NurseClick – Issue 11

What's new at RCNA?

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Click here to read the latest RCNA media releases.

The big issue

Men’s health

November has become an important month for shining the spotlight on men’s health issues. Since the inception of Movember in 2003, November has become the month for raising awareness about the health issues specifically affecting men, and raising funds for important research and health programs.

This month the AMA released the 8th Indigenous Health Report Card titled The Health of Indigenous Males: Building Capacity, Securing the Future. The report demonstrates the disparity between the projected health outcomes of Indigenous males and their non-Indigenous peers, including a reduced life expectancy of up to 11.5 years.

In a move to encourage and empower Indigenous men, the Honourable Warren Snowdon, Minister for Indigenous Health, announced a new initiative that encourages men to manage their own health by seeking support in their own communities.

Policy in nursing

RCNA response to the NHHRC Final Report

Through the Advisory Council, RCNA has been reviewing the suite of recommendations contained in the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission Final Report (NHHRC) A Healthier Future for all Australians, released in June 2009. The following provides a snapshot of some of the recommendations and issues being deliberated from RCNA’s Advisory Council perspective.

Improving health literacy in schools

Recommendation 11 proposes that health literacy be included as a core element of the national curriculum in primary and secondary schools. RCNA expert Advisory Council members have offered strong support for what is seen as an excellent recommendation and have proposed nurses take a leadership role in the implementation of this recommendation particularly in the delivery of health literacy in the schools. The Advisory Council has also noted that any initiative based on this recommendation should seek to engage the public in health choices, particularly targeting greater involvement of parents in family health decisions.

Person-controlled electronic health records

NHHRC recommendation 13 states that by 2012 every Australian should be able to own and control their own health records through a personal electronic health record. The RCNA offers strong support for this recommendation and the development of personal health records that will streamline patient health records and ensure timely and accurate access in patient information sharing. RCNA has highlighted the need to support up-skilling of the nursing profession in information technology, in order for this recommendation to be implemented effectively. Representing over 50% of the health care workforce, it is critical that nurses are empowered to be able to coordinate better continuity of care in this way.

Establishing primary health care organisations

Recommendation 21 recommends that the NHHRC promotes establishment of primary health care organisations (PHCO) to enhance service coordination and population health planning at the local level “evolving from or replacing the existing Divisions of General Practice”. While the RCNA Advisory Council agreed this would be a good regional strategic response to health planning and coordination, they stated their endorsement of this recommendation would be dependent on the provision of further detail. Endorsement would not be given for a PHCO concept based on medical models of health care delivery and planning. Furthermore, developing PHCOs exclusively from the Divisions of General Practice would be viewed as maintaining existing paradigms and counterintuitive to the Australian Government’s primary health care reform agenda.

RCNA is in the process of finalising a comprehensive response to the recommendations contained in the NHHRC report, which will be posted on our website in the very future.

Opportunities

Invitation to comment on the draft National Safety and Quality Healthcare Standards

The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (the Commission) has released a consultation document on the first set of draft National Safety and Quality Healthcare Standards (NSQH Standards). The draft Standards are being developed as the nationally agreed safety and quality standards for use by all jurisdictions and health care organisations.

The Commission is consulting broadly with stakeholders on the draft NSQH Standards before piloting and final consideration by Health Ministers in 2010. Written submissions are being accepted by post, fax or email and should be received by close of business on 29 January 2010 to be considered in the consultation process.

Click here for further information

Minister launches new palliative care resources

Minister for Ageing, Justine Elliot today launched two new publications developed by Catholic Health Australia (CHA) to assist staff and volunteers in aged care homes who provide care and support for palliative care patients.

Minister Elliot launched Catholic Health Australia’s book, Provision of Palliative Care in Catholic Health and Aged Care, for staff in aged care facilities and a brochure entitled Catholic Palliative Care Services for consumers, at Parliament House in Canberra.

Click here to order a copy of the book
Contact CHA on (02) 6203 2777 for a copy of the brochure.

NSW positive ageing and applied research grants

NSW Ageing, Disability and Home Care (ADHC) is providing one-off grants of up to $50 000 to non-government and local government organisations to develop and implement creative and cultural projects for older people.

The Positive Ageing grants program is aimed at supporting projects that promote active ageing, opportunities for lifelong learning and positive images of older people in the community. The funds will be made available through a tender application process. Applications for funding for both programs close on 27 November 2009.

