28 June 2024
WA Primary Health Alliance acknowledges and pays respect to the Traditional Owners and Elders of this country and recognises the significant importance of their cultural heritage, values and beliefs and how these contribute to the positive health and wellbeing of the whole community. Throughout this newsletter, the term 'Aboriginal' is used to refer to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people, unless stated otherwise.
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From 1 July 2024, eligible providers and practices registered with MyMedicare will be able to receive quarterly incentive payments for meeting the General Practice in Aged Care Incentive eligibility and servicing requirements. This incentive supports older people living in residential aged care homes to receive quality primary care services from their regular provider and practice. The timeline above outlines key dates to be aware of in the transition from the Practice Incentives Program (PIP) GP Aged Care Access Incentive (GP ACAI) to the MyMedicare General Practice in Aged Care Incentive (GP ACI). For further information regarding eligibility and servicing requirements, please visit the new webpage and factsheet on the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care website.
The end of June 2024 sees the end of the Strengthening Medicare GP Grants program, with all GP grant funds required to be spent by 30 June 2024. Once grants funds have been spent or after 30 June, practices are required to complete an online financial acquittal form, listing Grant funding expenditure and an online self-evaluation form to indicate how the grant has improved your practice in line with the Program objectives. We encourage practices who have not yet completed the financial acquittal and self-evaluation survey forms to make every effort to complete these as soon as practicable and no later than 31 July 2024 for completion of all reporting against the program. The links to the forms can be found below:
Please do not hesitate to email gpgrants@wapha.org.au with any questions, including to confirm your Agreement ID number & which Primary Health Network (PHN) the practice is located within.
Primary Sense is an easy-to-use population health management and clinical decision support tool that provides real-time clinical decision support for general practitioners at the point of care. It extracts deidentified general practice data and uses evidence-based algorithms to provide GPs with real time medical alerts, reports, and patient care prompts.
Primary Sense is powered by the world’s leading population health analysis tool, the John Hopkins University ACG System. Key features:
How to troubleshoot?
The Primary Sense App can easily show if your program is functioning. The colour of the app itself indicates if there is a problem with extractions or functions.
The Performance Dashboard tab can also be viewed to indicate how your practices Primary Sense is operating. The following information can be used to troubleshoot installation or operation of Primary Sense. If further support is required, please contact the Practice Assist Team for assistance.
We have various levels of support available tailored to meet your needs. The Practice Assist service is available to manage your enquiry and navigate you to the right support. Contact Practice Assist from 8am to 5pm, Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays). For questions related to access or use of Primary Sense please email practiceassist@wapha.org.au or call 1800 2 ASSIST (1800 2 277 478 or 08 6278 7900).
As the end of the financial year approaches, everyone becomes busy as paperwork starts to mount up. Keeping your business details up-to-date doesn’t have to become a paper burden anymore. Provider Connect AustraliaTM (also known as PCA™) is a free initiative of the Australian Digital Health Agency (the Agency) that allows you to update your business information and choose to automatically send those updates to your connected business partners such as:
The Agency also offers a dedicated support team that can assist you with registering for PCATM, they can be contacted on (02) 6223 0741 option 3 or via email MyHealthRecordConnections@digitalhealth.gov.au
Following last week’s Hajj pilgrimage taking place in Saudi Arabia (14 to 19 June 2024), WA Department of Health has advised there is a small risk of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) in returning travellers:
More information is available in the WA Health Infectious Disease Health Alert for Clinicians 18 June 2024.
Rural Health Connect is providing a new program offering low-cost psychology sessions to people impacted by perinatal loss from higher risk populations over telehealth. The program supports anyone impacted by miscarriage, stillbirth, termination for medical reasons or neonatal death, with particular focus on providing culturally safe engagement to those from populations deemed at higher risk and who may face additional challenges in accessing support. People supported via this service:
For further information, visit the program webpage, refer to the flyer and referral form or email info@ruralhealthconnect.com.au
For more information on the Safer Baby Bundle, visit their website or email stillbirthcre@mater.uq.edu.au
Lyfe Languages is an open-source online platform that translates medical terminologies into Indigenous languages. It is led by young Indigenous Language Champions who work with their elders on translations. The Lyfe Languages Universal Medical Translator is available via the Lyfe Languages web application. The web application features a purpose-built rare disease module created as part of the RArEST Project. The module provides rare disease education and support to health professionals and people living with a rare disease. Culturally appropriate Indigenous text and audio translations are recorded and made accessible for health professionals/clinicians to use with their patients via the web application, which is a living resource. New translations will be added to the platform over time.
Visit the web application here.
