Our latest Annual Review is hot off the press and is now available for you to peruse at your leisure online.
With the theme of ‘Changing Landscapes’ this review acknowledges that 2019/2020 has been a year of immense change and evolution for WentWest. We have drawn deeply on our values to actively overcome barriers and challenge convention as we continue to work tirelessly to transform primary care and improve health outcomes across Western Sydney. As a team, we have achieved great results and have supported one another through a challenging and ever-changing landscape.
The vision of our new CEO, Ray Messom, has ignited change both within the organisation and through our partnerships and programs. We have streamlined many aspects of the business, from innovations across practice development and the reimagining of commissioning to the roll-out of an intuitive data warehouse platform, modern website and new finance system.
In partnership with Western Sydney Local Health District (WSLHD), we successfully bid on a new Collaborative Commissioning initiative, designed to deliver value-driven, outcome-focused and patient-centred health care. We faced our most significant health care challenge of all, with COVID-19 and the continuous pressures that come with managing an ongoing pandemic.
Our immediate response enabled the crucial distribution of personal protective equipment to frontline health care workers, the establishment of several respiratory clinics in partnership with the WSLHD, and the facilitation of critical communications with practices through weekly webinars and the development of COVID-19 HealthPathways in record time.
As the pandemic continued to evolve, we rolled out trials of the Hospital in the Home (HITH) program for acute cases of COVID-19 to reduce the impact on hospitals and emergency departments. Overseeing health conditions of low to medium risk patients was managed remotely through the shared care platform, CareMonitor, ensuring top-level cover for patients with close monitoring, whilst freeing up hospital beds for those with more critical needs.
“Our experience with COVID-19 has reinforced our belief that we are ‘one system’ here in Western Sydney. As we mobilised as one to meet the crises of the day, it was heartening to see health professionals across sectors and organisations working together to deliver innovative and responsive health care to our community.” said Ray.
This past year almost $32 million has been put back into the Western Sydney community via partnerships and commissioned services, some of which include; Integrated Team Care (ITC) program, Still Standing program, Thrive@5 in Doonside, Immunisation Bike Competition now in its ninth year, the Allison Kokany Consumer Scholarship, Hospital to Home and headspace. Since the establishment of these, we have witnessed more effective delivery of services, more timely and equitable access to services by consumers, and improved health outcomes for consumers in our region.
We would like to thank everyone for their support this year and we look forward to continuing to progress our health care and systems.
To read the full WentWest Annual Review, visit our website.