19 October 2023

Our services, innovations, collaborations and commitment to improving the health of our community was on display today at SWSPHN’s first showcase since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Centring around the theme of ‘strengthening Medicare’, a room of about 50 people including PHN Board members, PHN member organisations, PHN staff, service providers, committee members and GPs, gathered in the Dharawal Room at Campbelltown Catholic Club. 

We heard first from keynote speaker, Dr Stephen Duckett, Chair of the Eastern Melbourne PHN Board and former member of the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce, about the challenges facing general practice and primary care in the future. 

Dr Duckett told the gathering there had been a steady decline in the number of medical students choosing general practice. 

“What this means is that the world of primary medical care in 10 years’ time, 15 years’ time or 20 years’ time is going to be quite different from what it is today,” he said.  

“There’s going to be more patients, and either the same, or a smaller number of general practitioners, so we’re going to have to think about different ways of doing things.” 

SWSPHN staff then highlighted a small sample of some of the great work we do, including our innovative iRAD and New to General Practice Nursing projects, and an example of collaborative commissioning. 

Kristen Short, Director of Innovation and Partnerships, showcased our iRAD interoperability solution which connects health providers who are providing care for the same patient. 

“With iRAD, we just need to consent the patient and the information will flow, and be available once they return to their regular GP,” she said. 

Ms Short said South Western Sydney was the first location in Australia to have true interoperability working “which was super exciting”. 

So far, 85 practices are connected to iRAD, a psychiatrist and after hours clinics, and Ms Short said we were looking to expand locally to add another 35 practices in the next few months.  

“One of my favourite quotes from one of our providers is ‘I can’t do my job without iRAD’, they see so much value in it. 

“We’ve been working very hard for a few years on being able to view hospital information through iRAd. It will be a complete game changer for GPs to be able to quickly see any information if a patient is admitted to the emergency department or hospital.” 

SWSPHN’s Kristina Allen, Clinical Support Team Lead, and Lisa Cerruto, Clinical and Quality Improvement Officer, gave an overview of the New to General Practice Nursing program which provides support for nurses who are new, returning or transitioning to general practice within South Western Sydney. 

Val Burge, SWSPHN Mental Health and Alcohol and Other Drugs Program Coordinator, followed with a presentation about working with service providers to have a greater impact on client outcomes, giving our work with the St Vincent de Paul Society’s Rendu House clients as an example. 

Stephen Suttie, Senior Operations Manager at Neami National, gave a presentation on the new, SWSPHN-commissioned Liverpool Head to Health Centre, a free, walk-in, mental health and wellbeing support service which opened in August.  

He discussed the benefits of working in partnership with SWSPHN to engage the community through the codesign process to deliver the best service they could. “What we deliver is a service that is there for people when they need it … which is really closely integrated with the community.” 

SWSPHN Chief Executive Officer, Dr Keith McDonald PhD, closed the showcase with an exploration of SWSPHN’s new Employee Value Proposition – A Healthy Community. A Healthy Career. Right here, where you’re really needed – which not only tells, but shows why SWSPHN is a great place to work. 

Watch the staff EVP video 

Following the showcase, Board members met for SWSPHN’s AGM where our 2022-2023 Annual Report, which highlights even more of the significant body of work undertaken by our dedicated and passionate staff during the last financial year. 

Read our Annual Report 

 

26 September 2023

An enthusiastic team from SWSPHN attended the annual PHN Commissioning Showcase, held at Rydges Newcastle recently.

The team was a mix of presenters and those interested in showcase topics which related to their portfolios.

They included our representatives from our Commissioning, Mental Health, Integration and Priority Populations and Digital Health and Data teams.

The theme of the showcase was Momentum – Accelerating outcomes and equity through commissioning.

About 150 representatives from 28 PHNs across Australia showcased the best innovations in PHN commissioning from the last 12 months.

The event also provides an opportunity for PHNs to network and learn from each other.

The Commissioning team presented on SWSPHN’s collaborative approach with an alcohol and other drugs (AOD) service provider and other partners for outcomes-focused commissioning.

The SWSPHN-commissioned project involved developing psychoeducation modules (by 360Edge) to be completed by St Vincent De Paul Society Rendu House clients, focused on improving mental, physical and social health outcomes, then evaluating the outcomes. The evaluation was completed by the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC).

Our Data team representative presented an interactive workshop, in partnership with North Western Melbourne PHN, on GitHub, a tool for PHNs to analyse data consistently and collaborate on data projects.

