5-Minute Catchup

The Check-Up | 10 November 2022

Episode Summary

The Check-Up is a weekly news segment of the 5-Minute Catchup, bringing notable news in a convenient medium. In this week’s podcast we’ll talk about COVID-19, updates to the PIP IHI coming in 2023, new HealthPathways, CHN education events and more.

Episode Notes

RACGP – GPNews - New variants expected to supplant BA.5 in Australia

RACGP - Infection prevention and control standards

NCIRS – At least two thirds of Australians, including children and adolescents, have had COVID-19

PBS - Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme listings for COVID-19 treatments

Department of Health and Aged Care - Changes to the Practice Incentives Program Indigenous Health Incentive

Indigenous Health Incentive for the Practice Incentives Program - Practice Incentives Program - Services Australia

Capital Health Network - CHN Educational Events

HeartPlan in a Box - Heart Failure Quality Improvement Meeting

Community HealthPathways ACT and SNSW Username: together, Password: forhealth

PANDA - Perinatal Mental Health Week

PANDA - Referring to PANDA

Capital Health Network - Feedback

Questions? Contact our Primary Care Team via email and we'll be in touch.
primarycare@chnact.org.au

Episode Transcription

Welcome to the five-minute catch up my name is Greta Welin from the Quality Improvement Team, and this is your weekly Check-up.

In this week’s podcast we’ll talk about COVID-19, updates to the PIP IHI coming in 2023, new HealthPathways, CHN education events and more.

To start things off, there has been a 17% increase in reported COVID -19 infections nationally from last week and health authorities are warning that Australia is at the start of another wave of COVID-19. Two new variants, XBB and BQ.1, have been detected in the country. Theses can more easily escape immunity from past infection and vaccination. This is a good time for all members of the practice team to review your practice infection prevention and control measures using the RACGP standards. See the links below with more details.

Staying with COVID, and at least two thirds of Australians, including children and adolescents, have had COVID-19. Two complementary national serosurveys, one in children and adolescents, and the other in adults, were released last week and together provide a unique snapshot of the extent of SARS-CoV-2 infection across Australia to the end of August 2022. The children and adolescents survey found at least 64% of 0–19-year-olds in Australia had been infected with COVID 19. In the adult's survey, at least two thirds of the adult population had been infected, with approximately 20% infected within 3 months of the previous survey in June 2022. See the link below for more details.

As of 1 November 2022, medical practitioners and nurse practitioners are able to add Lagevrio and Paxlovid to their Prescriber Bag supplies. This change is to support prompt treatment of patients at high risk of developing severe disease when it is not possible to obtain supply from a community pharmacy on a PBS prescription in a timely manner. A factsheet with more details is linked below.

Onto Practice Incentive Program news, coming on the 1st of January 2023, the Practice Incentive Program Indigenous Health Incentive, PIP IHI, will implement: expanded eligibility for outcome payments to include First Nations patients under the age of 15; the addition of GP Mental Health Treatment Plans as eligible items for outcome payments; the introduction of a 12-month rolling window for practices to deliver services, giving them more time to achieve outcome payments; and the introduction of a back-ended payment structure. A statement from the Department of Health and Aged care is linked below as well as a link to the Services Australia website that has all the information on the PIP IHI.

Now it’s time for the titbits…

Upcoming CHN events include a webinar - Electronic Prescribing and the Active Script List on the 24th of November.

On 30th November, an education event focusing on a new resource for Continuous Quality Improvement, or CQI, called HeartPlan In a Box, will be held at the Hyatt Hotel, Canberra. It will cover a comprehensive CQI approach for heart failure in primary care. A link to register can be found below.

The HeathPathways team has developed a new Veteran Health Assessment pathway, and the smoking cessation support services pathway has been fully updated

This week is PANDA’s Perinatal Mental Health Week. This year highlights the importance of building your network of care no matter where you sit on the spectrum of perinatal mental health. PANDA operates the National Perinatal Mental Health Helpline, to support people affected by changes to their mental health and emotional wellbeing during the perinatal period, as well as providing telehealth services. A link to resources and how to refer can be found below.

Finally, CHN is interested in your feedback. We want to understand what is important to you as this helps us to improve our services to better support you in the future. We’d like to hear what your main issues are this week. Visit the link below and tell us what is on your mind.

And that wraps up your weekly check-up. Did you know that Capital Health Network is always available to answer your queries? If you have any questions about any of the information in this podcast, get in contact with us via email at primarycare@chnact.org.au

Our Quality Improvement Team here at Capital Health Network can assist you and your practice in developing QuIK Cycle Activities – a Plan-Do-Study-Act Quality Improvement Activity which could award participating General Practitioners with RACGP CPD Points by undertaking Self-Directed Quality Improvement. Get in contact with our team to discuss your opportunities for Continuous Quality Improvement.

On behalf of everyone here at Capital Health Network through the ACT’s PHN Program we thank you for tuning in and we’ll see you next Thursday for your next Check-up.

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