elaborated on the trials of integrated area-based planning announced by Minister Pike. He also spoke about work within the department to support the framework, including work by departmental programs on planning guidelines aligned with the framework, and work on alternative funding arrangements, particularly for outpatients services and the flexible use of casemix funding for people with established chronic disease.

Consultation on the development of an Ambulatory Care Policy and Planning Framework (ACF)

The Victorian Government undertook public consultation, focussing particularly on the views of health care providers and peak and representative bodies, regarding the development of an ambulatory care framework. This consultation was based on a public consultation paper, which was released in June 2005.

Consultation included a statewide health leaders forum, a series of regional workshops, and written submissions responding to the consultation paper. The information gathered from this consultation process has been analysed and used to inform the development of a final Ambulatory Care Policy and Planning Framework (ACF) document, entitled Care in your community: A planning framework for integrated ambulatory health care which was released in February 2006.

Project management

The Ambulatory Care Team is located within the Primary Health Branch of the Rural and Regional Health and Aged Care Services Division of the Department of Human Services. The ACF is a joint initiative of the Rural and Regional Health and Aged Care Services Division and Metropolitan Health and Aged Care Services Division.

For more information see the Primary Health Branch website.

Stakeholder workshop

The first Care in your community area-based trial workshop was held on 29 January, 2007. The workshop was well attended with approximately 25 community representatives from the three trial areas in Gippsland, Outer East and South East.

The team of consultants engaged to work with the trials, Heather Wellington, Alison Hallahan and Campbell Miller facilitated the workshop.

The workshop provided stakeholders with their first opportunity to come together in one room and to work together through project progress and issues and to agree on the next steps. Outcomes from the day will inform the consultant’s final report. This report will include recommendations and a methodology to support a consistent approach to the rollout of integrated area-based planning in other areas.

The consultants have prepared a preliminary overview of the Stakeholder Workshop.

Preliminary overview of the Stakeholder Workshop (30kb, pdf)

Appointment of Phillips Fox to assist trials

A team of consultants from Phillips Fox has begun working with the three Care in your community trials, which have been underway since July 2006. Phillips Fox will use their expertise in area-based health planning and effective service delivery to support the trials in Gippsland, Southern Metro and Eastern Metro regions.

Phillips Fox will support the trials by:

• facilitating agreement on common features of the methodology to be used at each trial site
• facilitating the development of the methodologies to be used after the trials, including assisting with problem dispute resolution
• identifying and dealing with any anomalies, hurdles and other challenges that may arise in the trials
• assessing the trials to make recommendations on statewide implementation.

Lessons from the trials will be used to help develop a consistent methodology to support a consistent approach to the rollout of integrated area-based planning in other areas.

Download documents

Care in your community - Frequently asked questions February 2007 (96kb, pdf)

Care in your community - Communication strategy January 2007 (74kb, pdf)

Information Resource – Summary of Care in your community planning framework (90kb, pdf)

Frequently Asked Questions – April 2006 (37kb, pdf)

Trial of Integrated Area-base Planning – Care in Your Community – Project Brief (360kb, pdf)

Planning stage documents

ACF Consultation paper - June 2005 (167kb, pdf)

Information resource - January 2005 (29kb, pdf)

Summary project brief - January 2005 (159kb, pdf)

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