“Other PHNs were quite positive – following the Commissioning presentation we were on a panel with other presenters and received quite a few questions from the audience,” Acting Commissioning Manager Pritika Desai said.

“For the Data team’s workshop, the PHNs really liked the tool presented because it made reporting simple – and as a PHN we do a lot of reporting.”

Pritika explained the value to SWSPHN of sending a team to the Commissioning Showcase.

“There were a lot of breakout sessions, which allowed us to pick and choose based on our roles and interest,” she said.

“Every presentation had a learning we could take back and incorporate in our own work, so we found all of them useful.

“The key notes were interesting and set the foundations for the rest of the topic and breakouts.

“Presentations on value-based commissioning, access and equity, and data were of most interest, as these are current priorities for us in commissioning.”

Pritika said the benefits of the showcase were substantial.

“We’ll share what we’ve learned with other colleagues, we’ll apply it to our processes and work practices, use the learnings to improve how we commission at SWSPHN, and consider innovative approaches to commissioning.”

Find out more about Commissioning at SWSPHN
03 August 2023

Notification of Information (NOI) – Upcoming Tender

Supporting Recovery Pilot Program to provide trauma-informed recovery care for victim-survivors of family, domestic and sexual violence

This notification has been issued to inform the market South Western Sydney Primary Health Network (SWSPHN) will soon commence the procurement process to commission an eligible organisation to deliver Family, Domestic and Sexual Violence (FDSV) trauma-informed mental healthcare services, in particular psychological therapies, within South Western Sydney to support victim-survivors in their longer-term recovery.

 

Background

On 8 May 2023, SWSPHN was notified of a successful grant submission as part of the Department of Health and Aged Care (DoHAC) Supporting Recovery Pilot Program.

The funding will be provided to pilot a new model of trauma-informed recovery care for victim-survivors of family, domestic and sexual violence.

SWSPHN is commissioning a supplier to deliver FDSV trauma-informed mental healthcare services within our region as part of the pilot program.

Overview of Procurement

SWSPHN is seeking to commission an eligible organisation to establish and deliver the Supporting Recovery Pilot Program. The organisation will deliver psychological therapies, in particular FDSV trauma-informed mental healthcare services, to victim-survivors located within our region.

The supplier will establish and maintain a consortium of key FDSV services within South Western Sydney to ensure an holistic service is delivered in partnership with FDSV victim-survivors, key advocates, advisory groups, and family, domestic and sexual violence service providers.

The service model will align with the DoHAC’s Model of Care, Supporting Recovery Pilot Program. It is a prescribed model which is part of the Australian Government’s National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022–2032.

This procurement is contingent on SWSPHN’s receipt of a funding schedule from the DoHAC.

 

Tender Release

A Request for Proposal (RFP) will be released the week of 7 August 2023.

Indicative Timeline for this Procurement:

RFP Open  Week of 7 August 2023
Information Session Week of 21 August 2023
Last queries date Wednesday 30 August 2023
RFP closing date Wednesday 6 September 2023 @ 5pm
Evaluation period September 2023
Recommendation to SWSPHN board October 2023
Successful applicant notified October 2023
Commence Contract negotiations November 2023
Unsuccessful applicants notified November-December 2023
Contract Commencement 1 December 2023
Phase 1 Establishment 1 December 2023
Phase 2 Full Implementation 1 March 2024

 

Submissions accepted via Tenderlink

This Request for Proposal will be released on SWSPHN’s Tender Portal – Tenderlink: www.tenderlink.com/swsphn

Interested parties are encouraged to register for SWSPHN’s Tender Portal to ensure they:

  • will receive email notifications when new procurement opportunities are published in relevant categories
  • can access the online forum to address any questions about the program and procurement process
  • can download and view procurement documentation electronically and
  • will be able to submit applications through the e-tender box facility
Tenderlink
10 May 2023

Co-design invitationNeami National is looking for people to participate in co-design workshops for the soon-to-open Liverpool Head to Health centre.  Three workshops will be run by Neami National, which is commissioned by South Western Sydney PHN to run Liverpool Head to Health. 

