Stories of success

Nowra general practice contributes to national training module

Staff at Junction Street Family Practice in Nowra have made a significant contribution to a newly released national online learning course designed to help general practices to support patients through grief and bereavement.

Funded by COORDINARE, the new video vignettes feature Junction Street Family Practice’s Practice Manager, Gail Lloyd and Practice Nurse, Lorraine Evison.

Digital health literacy support for people living with COPD

People living with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease can receive support to use technology to better manage their condition through an innovative pilot project in that aims to build confidence and improve online and digital skills.

Living Connected is offering digital health literacy ‘clinics’ along with one-to-one support for some people to improve their digital health literacy.

Locals yarn about NAIDOC theme 'For our Elders'

This year's national NAIDOC Week is an opportunity to reflect on the theme For Our Elders and the important role and prominent place Elders hold in our communities and families.

Staff from COORDINARE and Beyond Empathy yarned with Aboriginal Elders and young people across South Eastern NSW to capture their voices, stories and perspectives on video.

Raising awareness of COVID-19 antiviral treatments

A new campaign encourages Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members to check in with their doctor or AMS about their eligibility for COVID-19 antiviral treatments.

Terry Hill, Aboriginal Health Community Engagement Consultant with COORDINARE said the organisation recently met with local Elders to yarn about prevention and treatment options for COVID-19.

Local Elders respond to reconciliation week theme

National Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

We recently had a yarn with Aboriginal Elders from communities across our region to listen to their stories and perspectives and to record on video their responses to this year’s theme.

Weavers: a revolutionary support program easing the strain on carers

To support long-term carer wellbeing, the Australian Centre for Social Innovation created a peer-to-peer mentor program.

The Illawarra Women’s Health Centre, Multicultural Communities Council of Illawarra, and Mission Australia are being funded by COORDINARE to set up the Weavers program in the Illawarra Shoalhaven region.

Bulli Medical Practice's response to the pandemic

We recently spoke with Rebecca Jeffery, Practice Manager at Bulli Medical Practice and Travel Vaccination Centre about key learnings from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rebecca speaks about maintaining the safety of their staff and patients whilst trying to provide as much service to their patients as possible.

GP Psychiatry Support Line

Jointly funded by COORDINARE and seven other NSW PHNs, the GP Psychiatry Support Line is a free service for GPs, delivered on the phone or via secure messaging.

The service is improving access to ongoing and affordable mental health care.

We spoke with Dr Mitchell Purser, GP at Junction St Medical Practice in Nowra, who has been using the support line for almost four years now.

Centre Health COVID-19 learnings

We recently spoke with Kylie Bradley and Bronwen Timbs, two of Centre Health’s practice managers about their experience navigating the COVID-19 pandemic.

We are committed to supporting general practice through every phase of a disaster or medical emergency.

Being prepared helps to ensure that when disasters happen, you and your staff are ready to respond. 

Kane's story - Improving local mental health outcomes

For people living in South Eastern NSW, natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic have created an environment of increased stress. In June 2020, we partnered with Wellways to deliver NewAccess, a no-cost mental health coaching service developed by Beyond Blue, across the region.

Kane’s story highlights the importance of access to support for people living in regional and rural communities. 

Ana's story: Culturally inclusive supports during the pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the mental health and well-being of many people in South Eastern NSW, especially older people from multicultural and diverse backgrounds.

Ana’s story highlights the importance of bilingual and culturally inclusive supports to help reduce people’s anxiety, social isolation, and fear during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Co-design improvements in partnership with Aboriginal peoples

In June 2021, we funded five mainstream general practices to help them form partnerships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. 

Using an experience based co-design approach this two-year program seeks to support practices to be culturally sensitive and responsive, facilitate better access to primary care for all Aboriginal people.

Integrating pharmacists into general practice

In 2019-2021, we funded Main Street Medical Centre in Merimbula to embed a community pharmacist in to their practice team for one day a week.

