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• Indigenous Chronic
  Disease Package
• Tackling Chronic Disease
  Risk Factors
  • National action to reduce Indigenous smoking rate
  • Helping Indigenous Australians to reduce their risk of chronic disease
  • Local Indigenous community campaigns to promote better health
• Improving Chronic Disease
  Management and Follow up
  • Subsidising PBS medicine co-payments
  • Higher utilisation costs for MBS and PBS
  • Supporting primary care providers to coordinate chronic disease management
  • Improving Indigenous participation in health care through chronic disease self management
  • Increasing specialist and allied health follow up care
  • Monitoring and evaluation
• Workforce Expansion,
  Training and Support
  • Workforce education and training
  • Expanding the outreach and service capacity of Indigenous health services
  • Engaging Medicare Locals to improve Indigenous Access to mainstream primary care
  • Attracting more people to work in Indigenous Health
  • Clinical practice and decision support

Indigenous Chronic Disease Package in 2010-11 - Annual Progress Report

Improving Chronic Disease Management and Follow-up Care

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Access to culturally sensitive primary health care and affordable follow-up specialist and allied health care are some of the key barriers to improving health care outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Initiatives under the ICDP are encouraging health services to detect and manage chronic disease earlier, and helping to address problems such as the cost of medicines and follow-up care.

Monitoring and evaluating implementation and outcomes is critical to the success of the ICDP.

Sentinel sites are a key tool for monitoring the progress of the ICDP. They are defined geographic areas across Australia that cover metropolitan, regional and remote areas. Early feedback from community and health professionals in sentinel sites as well as national health system data show increased access to Medicare items and PBS medicines in 2010-11. This builds on the commencement of a number of initiatives in 2009-10 designed to address barriers faced in accessing health care, and encourage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to see a health care provider.

Key achievements in 2010-11

The Closing the Gap PBS Co-payment Measure began on 1 July 2010 and provided 79,076 eligible Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders with or at risk of chronic disease with more affordable, and in some instances free, PBS medicines. This encourages patients to take their prescribed medicines and in the longer term will help to prevent and better manage chronic disease among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

The number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health assessments for those aged 15 years and over increased to 48,954 in the 2010-11 financial year. This is an increase of 64% over 2009-10 data and builds on the 26.1% increase achieved in the previous financial year.

A chronic disease self management support training program was developed and 130 health professionals participated in the training in 2010-11. This is enabling existing health professionals to deliver chronic disease self management sessions and support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to manage their chronic conditions successfully.

Services under the Urban Specialist Outreach Assistance Program (USOAP) commenced in NSW in 2009-10 and was expanded to QLD and VIC in 2010-11.

Increasing health assessments

Health assessments are important for detecting and managing common treatable conditions. National Aboriginal and Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO) affiliates and Divisions of General Practice have been working to raise awareness of the importance of visiting a health service for an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health assessment, also known as a 715 assessment as it is item 715 in the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS).

General Practice Queensland (GPQ), the Queensland Aboriginal and Islander Health Council (QAIHC) and the Improvement Foundation worked together to establish strong links with the Closing the Gap Workforce across mainstream and Community Controlled Health Services in Queensland. The aim of this program was to implement the Closing the Gap Collaboratives program to increase the uptake of health assessments. A community engagement kit was developed that contained postcards, posters and the popular “Have you had a 715” t-shirts that were distributed at local community events e.g. NAIDOC week and sporting events. These had a positive impact by prompting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to visit their General Practitioner (GP) or relevant health professional and ask for a 715 health assessment.

The Aboriginal Health and Medical Research Council of New South Wales developed audio messages in partnership with Koori radio to raise community awareness of health assessments and healthy lifestyles which were broadcast on Aboriginal specific radio programs and Justice Health radio. The healthy lifestyle messages were also broadcast at Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander festivals and sporting events across New South Wales.

The Aboriginal Health Council of South Australia Inc developed an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ‘adult health checks made easy’ resource in collaboration with South Australian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services and the Flinders Far North Division of General Practice. It aims to assist organisations to encourage both staff and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients to participate in regular, planned health checks.

Promoting the PBS Co-payment measure

The ACT Division of General Practice and General Practice Victoria Pty Ltd have both developed materials to inform Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients about the new PBS Co-payment measure.

The ACT Division of General Practice Closing the Gap team developed posters and pamphlets displaying local Indigenous art to raise cultural awareness around Indigenous health matters. The team also developed an “I am Registered” card in collaboration with Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal Health services, which can be used by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to present to doctors and pharmacies to show their eligibility for the program. These resources have been further developed in collaboration with other National General Practice Divisions into a ‘Closing the Gap’ registration card being utilised throughout metropolitan and rural areas. Closing the Gap continues to raise awareness and provide education around Indigenous health matters in the ACT and region.

General Practice Victoria Pty Ltd (GPV) and divisions developed resources and activities with the aim of raising awareness of the Closing the Gap program. Highlights included a ‘How to get your free or low cost scripts’ flier (Ballarat and District Divisions of General Practice), an information fact sheet titled ‘Don’t Guess – Just Ask!!!!’ and a poster titled ‘Are you of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander origin: Your answer helps us plan your health care’, which incorporates Aboriginal artwork from ‘Making Two Worlds Work’ (GPV Immunisation Team).

Cultural awareness training tours to the Koori Heritage trust, a community health information day, ‘Aboriginal MBS Item Lunch ‘n’ Learn’ sessions and a number of other workshops and events were implemented. These activities increased participant understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and promoted awareness of how to use the MBS as well as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people-specific initiatives.

Medical Specialist Outreach Assistance Program and Care Coordination and Supplementary Services program

The range of services available at Kerang Aboriginal Community Centre has been increased through the Medical Specialist Outreach Assistance Program- Indigenous Chronic Disease Measure (MSOAP-ICD) and the Care Coordination and Supplementary Services (CCSS) Program. These programs have also fostered collaboration and links between the health service, the visiting GP and the local mainstream medical clinic.

Prior to the MSOAP-ICD, Kerang Aboriginal Community Centre was delivering wellbeing programs, with some limited clinical support from a visiting nurse once a week. The MSOAP-ICD has enabled this to be expanded by providing funding for a local GP to provide a chronic disease clinic once a fortnight.

Funding from the CCSS program has been pooled with MSOAP-ICD funding to also employ an Aboriginal Health Worker to support both the chronic disease clinic and to work at the local mainstream practice to support access for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who need to have medical care outside of the fortnightly clinic.

This arrangement has been very successful with a number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients feeling comfortable to access the mainstream GP practice and avoid the one hour drive to the nearest Aboriginal Community Controlled Health service.

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Page currency, Latest update: 19 December, 2011

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