RACGP Policy and Advocacy 2
Track 10
| Friday, October 27, 2023 |
| 10:35 AM - 12:30 PM |
| Meeting Room C4.2 |
Speaker
Dr Nicole Higgins
President
Royal Australian College of General Practitioners
Possibilities and pitfalls: current and future approaches to primary healthcare reform in the Australian context
11:35 AM - 12:30 PMSummary
Purpose:
To examine the impact and opportunities of the Federal government’s Strengthening Medicare Taskforce Report and subsequent reforms.
Discussion:
In February 2023, many primary healthcare stakeholders cautiously welcomed many of the long-term reforms contained in the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce report (the ‘Report’). The report, which took more than six months to develop, lays out significant reforms to modernise Medicare and bolster general practice, as well as provide high-level guidance to the Federal government on where it should invest the $750 million pledged ahead of the 2022 election.
The report recommends new blended funding models, integrated with the existing fee-for-service model, allowing teams of GPs, nurses, midwives, and allied health professionals to work together to deliver the care people need. The report states that responsibility for providing care should be shared across primary care teams and that high-quality primary care depends on harnessing the skills of a diverse health workforce including nurses, nurse practitioners and pharmacists. The report also identified a ‘strengthened role’ for Primary Health Networks (PHNs) to drive organisational and cultural change.
It is clear this report highlights a new appetite for primary healthcare reform and signals a shift from previous approaches to funding and administering primary healthcare in Australia. However, while this may be a significant opportunity to reorient the health system, improve efficiency and better patient outcomes, it also comes with considerable risks if the reforms are not well designed and implemented.
Conclusions:
Previous healthcare reforms have shown us that general practice needs to be at the centre of any health system changes. The renewed focus on multidisciplinary care in the Strengthening Medicare Report, while welcomed, must be centred within general practice under a GP stewardship model and supported by sustainable funding systems.
To examine the impact and opportunities of the Federal government’s Strengthening Medicare Taskforce Report and subsequent reforms.
Discussion:
In February 2023, many primary healthcare stakeholders cautiously welcomed many of the long-term reforms contained in the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce report (the ‘Report’). The report, which took more than six months to develop, lays out significant reforms to modernise Medicare and bolster general practice, as well as provide high-level guidance to the Federal government on where it should invest the $750 million pledged ahead of the 2022 election.
The report recommends new blended funding models, integrated with the existing fee-for-service model, allowing teams of GPs, nurses, midwives, and allied health professionals to work together to deliver the care people need. The report states that responsibility for providing care should be shared across primary care teams and that high-quality primary care depends on harnessing the skills of a diverse health workforce including nurses, nurse practitioners and pharmacists. The report also identified a ‘strengthened role’ for Primary Health Networks (PHNs) to drive organisational and cultural change.
It is clear this report highlights a new appetite for primary healthcare reform and signals a shift from previous approaches to funding and administering primary healthcare in Australia. However, while this may be a significant opportunity to reorient the health system, improve efficiency and better patient outcomes, it also comes with considerable risks if the reforms are not well designed and implemented.
Conclusions:
Previous healthcare reforms have shown us that general practice needs to be at the centre of any health system changes. The renewed focus on multidisciplinary care in the Strengthening Medicare Report, while welcomed, must be centred within general practice under a GP stewardship model and supported by sustainable funding systems.
Takeaways
At the conclusion of this presentation attendees will take away:
- General practice needs to be at the centre of any health system changes.
- The renewed focus on multidisciplinary care in the Strengthening Medicare Report, while welcomed, must be centred within general practice under a GP stewardship model and supported by sustainable funding systems.
- General practice needs to be at the centre of any health system changes.
- The renewed focus on multidisciplinary care in the Strengthening Medicare Report, while welcomed, must be centred within general practice under a GP stewardship model and supported by sustainable funding systems.
Biography
