We are pleased to announce that Western Sydney Local Health District (WSLHD) and WentWest, Western Sydney Primary Health Network (WSPHN) are joining forces to deliver a new project that will provide patient centred, value-based health care to the people of Western Sydney.
The ‘Western Sydney Care Collective’ is a collaborative commissioning project that will significantly change the way our health system works in our region by placing the patient at the centre of their care, delivered by clinicians across Western Sydney.
It’s about providing appropriate care in the right place and the right time, to achieve the best outcome for patients, regardless of the setting in which it is delivered – the aim is to deliver one Western Sydney care system spanning community, general practice and hospitals.
The Western Sydney Care Collective is currently focused on delivering new integrated health care pathways across care settings. These have been designed to address gaps in patient care, reduce pressure on our hospitals and improve patient and provider experience by best aligning resources to need.
The areas where you will start to see change very soon, include:
– Value Based Urgent Care, which will introduce a central point of access for the Western Sydney community to quickly access treatment that is not life threatening by providing free alternative urgent care services, outside the hospital, delivered by Patient Centred Medical Homes (selected General Practices).
– Cardiology in Community, which will increase access to cardiac screening and improve identification of people with or at risk of cardiovascular disease while providing enhanced support for ongoing management of atrial fibrillation in Patient Centred Medical Homes.
Through these care pathway designs, we have been able to establish an additional innovative care approach, Rapid Access to Care in the Community pathway, which aims to reduce hospital admissions by providing rapid access to health care within Residential Aged Care Facilities (RACFs), provided by Patient Centred Medical Homes working closely with hospital outreach teams and community based allied health providers, and by reaching out to patients at risk of requiring hospital services.
We are thrilled to have been selected by NSW Health to be the first region to deliver this innovative way of providing care to our patients.
We look forward to sharing further information with Western Sydney General Practices and clinicians across WSLHD, as we progress these exciting new care pathways over coming months. In the interim, should you wish to learn more please email wscarecollective@wentwest.com.au or visit westernsydneycarecollective.com.au
Graeme Loy
Chief Executive WSLHD
Ray Messom
Chief Executive WentWest