National primary health care partnership welcomed

The Consumers Health Forum of Australia (CHF) has welcomed the launch of the National Primary Health Care Partnership (NPHCP).

The NPHCP is a partnership of 19 peak health provider and consumer organisations, which aims to strengthen the primary health care sector and improve the health of Australians by increasing team-based care.

“CHF is delighted to be part of the NPHCP and to work with the other members to achieve a consumer-focused and coordinated system of primary health care for all Australians.

“This will deliver better health outcomes for consumers, and improve the overall performance of our health system,” CHF executive director, Helen Hopkins, said.

“A key challenge will be to address the current lack of coordination within the primary health care sector.

“For many people, particularly those with a chronic condition or recently discharged from hospital, this can lead to them missing out on important services and have a serious impact on their long term health.

“Changing this situation will require changing the way in which we organise and deliver primary health care.

“Instead of isolated health care providers providing individual health services, we need a system of coordinated and structured care, which involves multiple health care providers working in partnership with consumers.

“This means breaking down some existing professional boundaries and finding new ways to support health professionals to work in partnership with each other and with consumers.

“For many health care providers this may be a challenge.”