 

During the co-design workshops you will contribute to:

  • Help create a culturally inclusive service for our communities
  • Share your experience accessing or working in mental health services
  • Contribute your ideas about what matters when it comes to mental health services

Neami National is looking for: 

  • People who have a lived or living experience of mental health challenges, distress, adversity, recovery and or service use
  • People with lived or living experience in supporting someone with these experiences as a carer, family member or significant other
  • People working in or connected to primary health, first-responders or community services

Workshop participants will be asked to share their experiences and ideas on:

  • Creating an inclusive environment and what inclusive practices are important at Liverpool Head to Health
  • Insights about what you would want from this service and what supports should be provided
  • Ideas on how we can create avenues for ongoing community and stakeholder engagement and leadership

 

The three co-design sessions

Session 1: Consumer care and experience – two hours
Date: Thursday, 18 May 2023
Time: 10am – 12pm
Location: Liverpool City Library, 170 George Street, Liverpool (pink room)

Session 2: Consumer care and experience – two hours
Date: Thursday, 1 June 2023
Time: 10am – 12pm
Location: Liverpool City Library, 170 George Street, Liverpool (pink room)

Session 3: Governance and community engagement – two hours
Date: Thursday, 15 June 2023
Time: 10am – 12pm
Location: Liverpool City Library, 170 George Street, Liverpool (pink room)

 

Please RSVP before the event you are attending

You may register your interest online, by phone or email:

Online expression of Interest form

Contact Vicki from Neami National:
Ph: 0403 453 536
Email: vicki.langan@neaminational.org.au

Please detail any accessibility requirements you may require.

 

About Liverpool Head to Health

Neami National logoNeami National is designing and delivering the new Liverpool Head to Health. The service will address key gaps in the system, offering information, advice and support about mental health, use of alcohol and other drugs, suicide prevention, referral pathways for individuals, their carers and family.

Liverpool Head to Health will be a welcoming, inclusive place with a mix of lived experience, wellbeing and clinical staff. The service offers immediate support for people experiencing distress or crisis, as well as ongoing short-term support, access to information and help to navigate available services.

28 November 2022

Ref: SWSPHN-1042887

SWSPHN are seeking to commission a new lead agency/agencies to establish and deliver a headspace centre in Narellan and Edmondson Park. The new centres will complement other youth specific mental health services in the region commissioned by SWSPHN, such as headspace Campbelltown, Liverpool and Bankstown and ReFrame.

The Service model will align with headspace National’s Centre Service Model providing mental health, alcohol, and other drugs, physical and sexual health and vocational and educational support to young people (12-25 years) in the region, including alignment to the headspace National Trademark Licence Deed and headspace Model Integrity Framework.

It is expected that the new lead agency/agencies will undergo an establishment process between 1 April 2023 – 28 February 2024 and commence service delivery from 1 March 2024.

 

How to apply

Eligible organisations are invited to apply by completing the application form on Tenderlink no later than 5pm Tuesday, 17 January 2023 (Ref: SWSPHN-1042887).

Register or login to Tenderlink

 

Contact us

If you have any queries about this RFP, please contact us via the Tenderlink Forum. Questions will not be accepted via any other means, including email and phone. 
Queries accepted until 5pm Thursday, 12 January 2023.

19 October 2022

SWSPHN are seeking to commission an eligible organisation to establish and implement a holistic service which provides evidence-based support to young people 12-25 years old with or at risk of a severe mental illness. In the first phase, the service will act as a ‘step up’ for young people presenting at SWSPHN commissioned headspace and ReFrame who are at risk of or are experiencing a severe mental illness and are not receiving services commensurate with need. There is the opportunity through the phased approach to expand referral pathways to other services, including SWSLHD child and youth services, as well as self-referral.

 

Background

Currently SWSPHN commissions the Youth Enhanced Support Service YESS service in South Western Sydney which supports young people 12 – 25 years of age with, or at risk of severe mental illness. This service will come to a natural end in February 2023. As a result, SWSPHN will release a Request for Proposal (RFP) to commission a new primary mental health service for this cohort.

 

Service model

The commissioning of the new service for young people with, or at risk of, severe mental illness will present opportunities to refine the current service model and complement other youth specific mental health services in the region commissioned by SWSPHN, such as headspace and ReFrame.

The service model will be informed by previous consultations, co-design and evaluation where key service functions were identified as vital inclusions to the model including: navigation support adjunct to a hub and spoke model between three headspace sites and two ReFrame sites with the spokes providing a mixture of assertive outreach, in-reach to schools and home visits; formal service protocols that foster collaborative relationships between relevant stakeholders; and workforce capacity building and enhanced promotion.

 

Overview of procurement

SWSPHN is seeking to commission an eligible organisation to establish and implement a holistic service which provides evidence-based support to young people aged 12-25 years with, or at risk of, a severe mental illness.

