02 November 2023

SWSPHN representatives attended the 2023 Asia-Pacific Health Leadership Congress in Canberra from 10 to 12 October, with the congress focusing on practical explorations for health leaders on how to survive and thrive through current and future challenges.

Our Executive Manager Corporate Services, Christine Turner, attended the conference with Acting Mental Health and Alcohol and other Drugs (AOD) Team Lead, Bessie Berberovic.

SWSPHN often sends members of its leadership team to the annual congress with the aim of enabling better leadership and, in turn, healthier communities.

Addressing some of the strategic challenges and successes faced by our sector, directly assists SWSPHN to better support the health of the South Western Sydney community.

Both Ms Berberovic (pictured top) and Mrs Turner (pictured bottom) presented at the conference.

Ms Berberovic highlighted SWSPHN’s No Wrong Door initiative as a collective commitment between local government, non-government and community organisations to work towards a no wrong door approach built around recovery-oriented practice.

The signatory organisations to the No Wrong Door Charter ensure people experiencing severe and persistent mental illness, and their families, are supported by a coordinated service system.

The No Wrong Door initiative and Framework demonstrated how change leadership evolves over time by continually identifying gaps, building on existing resources and co-designing solutions with key stakeholders.

Mrs Turner presented to the congress on staff retention, highlighting SWSPHN’s excellent workplace culture and diversity.

She demonstrated how SWSPHN has identified opportunities for improvements to retain our staff who bring to the organisation so many valuable skills and knowledge.

She also talked about the actions we have taken to reduce our employee turnover from 29 per cent to 15 per cent over the last 12 months.

Mrs Turner included an in-house EVP (employee value proposition) video to complement her presentation.

She said the EVP video authentically showed the audience our organisation and our people, rather than just talking about them.

The feedback from the audience about the video was affirming.

“The comment that resonated with me most was when an attendee said how impressive it is that we have been able to create such a great workplace culture with so much diversity in our staffing profile,” Mrs Turner said.

She added there was much to take out of attending any conference.

“There is always self-reflection and improvement opportunities gained, in this case with my own leadership in healthcare, but also how I coach and mentor other leaders across the business to be able to continue to a make positive impact on their teams and the broader community through our work,” Mrs Turner said.

“One comment has stuck with me and stands true through my own experiences and observations of other great leaders: Great leaders rise above the chaos; they don’t get drawn into it.”

 

No Wrong Door initiative

No Wrong Door organisations come together to ensure that, regardless of which door a person enters through the system, they are supported to access an appropriate service to meet their needs. Find out more

What’s the EVP project?

The project aims to uncover our authentic employee value proposition – what it means to work at SWSPHN, why people should join our organisation and why people stay – with the aim of recruiting the right people to help our teams thrive and shape our employer brand. Find out more

25 August 2023

South Western Sydney Primary Health Network (SWSPHN) has a deep and ongoing commitment to supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health across our communities.

Our activities include commissioning services with our local Aboriginal community organisations; providing cultural awareness training to improve and support primary care; connecting with and planning Aboriginal health initiatives across South Western Sydney; and implementing a Reconciliation Action Plan across the organisation.

More than 20,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people live in South Western Sydney. Compared to our non-Aboriginal population there is a distressing gap in life expectancy and health outcomes. The socioeconomic determinants of health and wellbeing must be addressed.

The upcoming referendum proposes to enshrine an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament in the Constitution. It represents an historic opportunity to implement the recommendations from the Uluru Statement from the Heart, delivered at the First Nations National Constitutional Convention in 2017.

Constitutional recognition will aid self-determination and help resolve the well-recognised inequalities facing First Nations communities.

In line with our commitment to closing the gap and improving the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and consistent with our Reconciliation Action Plan, SWSPHN endorses the recommendations of the Uluru Statement from the Heart and supports constitutional change to establish the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.

11 August 2023

Wollondilly Shire Council has stepped up its ability to deliver services to those who need support, where they need support, in the event of natural disasters like bushfire and flood.

The local community had the opportunity to inspect the Resilient Wollondilly Van – one of the first in Australia – at the van’s launch at Picton Botanic Gardens on Thursday, 10 August.

The council will use the mobile recovery and resilience vehicle to provide immediate outreach support to residents and businesses immediately after the impacts of a severe weather event or disaster.

The van will be used to establish community recovery points, connect residents with essential services and supports, and distribute necessary short-term supplies.

Its customised fit-out provides storage and equipment, including solar panels, lithium battery, work station, satellite internet, fridge, defibrillator and generator, in addition to tea/coffee, hygiene packs, teddies, and information on support and services.

Deputy Mayor Matthew Deeth told the launch the van would be an invaluable resource for the Wollondilly community.

