Indigenous Chronic Disease Package
Improve your Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients’ health
Table of contents
- Improve your Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients’ health
- GP and Patient Journey flowchart
How to participate in this program- Registering your practice/service for the PIP Indigenous Health Incentive
- Registering your eligible patients for the PBS Co-payment measure
- Cultural awareness training: who needs it?
- Defining ‘chronic disease’ and ‘at risk’
- Identifying and signing up eligible patients
- Specialist Outreach Programs and Care Coordination
- Indigenous Health Project Officers: A resource for General Practices and Indigenous Health Services
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Outreach Workers
- Chronic disease self-management accredited training for staff
- National Tackling Smoking Workforce
- Healthy Lifestyle Workers
- MBS Item numbers for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health services
- General restrictions
The Australian Government’s Indigenous Chronic Disease Package (ICDP) provides general practices and Indigenous Health Services* with access to additional resources to support the care of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients with a chronic disease or at risk of developing one. This program supports general practices and Indigenous Health Services to:
- Develop and implement systems to identify Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander patients and encourage regular health checks.
- Receive additional payments through the Practice Incentives Program (PIP) Indigenous Health Incentive.
- Prescribe more affordable Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) medicines for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander patients through the PBS Co-payment measure. Those with an existing chronic disease or those who, in your judgment, are at risk of developing one and who need assistance will be eligible.
- Develop a team approach to care: your practice team will be able to improve care for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander patients with a chronic disease by accessing training for practice nurses and Aboriginal Health Workers in the Chronic Disease Self-Management Program.
- Ensure Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander patients with a chronic disease are able to access specialists and allied health professionals consistent with their care plan through the Care Coordination and Supplementary Services Program.
- Refer Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander patients with or at risk of chronic disease to regionally-based, and culturally appropriate, supports - such as tobacco action workers and healthy lifestyle workers.
* For the purpose of this booklet, an Indigenous Health Service is a practice, Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service, Aboriginal Medical Service or a clinic providing primary care services to a predominantly Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander population; and is a provider of Medicare rebated services.