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GP Notify has been unable to send RPH admission, discharge or death notifications from 5 May 2018 due to technical issues. Please ensure all the GPs in your practice are aware that GP Notify is not currently sending. Other forms of communication, eg discharge summaries, are not affected.
Work is underway to resolve the issue as soon as possible. A system reset will need to be performed, which means that to receive GP Notifications in future, GPs will need to register. When you receive your GP Notify Confirmation form, please return it as soon as possible to ensure notifications restart.
RPH would like to apologise for any inconvenience.
Following the announcement of the opt-out period from 16 July to 15 October for the national My Health Record expansion, we are pleased to confirm you will receive a General Practice Information Pack in the mail towards the end of June. The materials can only be used in general practice from 16 July onwards, the commencemen9t of the opt-out period.
This is part of a nation-wide initiative by the Australian Digital Health Agency to inform consumers about My Health Record and opt-out, and support the conversations general practitioners will have with them.
The packs will include brochures, posters and additional resources for practice staff such as tear-off note pads to provide quick and easy information when talking to the patients. More resources can be ordered directly from the Australian Digital Health Agency if required during the opt-out period.
HealthPathways are currently recruiting GPs for the Rheumatology working group scheduled for 19 June 2018.
HealthPathways working groups provide an opportunity for GPs and specialists to collaborate on patient care management and referral pathways, discuss issues and contribute to potential service design.
GPs are encouraged to submit an expression of interest to healthpathways@wapha.org.au along with a contact number, practice name, working group(s) you would like to participate in and a brief description of relevant experience. An invitation to participate in the working group will be sent to selected GPs.
Presented by East Metropolitan Health Service and Armadale Kalamunda Group in partnership with WA Primary Health Alliance and HealthPathways WA.
WAPHA has received a list of all CAT4 versions currently in use by practices in WA and discovered that most practices are running on old versions of the program from as far back as 2015 (version 4.0 was released in June 2015).
This means that some practices have not run any updates on their CAT4 software since first installed. The current version is 4.10.1 released in March this year.
WAPHA recommends upgrading to the latest version as soon as able to ensure the product is fully compatible with clinical software, as well as fixing any errors or bugs that may have been discovered.
Later versions of CAT4 also include more accurate reporting of Shared Health Summary uploads, new cervical cancer screening guidelines, improved clinical risk calculators, additional MBS items, pathology codes and much more.
If you’re not sure of what version your practice is on, you can check on the login screen as below.
A quick guide on how to check for updates is also available here.
Please remember that your practice will have to run updates on the server version of CAT4 as well as any desktop installations your practice has.
For technical support, please contact the team at PenCS on 1800 762 993.
Knowing when and how to step down or stop medicines safely and effectively is a key quality use of medicines (QUM) consideration. This education visiting program uses proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), as one of the most commonly-prescribed, familiar medicines in general practice, to illustrate in detail what to consider at initiation, when to review, and when it's appropriate to step down or stop. Education visits are available as:
Visit our Webinars & Workshops page at www.practiceassist.com.au for more events in your area.
These events are often in high demand, so we recommend registering as soon as possible so you don’t miss out!
The Centre for Eating and Dieting Disorders has rebranded as the InsideOut Institute, a national institute for research and clinical excellence in eating disorders.
Eating disorders are serious mental health illnesses, their development is multifactorial, and without effective treatment they can cause serious and permanent harm or even death. General practitioners are part of a network of providers for people with eating disorders, and can be crucial for coordination and treatment.
To coincide with the launch, we have developed a new website which includes treatment services database, clinical practice guidelines, resource library and training opportunities.
Presented by South Metropolitan Health Service and Fremantle Hospital in partnership with WAPHA and HealthPathways WA. This education session includes topics such as Managing Difficult to Treat Depression, Update on Older Persons Mental Health, Advanced Care Planning and more. This activity has 40 Category One QI&CPD points. Date: Saturday, 9 June 2018 Time: 8.30am – 3.30pm (8.00am – Registrations) Venue: Fremantle Hospital, Alma Street, Fremantle WA 6160 Cost: Free Register: RSVP by Friday 28 May 2018. To register, please visit here.