Click here to obtain application forms and guidelines

New DVD for type 2 diabetes patients

The National Prescribing Service (NPS) and Diabetes TASMANIA have launched a new educational DVD aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, which addresses medicines use issues. The DVD is designed to be used by health professionals and community organisations when discussing the management of type 2 diabetes with newly diagnosed patients.

The DVD comprises 11 segments which cover issues including the types of medicines used to manage type 2 diabetes, the best ways to manage medicines, and what patients should discuss with their healthcare providers. It is also being produced in Cantonese, Mandarin and German.

Click here to see the resources online or order the DVD by phoning Diabetes TASMANIA on 03 6215 9000

Readthesigns campaign – promoting help seeking and suicide prevention

Studies show that men are less likely to seek mental health assistance in adulthood, despite many suffering from mental health issues like depression and anxiety. Readthesigns is a joint initiative of Lifeline Australia and the MTAA Superannuation Fund and is aimed at helping young men recognise and cope with mental health challenges. The goal of the campaign is to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health and young men and equip men with the resources and knowledge to enable them to help each other, and themselves. The Readthesigns campaign uses distinctly male language to appeal directly to men.

Click here to visit the readthesigns website

Review of the Aged Care Funding Instrument – release of terms of reference

Minister for Ageing, Justine Elliot released the terms of reference for the Government’s review of the Aged Care Funding Instrument (ACFI) on 6 November 2009.

The ACFI was introduced on 20 March 2008 to replace the Resident Classification Scale as the means of allocating Australian Government care subsidies to residential aged care facilities. It was designed to have funding more accurately matched to the care needs of residents and to allow aged care workers to spend less time filling out paperwork and more time providing care. When ACFI was introduced the Government committed to a review once aged care providers had experience with its operation to make sure that it is delivering as it was designed to do.

Click here to read the media release
Click here to see the terms of reference

A guide to what works for depression – Beyondblue

This booklet, written for beyondblue by Anthony Jorm, Nick Allen, Amy Morgan and Rosemary Purcell, provides a comprehensive review of all known treatments for depression, including medical, psychological and complementary and lifestyle interventions.

Click here to download the booklet

HIV management: A guide for clinical care - updated ASHM resource

The Australasian Society for HIV Medicine has updated the HIV Management: a Guide for Clinical Care monograph. This clinical resource has been extensively reviewed and updated to incorporate the latest advances and research in the management of HIV. It is an invaluable reference handbook for HIV S100 community prescribers and clinicians. The resource aims to improve the care and wellbeing of people with HIV infection in Australasia.

The 2009 edition is divided into the following three sections: mechanisms, phases and diagnostic; therapeutics and monitoring; and clinical manifestations of HIV disease.

The 2009 update has been overseen by an Australian HIV expert steering committee, and has been produced with assistance from The Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing. It is now available to order in hardcopy and online via the ASHM website.

Click here to order your free copy or for further information.

Free six-week program for clients with a chronic condition

Living a Healthy Life with Long-Term Conditions is run by ACT Health in association with Arthritis ACT and SHOUT Inc, and is a free, six-week course for clients with a long-term condition such as obesity, heart disease, diabetes and arthritis. The course is led by a health professional and a peer leader and aims to teach strategies to manage the symptoms associated with chronic conditions, such as pain and fatigue management, cognitive symptom management, dealing with negative emotions, communicating with health providers, physical activity and nutrition, action planning and problem solving and peer support.

The course will run for two and half hours a week for six weeks and will be offered at a range of venues across Canberra commencing February.

For further information, contact:
Community Health Intake: 6207 9977 Monday-Friday 0800-1700 or
Virginia Rasheed mobile: 0402 399 863

Inaugural Australian Obesity Summit, 29 -30 March 2010

One of the greatest public health challenges confronting Australia and other industrialised nations is the obesity epidemic. In an effort to relieve the cost of obesity to the Australian public health system the Australian government is investing millions of dollars in the prevention and management of obesity related chronic diseases. Ongoing obesity research and review of public health policies present the perfect opportunity to discuss and share insights on alternative strategies and the shift from treatment to prevention.

The Summit will take place from 29 – 30 March 2010 Crowne Plaza Darling Harbour, Sydney Australia.

Click here for more information

International nursing news

International Council of Nurses

New fact sheet: Harmful use of alcohol

World Health Organisation

World Diabetes Day
Somalia - struggling to reach the sick: a photo story

Other

Women often deprived of health care
Experts warn antibiotic-proof bacteria threaten global health
CGFNS International launches International Standards For Professional Nurses program in Vietnam

About RCNA

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