19 May 2022
In a major step towards easing pressure on Western Sydney’s emergency departments, up to 12 urgent care service centres will be established over the next year thanks to a $10.9 million grant from the NSW Government to bolster the next phase of the Western Sydney Care Collective initiative.
The service centres, embedded in existing general practices and integrated with the patients’ usual care GP, will be available across Western Sydney, run by general practitioners and supported by the broader healthcare neighbourhood.
The Western Sydney Care Collective is a collaboration between Western Sydney Local Health District (WSLHD) and WentWest, the Western Sydney Primary Health Network, focused on delivering a new and innovative model of care.
The initiative will completely overhaul and improve access to care for non-life threatening urgent conditions keeping the WSLHD emergency departments available for more acute and life-threatening presentations. The new value-based urgent care pathway will also make available a dedicated urgent care phone line to seamlessly connect patients to the service centres, where appropriate, making them accessible to patients with urgent care needs including faster access to hospital-based services and follow-up care.
WSLHD chief executive Graeme Loy said the announcement of the new urgent care service centres further opens the door to vital support for Western Sydney patients. “Our commitment to supporting people across Western Sydney to get quick access to high quality care is strengthened by the inclusion of these centres,” Mr Loy said. “This initiative is a major step towards providing urgent care to our growing community and freeing up our emergency departments for people with life-threatening conditions.”
Ray Messom, Chief Executive Officer of WentWest, said the new investment will strengthen existing achievements in integrating care in the Western Sydney region. “We are excited for the rollout of these services within general practices across Western Sydney. This investment in integrated primary and hospital care presents a unique opportunity to work together as one system in Western Sydney,” Mr. Messom said. “It’s great to see our region leading the charge on this whole of system approach that will ensure patients get the right care, in the right place, at the right time.”
For more information about the Care Collective project visit http://www.westernsydneycarecollective.com.au/
Read more about this new pathway for emergency health care in Western Sydney in the following article Revealed: Hospital wait times to be slashed in Western Sydney | Daily Telegraph