In the first phase, the service will act as a ‘step up’ for young people presenting at SWSPHN commissioned headspace and ReFrame services who are at risk of, or are experiencing, a severe mental illness and are not receiving services commensurate with need. There is the opportunity through the phased approach to expand referral pathways to other services, including SWSLHD child and youth services as well as self-referral.

 

Indicative timeline:

Notice of Information (via Tenderlink)     18 October 2022 
RFP open   31 October 2022   
Last queries date    23 November 2022, 5pm   
RFP closing date  28 November 2022, 5pm   
Evaluation period  29 November 2022 – 19 December 2022   
Recommendation to SWSPHN board 23 February 2023   
Successful applicant notified    March 2023   
Commence Contract negotiations  March 2023 
Unsuccessful applicants notified    April 2023 

 

Tender closes 5pm Monday, 28 November 2022

Tender responses are accepted through Tenderlink. 

Interested parties are encouraged to register for SWSPHN’s Tender Portal to ensure they:

  • will receive email notifications when new procurement opportunities are published in relevant categories;
  • can download and view procurement documentation electronically; and
  • will be able to submit applications through the e-tender box facility.
Go to Tenderlink

 

20 July 2022

South Western Sydney PHN invites submissions for procurement of a Health Adult Mental Health Centre in Liverpool.

 

Background

Pop Up Service (in response to COVID-19)

Currently SWSPHN funds two Head to Health Pop Up Hubs which commenced operation on 6 September 2021 as part of the state-wide establishment of the Head to Health Pop up Service in response to COVID-19. These Pop-Up Hubs are located in Bankstown and Liverpool and are funded to December 2022.

A state-wide telephone Initial Assessment and Referral (IAR) service was also established and began operating on 6 September 2021. As at 1 July 2022, this service is available nationally by calling 1800 595 212.

www.headtohealth.gov.au/popup

 

Head to Health Centre and Satellite Network, and Telephone IAR Service

Through the 2021-22 Federal Budget, the Australian Government invested $487.2 million to stablish the Head to Health centre and satellite network of community-based adult mental health services which are delivered by multidisciplinary teams who will provide holistic, collaborative care. This includes funding for eight new Head to Health centres, 24 satellites embedded into existing primary care settings and ongoing funding for the initial eight sites announced as part of the 2019-20 Budget. The announcement also included funding for the central intake and assessment phone service which promotes consistent triage and enables warm transfer and referral to the most appropriate services, including Head to Health centres and satellites.

 

Procurement overview

The model of service will seek to address key gaps in the system by:

  1. Providing a highly visible and accessible entry point to services for people experiencing psychological distress, where all feel safe and welcomed.
  2. Offering assessment to match people to the services they need.
  3. Providing on the spot support, care and advice without needing referral, prior appointments or out of pocket cost. Every interaction should be with the intention of therapeutic benefit.
  4. Offering an episode of care model based on short to medium term multidisciplinary collaborative care, aimed at improving psychological wellbeing for people with moderate to high levels of mental health need, whose needs are not being met through other services.

Service Model for Head to Health Adult Mental Health Centres and Satellite Services – June 2021

Head to Health Adult Mental Health Centres | Head to Health

 

Request for Proposal release

Indicative timeline 

  • Tender open: Monday, 25 July 2022
  • Information session: Monday, 1 August 2022
  • Tender closure: Monday, 29 August, 5pm
  • Evaluation: September 2022
  • Recommendation to SWSPHN Board: Late October 2022
  • Contract negotiation: November 2022
  • Contract commencement: 1 December 2022
  • Service commencement: 1 May 2023

 

Tender Portal

This Request for Proposal will be released on SWSPHN’s tender portal, Tenderlink

Interested parties are encouraged to register for SWSPHNs Tender Portal to ensure they:

  • will receive email notifications when new procurement opportunities are published in relevant categories;
  • can download and view procurement documentation electronically; and
  • will be able to submit applications through the e-tender box facility.
Log in to Tenderlink

 

22 June 2022

Consumers, carers and aged care providers highlighted the issues, challenges and service gaps facing older people in South Western Sydney at SWSPHN’s series of four Local Health Forums held in May and June.

The inaugural forums gave participants the opportunity to:

  • Learn more about the focus and activities of South Western Sydney PHN
  • Learn about the Care Finder program, a Commonwealth-funded aged care initiative aimed at connecting local seniors to appropriate services
  • Share insights and perspectives which will guide the development of local, face-to-face supports to help older people navigate access to aged care services

A total of 86 locals participated in the face-to-face forums at Bankstown, Campbelltown, Warwick Farm and Mittagong, while an additional 50 people have so far provided their feedback through a survey.

