At the heart of CHF’s policy agenda is patient-centred care. Our responses to the public consultation have been formed with a patient-centred approach in mind. CHF is a strong advocate of the development of guidelines for all sectors of the health system. While guidelines are only recommendations, they provide health practices the knowledge and tools to identify and address any gaps to ensure patients, health care workers and the public are protected from harm. They also help to clarify what people can expect from their health service provider and make it clear to those providers what community expects from them.
Draft revised Australian Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of Infection in Healthcare
Engaging consumers in their health data journey
Consumer health data – clinical and socio-demographic – is increasingly collected, linked and used, both with and without consumers’ knowledge and informed consent. There is increasing focus on ‘big data’, evidence-informed policy, and the value of data-driven service development and improvement. Recent examples of this include consultations about the secondary use of health data, incentivising the capture of data at the point of care delivery, and the My Health Record. While discussions will continue on the benefits to be realised by collecting data and using it more effectively, limited attention has been paid to how consumers feel about this new data era and to assessing their data literacy. In 2017, NPS MedicineWise collaborated with the Consumers Health Forum of Australia (CHF) on a research project about consumers’ attitudes to data. The four phases of the project were: a literature review; exploratory interviews with consumers; a survey with a nationally representative sample of consumers; and a jointly hosted thought leadership roundtable bringing together representatives from key organisations involved in digital health and use of data, consumer organisations, and consumers involved in the research.
Carer and Consumer Engagement in Palliative Care and End-of-Life Care
This consensus statement has been developed by Palliative Care Australia, Consumers Health Forum
of Australia and Carers Australia. Palliative care and end-of-life care should be strongly responsive
to the needs, preferences and values of people, their families and carers. People should be able to
access appropriate palliative care support, regardless of income, background, diagnosis, prognosis;
they should be able to access palliative care when and where they need it.
Senate Inquiry into the Accessibiltiy and quality of mental health service in rural and remote Australia
CHF believe all Australians, no matter their location, should have access to safe, good quality and timely health care. Rates of mental health conditions and suicide are much higher in rural and remote areas. Yet, unfortunately we find the mental health workforce unevenly distributed across Australia. In rural and remote Australia mental health specialist such as psychologists, social workers and general practitioners are under-represented in-person, making accessibility very challenging.
CHF's analysis of Federal Budget 2018
We welcome the greater consumer focus in the 2018 Budget, however longer-term primary health care reforms must remain on the radar as part of keeping Medicare up to date.
Find out what a clinical trial is, the types of trials, the benefits, how to get involved in one and important questions to ask before you do.
Chronic disease services in South Eastern Melbourne Information sheet
Consumers Shaping Health Vol 12 Issue 1, April 2018
Out of Pocket Pain Survey Sharpens Focus on Costs
Hear Our Pain
When we decided to look at out of pocket costs we wanted to get a better understanding of how much people pay, who pays and what impact these costs have on their healthcare and their lives. We asked people to give us their story as well as giving us some basic information through the survey. The full stories show how individuals and families are impacted when faced with the double dilemma of difficult health decisions and high, sometimes unexpected, out of pocket expenses.
A new relationship with consumers - Are we going hard enough fast enough? Speech at 4th IHCRC
If we consider what defines patient-centred care: “health care that is respectful of, and responsive to, the preferences, needs and values of patients and consumers”, then without patient input, we are left to assume that we understand what they need and value in health care. Read the rest of the speech made by Leanne Wells, CEO at the 4th International Health Care Reform Conference.