Emerging Minds has released a new online course that introduces a whole-of-practice approach to supporting child and family resilience. Developed in collaboration with APNA, GP experts and practice nurses, the online course introduces evidence-based tools and strategies that can be utilised within general practice to conduct preventive and early intervention conversations with parents that support child mental health and resilience. For further information about the online course and accompanying resources, visit the links below:
Master of Dietetic students from Curtin University will be providing free consultations for adults at Curtin Clinic Cockburn from mid-August. The consultations can assist with:
For further information, refer to the flyer and referral form or email cockburnclinic@curtin.edu.au
Health providers play a vital role in delivering care to the veteran community. The Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) has a range of resources to make it easier for health providers to adhere to the DVA’s requirements. For further information, refer to the DVA webpage.
Are you a health professional working with parents and children? In partnership with the WA Department of Health, Better Health Company is delivering free healthy lifestyle programs to eligible families in WA, focusing on healthy eating, nutrition principles, physical activity and behaviour change. There are two evidence-based programs:
Both programs are designed to provide families with weekly support from qualified health professionals, practical resources to support healthy behaviour change at home, and interactive weekly sessions. Digital referral forms are available at betterhealthprogram.org/referrals and theactive8.org/referrals.
From 1 July, several significant changes will be made to Australia’s meningococcal ACWY vaccination program.
More information will be made available on the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care website when these changes come into effect.
There are gaps in vaccine coverage across the lifespan for people from migrant backgrounds. A new online course developed by researchers from Australia and New Zealand supports:
This course is open to general practitioners and nurses. Use the code AUSX824IISDMR to access the course. Access the course here. Any questions about the course, please reach out to imaceducation@auckland.ac.nz
The Cancer Network WA, in collaboration with the WA Clinical Oncology Group at Cancer Council WA, held a one-day forum on 30 May 2024 featuring more than 25 presentations on cancer-related topics. The forum was an also opportunity to reflect on and recognise the achievements and collective efforts of organisations contributing to the goals of WA State Cancer Plan 2020-2025. Recordings of the presentations are now available to be viewed on the Cancer Network website.
WA Primary Health Alliance (WAPHA) has a new and exciting funding model to assist COVID-19 vaccination providers and expressions of interest have just opened online. The program aims to increase COVID-19 vaccination opportunities for vulnerable populations within WA. This program will offer immunisers the opportunity to participate in a targeted program to support vulnerable people who are unable to receive a vaccination through usual channels. This could include housebound individuals or those facing significant challenges in attending alternative vaccination centres or practices during routine business hours. Vulnerable populations in Australia are often disadvantaged when it comes to accessing vaccines and attending a general practice. For further information please go to our COVID-19 Vaccination & Resources webpage. If you have any queries, please email our COVID-19 Team: gpvaccination@wapha.org.au
Dry July is a fundraiser that encourages you to go alcohol-free in July to raise funds for people affected by cancer.
The funds raised during Dry July will provide invaluable services for cancer patients, their families and carers – whether it’s a lift to a life-saving appointment, guidance from a specialist nurse, connection to an informative voice, access to therapy programs or a bed close to treatment.
Having a month off alcohol also has great health benefits, such as sleeping better, having more energy and of course, no hangovers! So you're not only helping others, you're helping yourself. It's a win-win!
Learn more about Go Dry This July or view the Dry July Workplaces Hub for more information on how to participate.
Education & Events
Presented by WA Primary Health Alliance 18 July 2024 (5pm to 6pm AWST)
Aboriginal people have higher rates of some vaccine preventable diseases (VPD) than non-Aboriginal people. For this reason, extra vaccines are available free through the National Immunisation Program (NIP) or they are offered at different age points. By utilising quality improvement processes, general practice staff can play an important role in encouraging Aboriginal patients to consider the benefits of being vaccinated. This webinar will cover the following topics:
Find out more and register today.
WA Primary Health Alliance (WAPHA) is providing GPs in WA with paid online Initial Assessment and Referral Decision Support Tool (IAR-DST) training, designed to help practitioners and clinicians recommend the most appropriate level of care for a person seeking mental health support. GPs and GP registrars who attend the two workshops in the one online session will be remunerated $300 and CPD hours are available.
Presented by Black Dog Institute Multiple Dates & Times
Please make your GPs and GP registrars aware that they can attend free online training sessions throughout the 2024 calendar year with a choice of target topics including:
CPD hours are available for the online training sessions. For more information, dates and registration links, visit WAPHA’s suicide prevention webpage.
The Chronic Conditions of the Foot workshop will focus on building a practical skillset for foot assessment that enables a healthcare practitioner to be competent and confident in chronic conditions of the foot basic care. This workshop is supported by funding from the Australian Government Department of Health under the Chronic Disease Support Project. For more information, view the flyer.