He said after the bushfires in 2019, “as always, our community rallied and were able to come and support all those who had lost their homes to get back on their feet very quickly.

“Out of that experience we saw an opportunity to deliver a recovery service more nimbly and to adapt and respond to any emergency that has hit the shire.”

Mr Deeth said it was critical that not only council services, but State Government services were delivered on the ground in real time.

“This is a model that can be used anywhere in Australia,” he said.

Anthony D’Adam MLC, Parliamentary Secretary for Emergency Services, launched the van saying there were so many communities across the state going through a process of recovery.

“Here in Wollondilly you’ve had flood and fires over the past two years, which have added to the recovery needs of the community,” he said.

“Nearly 60 per cent of the Wollondilly landscape was subject to the path of destructive fires (in 2019-2020).

“Funding from both the State and Federal Governments through the Bushfire Community Recovery and Resilience Fund supported the delivery of the mobile hub. It’s a fantastic and valuable investment in the long-term resilience of your community.”

When the van is not being used for recovery purposes, it will be used for resilience building projects, including community education and awareness programs, and social programs aimed at increasing connectedness and opportunities for residents to connect with community services.

Find out more
10 July 2023

Earlier this year, in February and March, SWSPHN held a series of Local Health Forums throughout the region. These forums provided community members with the chance to share valuable feedback about the challenges and issues for people managing their chronic disease. 

The feedback we received during these events helped us to inform the SWSPHN Health Needs Assessment, which explores the priorities, service needs and gaps within the region.

Thank you to all who contributed. Below is the report outlining the findings from the Local Health Forums.

Read report

SWSPHN is now planning the next Local Health Forums with a focus on understanding barriers to improved mental ill-health. If this is of interest to you, please visit HealthChat for more information. 

10 May 2023

The strong focus on primary care, with the tripling of the bulk billing incentive and investment in the health workforce to better meet the health needs of the Australians in the 21st century, were among the welcome features of Tuesday’s Federal Budget.

South Western Sydney Primary Health Network (SWSPHN) Acting Chief Executive Officer, Kristen Short, said there was little doubt primary care had been struggling in recent years, with fewer practices in a position to bulk bill, further highlighting the need for strong and ongoing funding commitment for the sector.

“The $3.5 billion committed to bulk billing incentives, $98.2 million for new Medicare rebates for patients who require consultations of longer than 60 minutes and $445.1 million to support team-based care in general practice, are welcome measures to support the revival and protection of a healthcare system which has served us well for decades,” she said.

Other investments of interest to primary care, in particular general practices in South Western Sydney include:

  • $358.5 million for Medicare Urgent Care Clinics
  • $143.9 million for after hours primary care
  • $91.5 million to improve mental health by addressing workforce shortages

Ms Short said SWSPHN had a particular focus on innovative projects like iRAD, the New to General Practice Nursing program and My Care Partners to build capacity and support our general practices in delivering accessible, effective and timely care to our community.

She noted investment in digital health ($951.2 million); increasing the number of nurses in primary care ($10.7 million); and increasing incentives for general practices to employ a range of health professionals to provide team-based primary care ($445.1 million) would support those projects which were already improving the health of our region.

“Primary care is the cornerstone of our healthcare system, and SWSPHN looks forward to continuing to work with and support primary care providers across our region on the projects, services and other activities funded in this budget.

“We particularly welcome the focus in the budget on multidisciplinary team care and voluntary patient enrolment and look forward to seeing how it complements our local medical neighbourhood model of care, My Care Partners, which has been working for the past two years to reduce avoidable hospital admissions and enhance care coordination for people with multiple chronic diseases.”

22 March 2023

SWSPHN staff joined the Harmony Week celebrations last week with activities which gave everyone the opportunity to share, learn and appreciate Australian multiculturalism.

Harmony Week, 20 to 26 March, is about inclusiveness, respect and belonging for all Australians, regardless of cultural or linguistic background, united by a set of core Australian values.

The message of Harmony Week is everyone belongs.

We held our activities on Harmony Day on Tuesday, 21 March.

Our staff wore orange, the colour chosen to represent Harmony Week, while:

  • Enjoying a lunch of flavours from around the world
  • Hearing first-hand the experiences of a staff member who came to Australia as a refugee in 1993 to escape the Bosnian war
  • Pinning our places of cultural identity on a world map
  • Participating in the How diverse is your universe? activity

Harmony Day / Harmony Week

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Find out more about Harmony Week
04 November 2022

The SWSPHN Board of Directors is seeking interest from eligible candidates to nominate as a possible independent Chairperson of the SWSPHN Clinical Council.