Many patients treated in a general practice setting are at risk of medication misadventure. By reducing the risk of medication-related harm, pharmacists in general practice enhance patient care and optimise patient outcomes.

Enhancing palliative care in residential aged care facilities

With funding support from COORDINARE, Palliative Aged Care Consultancy Services offered targeted palliative care education and support to 17 RACFs throughout the region.

By providing focused clinical and educational support to RACF staff, we have improved palliative care for the residents through the Enhancing Palliative Care in Residential Aged Care Facilities in SENSW project.

Building 'end of life care' capacity in community pharmacy

We funded the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia to provide targeted training on palliative care to community pharmacists in three key regional areas.

By building the capacity of community pharmacists, we have been able to strengthen the palliative care multidisciplinary team and enhance care coordination.

Advance care planning at Parkes Street

Planning for your future health care is important for everyone, yet many people know very little about it.

With assistance from COORDINARE, Parkes Street General Practice in Helensburgh is one of four medical practices in the Illawarra taking action to help their patients learn about and plan for the end of life they hope for.

Lunchbox for Learning

Through our ‘Pitch Night’ initiative in 2019, SCARF Refugee Support was awarded funding for a new program to connect socially and explore ways to improve school lunch box nutrition.

'Lunchbox for Learning' supports parents to build their food literacy and capacity to prepare healthy lunches and snacks for their school-aged children, and make better food choices.

Deadly Women, Deadly Kids

At our 2019 ‘Pitch Night’, Coomaditchie United Aboriginal Corporation successfully pitched their idea for a new healthy lifestyle initiative aimed at tackling some of the main drivers of poor health outcomes for Aboriginal people, leading to the launch of 'Deadly Women, Deadly Kids'.

This initiatives offers a fresh approach to meeting the needs of communities who traditionally tend not to access mainstream health facilities and services.

Pharmacist in the practice - Reducing medication-related patient harm

Funding from COORDINARE enabled a consultant pharmacist to be embedded at Woonona Medical Practice, a general practice located in the Northern Illawarra, for several months during 2019-2020. 

Patients identified at high-risk of medication-related harm were offered a consultation with the pharmacist, with a focus on patients prescribed opioids.

Improving kidney health in general practice

COORDINARE funding supported Worrigee Street Medical Centre in Nowra to work in partnership with the Illawarra Shoalhaven LHD, to implement a quality improvement activity through Kidney Health Australia.

Practice-led quality improvement activities aimed at better detection and management of chronic kidney disease are an important means of improving kidney health in the region.

Closing the gap with Beyond Empathy

With strong connections to First Nations communities, Beyond Empathy's team of artists, mentors, community workers, practitioners, and leaders forms creative partnerships with people in need.

At our 2019 'Pitch Night', Beyond Empathy successfully pitched their idea to receive COORDINARE funding: a unique and inspiring podcast project called 'SHIFT'.

'Wellbeing Day' for Shoalhaven families - Ulladulla Public School steps up

In the wake of the Black Summer 2019-20 bushfires, the heavily-affected community of Ulladulla organised a Wellbeing Day.

Led by Ulladulla Public School, the Wellbeing Day aimed to help families reconnect and link in with relevant support services, with close to 1000 people in attendance.

'Mongarlowe Mozzies' - Closure and a new beginning after the Currowan fire

During the Black Summer of 2019-2020, fighting the massive Currowan fire became the number one priority for those living in the Braidwood region.

A group from surrounding properties banded together to help local Rural Fire Service crews protect the nearby community of Mongarlowe, becoming known as the ‘Mongarlowe Mozzies’.

Eurobodalla community recovery day after the bushfires

The communities of Nerrigundah, Cadgee, Belowra and Tinpot were particularly hard hit by the Black Summer of 2019-2020. 

The Nerrigundah Agricultural Bureau Community Support Get-Together was a community recovery event held in March 2020 to help locals in the region reconnect and re-engage, and to provide a much-needed boost to community morale. 