Care Finder consultationSWSPHN is still working through the massive amount of community input, however, some of the suggestions from participants have highlighted the importance of:

  • GPs understanding and supporting the program
  • Needs of all diverse groups to be considered including access to bilingual staff and culturally appropriate services
  • Collaborating with local councils, religious groups and other community organisations
  • Integration of Care Finder program with health, aged care and other systems

Once community consultation has been finalised, SWSPHN will open a tender process for service providers, with service delivery expected to begin in January next year.

Save the date! 

Local Health Forums are a new opportunity for exploring service and health needs gaps in our community. Forums will be held twice yearly in each location, focusing on a different topic event round, and the next round of forums start in August and will focus on the assessing the health needs of our region. Keep an eye on HealthChat for event booking details 

Forum dates:

Wednesday, 17 August, Campbelltown/Camden at Rydges, Campbelltown.

Thursday, 1 September, Bankstown, at Bankstown Library

Wednesday, 7 September, Fairfield/Liverpool event, at Holiday Inn, Warwick Farm

Wednesday 14 September, Southern Highlands event, at Mittagong RSL Club

09 December 2021

SWSPHN will open a Lead Organisation Request for Proposal for its Credentialed Mental Health Nurse Service from the week starting Monday 14 December.

The Lead Organisation will be responsible for overseeing the Credentialed Mental Health Nurse Service including engaging the Credentialed Mental Health Nurses.

The Request for Proposal will be available until 1 February 2021 via Tenderlink. Please register with Tenderlink to access the Tender and attachments when it becomes available:

 Tenderlink Portal

A pre-recorded briefing session will be made available on Tenderlink following the release date and will be accepted via the Tenderlink forum.

29 October 2020

The use of data provides SWSPHN with an evidence-based understanding of our community’s health needs and is vital to our work commissioning services to address the gaps and inequalities in service provision in our region.

In early 2020, we became a pilot PHN for Primary Health Insights (PHI), a project led by the Western Australian Primary Health Alliance and built by Aginic, to develop a platform PHNs can use to secure, store, manage and analyse their healthcare data.

 

What is PHI?

The PHI platform is a cloud-based solution which will provide participating PHNs with a ‘secure box’ to store their data and to control who has access to that data.

PHI will also provide a ‘common zone’ with restricted access which will allow PHNs to collaborate – sharing data, resources and skills. The common zone will also provide a secure and efficient environment for external data sources such as the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and the Australian Bureau of Statistics to share their data.

 

What is SWSPHN’s role in the development of PHI?

SWSPHN’s participation in the project has provided an opportunity for input into how the platform is being built and to aid in quality assurance as each element of the platform is built. During the past six months we have been testing PHI and providing feedback on behalf of other PHNs. On 30 September we also participated in a PHN CEO Showcase to outline the benefits of PHI we’ve seen as the platform was being built.

 

Why is PHI important?

PHI will provide PHNs with access to a sophisticated data storage and analytical solution which wouldn’t have been possible without the benefit of having multiple parties contribute to the costs.

It will improve collaboration between PHNs and may assist in access to important deidentified data from external data sources because of increased confidence in data security.

Internally, our participation in the PHI project has also provided an opportunity for a review of our data governance processes and for our staff to be trained in building those processes.

PHI will mean our data processes are far more automated, ensuring if an error occurs it can be systematically retraced. These efficiencies will also allow our staff more time and resources to develop insights for data-driven decisions.

 

How will PHI benefit our community?

The benefits of PHI to our community are three-fold.

PHI will assist in identifying specific health needs in our region, ensuring a more targeted approach to commissioning services. It will enhance our population health planning, facilitating integrated care by showing a clearer picture of the health system and what’s currently missing. PHI will support service providers, specifically primary care, to better understand the needs of their community.

 

Where is it at?

After six months of rigorous testing, the core functionality of PHI is complete. We will continue testing throughout the next month to add extra value to the platform before other PHNs are onboarded. During the past week, 25 PHNs have signed onto PHI.

 

Where to from here?

PHNs will be onboarded over the next six months. The onboarding process includes a data governance audit at each PHN with a minimum data governance level required before data is moved across to the platform. Staff upskilling activities are also part of the onboarding process. PHN staff will have access to a learning management system which has a variety of different off-the-shelf training modules from Microsoft and other customised training modules specific to the PHI platform.

SWSPHN will continue to keep you updated on PHI and how we’re using the platform to improve the health outcomes of our community.

To find out more about the project, email Luke.Arnold@swsphn.com.au