Particular consideration will be given to candidates who:

  • Are an experienced primary healthcare clinician (preferably a GP)
  • Have a sound understanding of clinical governance, with a demonstrable commitment to the quality and safety of patient care
  • Have a clear appreciation of healthcare needs and challenges relevant to South Western Sydney

Download the EOI
Download the Terms of Reference


This article appeared in Practice Pulse on Wednesday, 2 November 2022. If you are a GP, practice nurse or practice manager in South Western Sydney and do not get the weekly Practice Pulse email, speak to your Practice Support Officer.

04 November 2022

South Western Sydney Primary Health Network (SWSPHN) notes funding of GP-led urgent care clinics and a new GP grants program as first steps by the new Federal Government in addressing the concerns of our under-pressure primary care system.

Tuesday night’s Budget also confirmed the government’s commitment to establish a new headspace centre in South Western Sydney.

Funding allocations included:

  • $1 million in 2022-23, and $1.4 million per annum from 2023-24, to establish and operate a new headspace centre at Edmondson Park
  • $229.7 million to the Strengthening Medicare GP grants program, one-off grants of up to $50,000 for innovation, training, equipment and minor capital works to improve patient access to care

SWSPHN Chief Executive Officer, Dr Keith McDonald, says substantial investment in the primary care sector is critical now to bolster what is the cornerstone of our health system.

“It’s been a challenging two-and-a half years for us all, but our healthcare providers, including GPs and general practice staff across South Western Sydney, have done it particularly tough during the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.

“The strain on our healthcare system is becoming increasingly evident with a shortfall in GPs being reported and waiting times for GP appointments growing.”

Dr McDonald said any investment in primary care was welcome, but more support was needed.

“We are eagerly awaiting the recommendations of the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce later this year and look forward to seeing the government build on this investment in next year’s Federal Budget.”

Other budget commitments of note include:

Aged care 

  • $312.6 million to modernise aged care information and communications technology
  • $23.1 million for research and consultation for reforms to in-home aged care

Aboriginal health

  • $164.3 million towards First Nations infrastructure projects
  • $54.3 million for training up to 500 First Nations health workers Mental health
  • $114 million to support mental health and suicide prevention initiatives
  • This includes $23.5 million for an expansion of the headspace network

This article appeared in Practice Pulse on Wednesday, 2 November 2022. If you are a GP, practice nurse or practice manager in South Western Sydney and do not get the weekly Practice Pulse email, speak to your Practice Support Officer.

28 October 2022

Work, health and safety awareness was the main course at SWSPHN’s SafeTea morning tea on Wednesday (26 October), where almost 40 staff came together to have a conversation about workplace safety.

We hosted the morning tea for National Safe Work Month which highlights the message: being healthy and safe means being free from physical and psychological harm.

Data from Safe Work Australia, which drives the campaign, shows more than 120,000 workers are compensated for a serious work-related injury or illness in Australia each year and just under 200 are fatally injured at work.

However, injury in the workplace is not only physical. The campaign also focuses on how managing risks to mental health– or psychosocial hazards – at work is just as important as managing risks to physical safety.

Our Quality and People Coordinator told the gathering we are “lucky to have an organisation genuinely committed to a mentally safe workplace”.

“Today is a good opportunity to make the connection between physical safety in the workplace and mental health safety and to find out about resources which can help,” she said.

     
     
     
     
17 August 2022

South Western Sydney Primary Health Network (SWSPHN) Clinical Council is seeking interest from GPs currently practicing within South Western Sydney to nominate as a possible representative on this forum.

When selecting GP representatives for the Clinical Council, consideration is given in particular to:

  • Regional distribution
  • Gender balance
  • Cultural diversity

The Clinical Council is an advisory committee

The SWSPHN Clinical Council is an advisory committee reports to the Board of the SWSPHN. It reports on clinical issues to influence SWSPHN Board decisions with regards to the unique health needs of the communities within this region. The Clinical Council also works in partnership with the South Western Sydney Local Health District (SWSLHD) and in tandem with the SWSPHN Community Advisory Committee.

Committee term of office

A term of office on the Clinical Council for GP representatives is reviewed every two years, with an option of one renewal (i.e a four year maximum term).

Meeting frequency

The Clinical Council meets for two hours bimonthly, or more frequently if required. Meetings are hosted at the SWSPHN Campbelltown office, with the option for virtual participation.

Renumeration

As a member of the SWSPHN Clinical Council, representatives are remunerated a standard rate for their participation.

Terms of reference

Download the terms of reference document for full details.

Clinical Council Terms of Reference

Submitting your EOI

Thank you for taking the time to consider nominating as a representative to be part of the SWSPHN Clinical Council. 

If you wish to express interest or have any questions, please contact Executive Assistant Melissa McIntyre at melissa.mcintyre@swsphn.com.au.