Join your local AAPM WA networking host for networking with like-minded practice managers. Come along with your pressing issues and assist others with your own experiences for one on one discussions with colleagues. Hosted by Simone Dorevitch.
Presented by East Metropolitan Health Service and Armadale Kalamunda Group in partnership with WAPHA and HealthPathways WA. This education session will include topics such as Managing Substance Abuse Disorders, Psychopharmacology, Mood Disorders and many more. This activity has 40 Category One QI&CPD points. Date: Saturday, 23 June 2018 Time: 8.30am – 3.30pm (8.00am – Registration) Venue: Armadale Health Service, 3056 Albany Hwy, Mount Nasura, WA 6112 Catering: Morning tea and lunch will be provided Register: RSVP by Friday 15 June 2018. To register, please visit here.
This event will identify target groups for vaccination and those at risk of severe disease from influenza, discuss the new strains for the 2018 influenza vaccines and preparations, and differentiate between passive and active vaccine safety surveillance systems in WA. Speakers include Dr Chris Blyth (Dept. of Infectious Diseases, General Paediatrics and Immunology, Princess Margaret Hospital) and Dr Alan Leeb (Illawara Medical Centre, SmartVax). This activity has 4 Category Two CPD points.
Presented by Katrina Otto from Train IT Medical and funded by WAPHA, this free face-to-face clinical software training workshop is available to practices who are using Best Practice and MedicalDirector. Learning objectives include design an effective recall and reminder system, use actions for preventive health activities, generate patient recall and reminder lists, implement systems for Immunisation and Cancer Screening recalls and reminders, and many more.
Participants have a choice of attending one of the following two sessions:
Best Practice
This three-hour module, delivered by the Aboriginal Health Council of Western Australia (AHCWA), has been designed to assist General Practitioners (GPs) in adopting a comprehensive primary health care approach to the care of Aboriginal people with mental health needs, or who may be misusing Alcohol and/or Other Drugs.
Some of the topics covered in the module include: historical impacts and intergenerational trauma; practical tips for raising Social and Emotional Wellbeing and Alcohol and Other Drug issues; culturally appropriate assessment tools; and support available, including referral pathways.
AHCWAs CST is recognised through RACGP. Participants must complete Module 1 of AHCWAs CST package before enrolling in Module 6. GPs who have not completed Module 1 (4 CPD points) in the past are able to complete an abridged one-hour online version (0 CPD points) prior to attending Module 6. Completion of Module 6 will award participants with 4 CPD points. Completion of both Module 1 (non-abridged) plus Module 6 will award participants with 40 CPD points.
Course dates are as follows (session times 8.30am – 12.30pm)
Regional General Practitioner Dr Damien Zilm says the expansion of Telehealth has been a fantastic development for remote patients.
Speaking ahead of Telehealth Awareness Week 25 – 29 June, he said country patients now received higher quality and more patient-centred care because they had better access to clinicians.
Dr Zilm is both a provider and a user of Telehealth. As a GP, telehealth enables him to give more integrated care to remote patients who are seeing a specialist.
“Telehealth helps people stay in their own community and to stay connected to their own GP, and allows the GP to incorporate the specialist’s care plan into their own management, so all of us are on the same page.
I find that communicating with reception staff and the patients about the Telehealth hook-up is the key”
Telehealth Awareness Week is 25 – 29 June and has been organised by the WA Country Health Service.
Clinicians can find out more about telehealth by calling 1300 367 66 or visiting www.wacountry.health.wa.gov.au/telehealth
Dr Zilm is a GP working in Laverton, Leonora and Northam, and is the GP lead for the Statewide Emergency Telehealth Service and Inpatient Telehealth Service. He is on the WAPHA board as Country PHN chair and is the WAGPET chair.
Diabetes WA provide a range of group education sessions for patients living with Type 2 diabetes, throughout regional Western Australia and metropolitan Perth.
The SMART programs are a range of short group education sessions designed to help better manage patient’s Type 2 diabetes. Bookings are essential, and attendance at all of the SMART programs is free for NDSS Registrants and Diabetes WA members.
The group education calendar can be found at https://diabeteswa.com.au/get-involved/news-and-events/whats-on/
Bookings can be made online into programs using the interactive calendar, or by contacting Diabetes WA on telephone 1300 001 880.