In the debate about climate change, it is often overlooked that the most likely direct effect of climate change-related phenomena will be on our health.

A very topical example of this oversight is the current attention being given to the government support for electric vehicles. Somewhat lost in the focus on economic costs and savings of electric vehicles is the huge potential benefit to our health enabled by the end of the internal combustion engine.

A recent Australian Conservation Foundation report estimates the many billions in avoided health costs alone that could be saved in future years with widespread introduction of electric vehicles as a result of reduced air pollution, greenhouse gases and noise pollution.

Climate change and the COVID pandemic represent two huge challenges which are prompting health consumers to realise that the best solutions inevitably require concerted, whole-of-community responses.

The Climate and Health Alliance which is celebrating its 10th anniversary (one year late because of COVID) has demonstrated the potential power of the health community and CHF supports this as one of the 70 members of CAHA.

Its Ten Years of Impact Report shows the impressive range and depth of the campaigns CAHA has spearheaded since its founding  by executive director Fiona Armstrong.

CAHA has sought a stronger response by Australia at the COP26 conference on climate change. In a public letter to the Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, CAHA and signatory members presented a comprehensive policy plan to improve public health.

The letter stated that health impacts of climate change can only be prevented with ambitious efforts to cut our greenhouse gas emissions, reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and support our health system to be resilient and sustainable
in the face of worsening climate impacts.

CAHA’s mission has been all about marshalling the forces among health advocates to shift governments and their policies.

It has produced 10 ground-breaking reports on the issue of climate change and its dangers, including the framework for a national strategy on climate, health and well-being for Australia

Its aim has been to lead the Australian community in fostering climate health literacy, producing 220 champions to spread knowledge and confidence about advocacy of the need for action on climate change.

CAHA has a theory of change which CHF strongly supports: “If the health sector leads on climate advocacy and solutions, decision-makers and the public will act, because the community cares about health and trusts health voices.”

" We know the charities sector has been advancing its use of technology, but in some ways the bigger question is what we want charities to be doing in relation to the strategic adaption and adoption of technology," writes David Crosbie, CEO of the Community Council of Australia (CCA)

"The digital divide in Australia means around 10 per cent of us or 2.5 million people are highly digitally excluded, and many more do not have the resources or skills to effectively navigate their way in a digital marketplace or even on the myGov website."

"Digital transformation has to be on the agenda of every charity as an integral part of improving the way charities serve their communities and achieve their mission.' says Crosbie, and shares the Digital Transformation Hub as a useful resource form not-for-profits to turn to for help in navigating their digital challenges.

We held the Australian young health consumer's national summit in September 2021.

The Youth Health Forum National Summit brought together passionate young people, thought leaders and policy-makers to discuss the health issues that affect people under 30

Croakey News Media Conference Service prepared this Report, if you missed the Summit or want a reminder about some of the most important discussions.

The Summit Call to Action has been finalised and we are excited to show you how it looks. We identified 5 key values during the discussions on the day. 

We will be advocating for these over the coming months and will be contacting ministers and shadow ministers to present this call to action to them.

It’s hard to remember and correctly take medicines with doses that change from day to day, or that only need to be taken infrequently. NPS MedicineWise has identified this as an important reason why people may not be getting the most out of their medicines. It’s also why MedicineWise app - a free app funded by the Department of Health to help people keep track of their medicines – was recently upgraded to include a new ‘dose-tracker’ functionality. For more details see:

Get the MedicineWise app from the App store or Google play

WE are conducting a consumer consultation with the Australian Commission for Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC) to get consumer input into designing a new web interface for displaying health care data in a way that works for consumers.

As consumers, you are invited to apply to participate in this project by testing a draft version of the web interface, completing a brief questionnaire asking about your perspective on aspects of the site and then participating in a focus group discussion.

Expressions of interest for close on Mon 15 Nov 2021. A further consultation close on Mon 10 Jan 2021

October has seen the culmination of many significant pieces of work for CHF including the National Digital Health Strategy, the National Medicines Policy Review  the National Obesity Strategy and the 10 year Primary Health Care Plan 

The Government’s draft 10 Year Primary Health Care Plan is very welcome and CHF endorsed the main reforms proposed, with a move to a hybrid system and funding that includes voluntary patient registration, collaborative commissioning and social prescribing for whole of person wellbeing.

Our  response focused on areas for improvement, such as integrating primary health with specialist and hospital care, link workers and navigators to help people access services and address social determinants of health, expanding primary health to include dental care, and investing in consumer leaders. A position paper detailing CHF’s response will be available on the CHF website soon. Watch the webinar replay: A primer on Primary Health Care reform

We also added the consumer voice to consultations to the Australian Medical Research and Innovation Strategy (Strategy) for the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF)

Emily Cole is a Young Leader with the Youth Health Forum and a health advocate for young people, having worked with Headspace’s Youth National Reference Group, Orygen’s National Youth Advisory Council and her own local council in Broome, helping to set up training for Peer Support Workers and other projects. In August, Emily took part in a COVID vaccine confidence program to circulate real Australian’s stories about vaccination.

