Gold Coast Primary Health Network’s Annual Report – Keeping local residents healthy and well

The Gold Coast Primary Health Network’s Annual Report 2019/20 highlights the PHN’s commitment to advancing the Commonwealth’s agenda of improving coordination of primary care services.

This year GCPHN played an instrumental role during the COVID-19 pandemic, through crucial engagement and provision of curated information to health professionals and the community, supporting the establishment of four respiratory clinics in the region to test for COVID-19, distribution of personal protective equipment and supporting our most vulnerable community members.

Despite the pandemic, GCPHN was also able to continue our services and progress our vision of ‘Building one world class health system for the Gold Coast’.

Supporting this vision, in 2019 – 2020 some of our success have included:

• Working with Queensland Health and key stakeholders to finalise and release the Joint Regional Plan for Mental Health, Suicide Prevention and Alcohol and Other Drugs in the Gold Coast region.
• Establishing headspace Upper Coomera to meet a significant increase in demand for youth mental health services in the growing northern region.
• Providing psychological services for residents at Gold Coast aged care facilities, with almost 50 per cent of participants noticing a significant improvement.
• A record number of 6,613 clients accessed low, medium and high intensity mental health programs that we commissioned.
• Exceeding targets to inform and assist in the registration of private specialists, general practices and pharmacies for My Health Record.
• Establishing the Community Pathways Connector program, connecting mental health and wellbeing services for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and culturally and linguistically diverse communities, highlighted as an exemplar in commissioning for communities.
• Assisting 219 clients to better manage their chronic pain, with a high level of satisfaction reported.
• Commissioning the new Lighthouse community based mental health treatment service to help young people access long-term treatment, for their severe and/or complex mental health needs.
• Placing 600 medical and nursing students in general practice and sourcing 50 additional placements, following the cancellation of many rural, interstate and overseas placements due to COVID-19.
• Continuing to support general practice with training and education and quality improvement initiatives including the Practice Incentive Payment Quality Improvement Incentive (PIP QI).
• Transitioning 96-per-cent of clients with severe or complex mental health needs, to the National Disability Insurance Scheme, Continuity of Care program or other supports.
• Supporting people to access mental health support outside business hours at the safe space and co-location hub, with a four-fold increase in demand in the last 12 months, with more than half of these, identified as homeless.
• Assisting 386 people who have attempted or are at risk of suicide, through the Lotus Program, and successfully transitioning to the Way Back Support Service.
• Through the ongoing promotion of Advanced Care Plans to residential aged care facilities and the health sector, in an 8-month period, the Office of Advanced Care Planning had received 1,645 Advance Care Plans from Gold Coast residents.
• The new, easier to navigate GCPHN website was launched, based on extensive consultation with our stakeholders.
• The health data analytics management tool Primary Sense developed by GCPHN has been installed in 81 general practices, assisting Gold Coast general practices to identify patients most at risk of poor health.
• We achieved accreditation against the ISO 9001:2015 QMS Standards following a successful audit by the Institute of Healthy Communities Australia (IHCA).

The report showcases the Gold Coast Primary Health Network’s dedication supporting primary healthcare and keeping local residents healthy and well.