Getting a doctor’s appointment, finding the right service or accessing healthcare without travelling outside the region can be difficult for many Clarence Valley residents.
Back in March, locals were invited to sit down and talk about exactly that.
Healthy North Coast held community consultation sessions in Grafton and Maclean, asking residents, health providers and other local stakeholders about the biggest problems they faced accessing healthcare and what they believed needed to change.
The conversations went well beyond simply needing more doctors.
People spoke about difficulties accessing healthcare locally, limited after-hours options, travelling to access services and not always knowing what healthcare and support services were already available.
Those March meetings helped Healthy North Coast identify local priorities and shape the work that followed.
Six months later, that community feedback is now feeding into a $2.3 million investment through the Clarence Health Access program.
Healthy North Coast CEO Monika Wheeler said the consultations had been important in making sure the program reflected what Clarence Valley residents actually said they needed.
“We’ve really made sure that it’s not just what the health system thinks we need to invest in, it’s what the community needs and what the community wants in terms of healthcare access,” Ms Wheeler said.
The Australian Government funding will be used across Grafton, Maclean and surrounding communities, but behind the $2.3 million figure is a fairly simple goal: make it easier for people to get the healthcare they need, closer to home.
The Clarence Valley was identified as what the health sector calls a “thin market”.
In everyday terms, there are more people needing healthcare than there are local workers and services available to provide it.
Healthy North Coast Director of Primary Health Programs and Partnerships Luke Elias said the region had been identified as having demand for healthcare that was “far in excess” of the number of people available to provide it.
“With some support and investment, we would look to focus on backing our local workforce, expanding the models that are working well and trying to reduce some of that demand for healthcare by helping people find the right spot to go to for care,” Mr Elias said.
He said another focus would be helping people better manage ongoing health conditions, reducing the need to rely as heavily on hospitals and unplanned care.
While the initial funding period is short, Mr Elias said the aim was to help establish services that could continue beyond it.
“We will help services get started, community will back those services and these services will continue long after our year of support has finished,” he said.
The funding proposal was highly competitive nationally, with the Clarence Valley shortlisted alongside one other region before ultimately securing more than $2 million.
One of the clearest examples of why that investment is needed came from Ochre Health Grafton Practice Manager Carol Pachos.
The practice has brought three new doctors on board since April.
They still cannot keep up with demand.
Ms Pachos, who was born and raised locally and has worked at the practice for 11 years, said the shortage was not a new problem.
She recalled having the same conversations about a shortage of GPs more than a decade ago and said the situation had become “more critical, not better”.
It is not just doctors either.
The Clarence Valley also faces shortages of nurses and allied health professionals, while an ageing population, chronic health conditions and increasingly complex patient needs are placing further pressure on the people already working here.
So where will the $2.3 million go?
Around $400,000 will initially be focused on getting more doctors and nurses into the Clarence Valley and, importantly, keeping them here.
Part of that involves making it easier to bring GP registrars and internationally trained doctors into local practices.
Before some of those doctors can work here, they need experienced doctors to supervise them. The problem is that many existing GPs are already managing such heavy patient loads that taking on supervision can be difficult.
Ms Pachos said the new initiative had already helped encourage some doctors within the practice to take on that role, opening the door to potentially bringing more international medical graduates into the local workforce.
Another approximately $450,000 will go towards making the local health system easier to navigate.
A Community Connector will help residents understand what healthcare services are available and where they can go for help.
This directly responds to one of the issues raised through the March consultations: people do not always know what services are available or where to start when they need help.
Two GP Liaison Officers will also work with participating general practices, Aboriginal health services and pharmacies in Grafton and Maclean.
It might sound like another health-sector job title, but for patients the aim is much simpler: get local services working together better and make it easier for people to find the right care.
The program will also look at providing more options for people who need healthcare but do not necessarily need the level of care provided by a hospital emergency department.
That does not mean people should avoid hospital when they need urgent or emergency care.
Instead, the aim is to make sure there are other local options available when hospital-level care is not required, rather than leaving residents with few alternatives.
Anthony Willams, General Manager of Grafton and Maclean hospitals, said providing more care within the community could help take some pressure off hospitals.
“We’re really keen to minimise patient attendances that don’t need those acute services, but can be catered for in the community by the community,” Mr Willams said.
He said the funding provided an opportunity for local organisations to establish better connections between services and deliver more care within the community.
Clarence Health Access will be delivered by Healthy North Coast in collaboration with Northern NSW Local Health District, Bulgarr Ngaru Medical Aboriginal Corporation, Clarence Valley Council and local healthcare providers.
There is, however, a relatively short window to get much of it happening.
Ms Wheeler said the program needed to move quickly, with much of the work to take place over the next nine months.
The intention is for the services and changes established through the program to continue beyond the initial funding period.
Ms Wheeler said demonstrating that the program works could also put the Clarence Valley in a stronger position when seeking further Australian Government funding.
For residents, the $2.3 million will not suddenly mean everyone can get a GP appointment tomorrow.
But it could begin addressing some of the problems Clarence Valley residents themselves identified in March: not enough healthcare workers, difficulty accessing services locally, limited options outside hospital and a health system that can be difficult to navigate when you don’t know where to start.
For Ms Pachos, there is no single solution.
“This is a complex problem with a complex answer. There is no one answer fix for this,” she said.
“But I do know that the only way we will fix it is by working together across organisations, across practices, for our community.”
In March, the community was asked what needed to change.
Six months later, $2.3 million has been secured and that feedback is beginning to turn into action.
The next nine months will show what that looks like on the ground and, most importantly, whether Clarence Valley residents begin to feel a difference when they need healthcare.