Welcome to new member, Health Consumers Advocacy Network of South Australia (or Health CAN SA - the Network). This is a group established after the South Australian government ceased funding statewide health consumer partnerships in 2019. As a result, the Health Consumers Alliance of South Australia (HCASA) ended its 20-year existence. Health CAN SA was established by a group of health consumers who believe the people who pay for and use health services in SA should be able to inform and influence how those services are designed and delivered.

The Convenor of Health CAN SA is Allison Willis, at awillis@healthconsumercolab.com.au

Are you someone that has a heart condition? Has your heart health been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic? Has the pandemic and the social restrictions and guidelines made it more difficult to see your doctor?

Researchers from The University of Sydney are conducting a 5-minute survey for people with heart condition(s). Three $50-giftcards will be given away. Please click the following weblink to find out more about the study

Help improve research information

CT:IQ (Clinical Trials: Impact & Quality,) is a group of people with a common aim to get Australia thinking smarter about the design and conduct of clinical trials and research studies.

“The InFORMed Project” aims to simplify consumers' experience of agreeing to participate in research.

The basis for ethical research practice is having participants provide informed consent before they take part. Potential participants are given written information about the research and a consent form to sign, this is called a Participant Information and Consent Form (PICF) which is often quite complex, long and can be difficult for people to understand.

You invited to complete this 5 minute survey which closes on 15th November 2021.  

If you have any questions contact CT:IQ Project Manager, Sonia Harvey , Senior Policy Officer on email soniaharvey@ctiq.com.au

Australia's Health  Panel is an interactive platform dedicated to collecting the views of Australians about the state of the nation’s healthcare system. This information is used to inform our advocacy.

Find out more about what you said - on loneliness, the vaccine rollout, the preventative health strategy and health literacy - See the results or Join the Panel

Use the Department of Health's Eligibility Checker to find out when and where to get your COVID-19 vaccine.

The COVID-19 restriction checker from healthdirect is a search tool to help you find the restrictions in your state or territory as advice changes about COVID-19.

Local outbreaks of COVID-19 and the delta variant

Advice from ATAGI about the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine during an outbreak.

 COVID-19 news and media updates from the Dept of Health

Find the answers to your questions from medical experts.

Use the Department of Health page on COVID-19 vaccinations to access priority resources including videos and social media campaigns.

You can visit healthdirect or see your doctor for medical advice.

Consumer representatives are nominated for national committees to ensure that the views and interests of health consumers are represented at the national level. CHF supports consumer representatives by providing resources in a number of ways. Find out how to become a Consumer Rep

Special Interest Groups (SIGs) are a way for members and the broader consumer community to be involved in our advocacy work and in shaping policy.

Special Interest Groups to focus on Primary Health Care, Research & Data, Digital Health, Safety & Quality and Rural & Remote. SIGs help us to features even more consumer insight and perspective reflective of our Australian community. Find out more about CHF Special Interest Groups.

Opportunities to join SIGs are advertised in newsletters and on our website.

How well has the media handled the demands of reporting on and analyzing the biggest pandemic in a century? What have we learnt?

Hear from researchers. and  journalists, including Professor Kerry McCallum. Dr Norman Swan and Dr Sanjaya Senanayake in a discussion about trust in the news, how COVID has impacted health literacy and how  the Australian media landscape is holding up.

Ever wondered what's wrong with the Australian Health Care system? If it were up to you - what what YOU do to fix it. 

Learn about Primary Health Care reform in this webinar with GP and PHN Board member, Dr Michael Wright, Pharmacist and Senior Lecturer at Curtin, Dr Fei Sim and CEO, National Rural Health Alliance  and Leanne Wells  CEO, Consumers Health Forum 

Health and medical research has never been more important in Australia. Whether that be research into COVID-19, research that uncovers life-saving treatments for common chronic conditions or studies shedding light on serious rare diseases.

Most Australians say they would be willing to participate in health and medical research, but very few are ever invited. 

In this webinar researches discuss their projects in healthy food shopping and air quality during the 2020 bushfire season and consumers talk about their role 

In this webinar we hear from digital inclusion specialists, the Good Things Foundation, to discuss the critical role of digital inclusion in ensuring better health and wellbeing. We'll hear about the groups that are at greatest risk of exclusion in Australia, and of broadening health inequities, and about programs that work to close the digital divide.

Turn to the website of the Department of Health to find the most recent, verified information, posted daily.

Use healthdirect Australia, the Australian Government Health advice portal for consumers, for information on COVID-19, the symptom checker and helpline: 1800 022 222.

Healthdirect provides free, approved medical advice and has delivered information to Australians on COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. Tools and information on COVID-19 can be accessed from the COVID-19 section of the healthdirect website.

NPS MedicineWise

A new information hub from NPS MedicineWise will help you be medicine wise during COVID-19

Be Health Aware - CHF portal for health resources

The Australian Commission of Safety and Quality has published a FAQ page on the safe use of masks for consumers and a factsheet you can download.

As a member of CHF you will be kept up to date on key health reform issues through our publications and member alerts. CHF membership enables you to influence the national health agenda by contributing to CHF surveys and polls, consultations and campaigns. Members can draw on CHF position statements, media releases and policy submissions to inform your work and advocacy.