Towamba 'Fireflies' light up the Bega Valley - Using art to heal

‘Fireflies’ was a unique community art making project that began after the Towamba township had been saved by local fire-fighting crews during the Black Summer of 2019-20.

Students from the local public school were given the opportunity to express their experiences and explore the regrowth and renewal of their forests through collaborative creative painting, during the first half of the 2020 school year.

Holistic health care for newly-arrived refugees

General practices are uniquely placed to offer holistic health care for newly-arrived refugees, who often present with complex trauma-associated symptoms.

Enhancing patient care through bio-psycho-social support was one of 13 initiatives we supported. It was part of a project, designed to build the capacity and capability of our region’s general practices to move towards the PCMH model of care.

Care transition

General practices are uniquely positioned to support their patients who have been recently discharged from hospital, and can help prevent unnecessary and costly re-admission.

Sharp Street Surgery’s care transition project was one of 13 initiatives we supported. It was part of a project designed to build the capacity and capability of our region’s general practices to move towards a PCMH model of care.

Weight management in general practice

General practitioners are in a great position to coordinate care for patients who may be concerned about their weight. 

Bulli Medical Practice’s weight management program was one of 13 initiatives we supported. It was part of a project designed to build the capacity and capability of our region’s general practices to move towards a PCMH model of care.

Respiratory disease management clinic

Within a nurse-led clinic, the practice nurse is the main care provider for the patient.

The nurse-led respiratory management clinic was one of 13 initiatives we supported. It was part of a project designed to build the capacity and capability of our region’s general practices to move towards a PCMH model of care.

Respiratory educators in general practice

Inviting respiratory educators in to general practice allows patients to access specialist care in the convenient and familiar surroundings of their usual medical provider.

Respiratory educators in general practice was one of 13 initiatives we supported. It was part of a project designed to build the capacity and capability of our region’s general practices to move towards a PCMH model of care.

Diabetes management in general practice

Practice nurse-led diabetes consultations allow patients with poorly-controlled diabetes to receive enhanced care for their condition at their local medical practice. 

Lakeside Medical Practice’s nurse-led diabetes program was one of 13 initiatives we supported. It was part of a project designed to build the capacity and capability of our region’s general practices to move towards a PCMH model of care.

Our peer workforce

The peer workforce is reshaping the way mental health services and supports are delivered. Peer workers are people who have experienced mental health issues first-hand and are able to use this experience to help others.

We are taking an innovative approach to building our region’s peer workforce in transforming mental health services and support systems towards a recovery orientation.

Pharmacists in general practice

Pharmacists in general practice is an initiative in which a non-dispensing pharmacist is included in the healthcare team of a general practice, with the aim of providing medication-related clinical and education services to patients.

This was one of 13 initiatives we supported, as part of a project designed to build the capacity and capability of our region’s general practices to move towards a PCMH model of care.

Bone health group clinic

Group appointments allow patients to come together with a team of healthcare professionals to receive education about a specific disease or medical condition.

The bone health group clinic was one of 13 initiatives we supported. It was part of a project, designed to build the capacity and capability of the region’s general practices to move towards the PCMH model of care.

My Health Record awareness

We supported the expansion of My Health Record across South Eastern NSW by raising awareness and understanding of this important initiative.

We increased awareness within local communities through a program developed in partnership with six local Councils incuding Wollongong, Kiama, Eurobodalla, Yass Valley, Queanbeyan-Palerang, and Snowy Monaro.

Shared Medical Appointments

We have an important role to play in facilitating and co-designing programs within primary care that aim to reduce the burden of chronic conditions in our region.

The Shared Medical Appointments initiative represents a new model of care for the prevention and management of chronic conditions in general practice.

Specialist telehealth hub

Telehealth allows patients access to specialist care close to their home, through virtual consultation.

Jindabyne Medical Practice’s paediatric specialist telehealth hub was one of 13 initiatives we supported. It was part of a project designed to build the capacity and capability of our region’s general practices to move towards a PCMH model of care.