The Murray Medical Centre located in Mandurah, Western Australia, will officially launch its practice model for nurse practitioners in aged care on Monday 28 May 2012, under the Department of Health and Ageing’s Nurse Practitioner – Aged Care Models of Practice program.
The program announced in the 2010-11 federal budget aims to explore appropriate models of practice for nurse practitioners in aged care that lead to improved access to primary healthcare services for the elderly, while identifying effective, economically viable and sustainable models of practice.
Adjunct Associate Professor Frank R Jones, RACGP Western Australia Faculty Chair, said his general practice was fortunate to be the only general practice out of 31 participating health organisations to receive a grant based on the nurse practitioner model it proposed.
“Our practice operates within a community where both the growth of the ageing population and population at-large exceed state and national averages,” A/Professor Jones said.
“With these factors in mind, our practice team is always looking to identify new solutions to ensure self-sufficient, accessible aged care services into the future, without compromising quality of care.”
A/Professor Jones highlighted the model proposed by his practice was underpinned by continuity of care.
“Our model recognises that comprehensive, coordinated care is best provided by health professionals working as a team – with GPs maintaining a central role. Care provided in isolation leads to fragmentation of patient care and ultimately poorer health outcomes,” A/Professor Jones said.
In addition to launching the Nurse Practitioner – Aged Care Models of Practice program, A/Professor Jones acknowledged the benefits of existing collaborative arrangements already in place at the practice.
“For a number of years now, our practice has engaged in collaborative arrangements with allied health professionals including psychologists, a diabetes educator, an asthma educator and a dietician. This coordinated approach led by the patient’s regular GP has proved to greatly enhance patient health outcomes,” he concluded.
To support health practitioners engage in collaborative arrangements, the RACGP has last year released a collaborative care agreement template and an accompanying guide for collaborative care arrangements in general practice.
The guide has been developed to answer questions health practitioners may have regarding collaborative arrangements, and how they may be structured, as well as to identify key issues that GPs and nurse practitioners should take into account when entering into, or being part of, a Collaborative Care Agreement.