May 2020

Rural Health West has partnered with RSM Bird Cameron and HLS Legal to provide primary care practice owners in rural Western Australia with access to a complimentary one-off consultation for professional services. Practice Principals/Owners whose practices have been affected by COVID-19 can access one of the following professional services; One-hour session with RSM Bird Cameron. Session may cover contemporary and accurate financial information for practices; cash flows and budgets; and/or access to government stimulus packages. Or 30-minute session with HLS Legal. Session may cover employment/contractor related questions arising from COVID-19; engaging contractors; and/or the JobKeeper Scheme, stand downs or redundancies. RSM Bird…

In place of the cancelled March 2020 South West Health Research Forum, the South West Health Research Collaborative has released an update on current research activity as teams across the region work on ways to improve health outcomes for our rural communities. Grab a cuppa and settle in to read summaries on topics such as Quality in End-of-Life Care, extended breastfeeding, Moving on after critical incidents in health care, and more: https://ruralhealthwest.cmail19.com/t/ViewEmail/r/3F0BDDA3932A38F12540EF23F30FEDED/42723305991322B63346998B33735530

Western Australians are encouraged to join the digital celebration of Reconciliation Week 2020, as COVID-19 reminds us that, more than ever, we are 'In this together'.   The national celebration of Reconciliation Week starts today (May 27) and runs until Wednesday, June 3.   Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, large public gatherings have been replaced with immersive online content, including storytelling and videos, to empower Australians to understand and better participate in truth telling.   Reconciliation WA has compiled a video series called Reconciliation Conversations, which features prominent Aboriginal Western Australians including Des Headland, Tui Raven, Richard Walley, Robyn Smith-Walley…

In 2020, National Palliative Care Week (NPCW) will be held from Sunday 24 May – Saturday 30 May, with the theme ‘Palliative Care… It’s more than you think’. During NPCW 2020 Palliative Care Australia hopes to spark important conversations in the community about the benefits of quality palliative care and celebrate the amazing dedication of all those working and volunteering in palliative care across Australia. There’s more than you think! Download and share a range of online NPCW campaign resources here. Resources include: ▪ Banners ▪ Logos ▪ Posters ▪ Social Media asset

Scholarship recipient determined to make a difference to dental health in rural areas A second-year Doctor of Dental Medicine postgraduate student from The University of Western Australia is this year’s recipient of the Country Women’s Association of Western Australia Rural Dental Scholarship. The scholarship will enable Ebony Grigo, 22, from Bunbury, to achieve her career goal of improving dental healthcare in rural and disadvantaged communities. Read more here: http://www.news.uwa.edu.au/2020052012097/scholarship-recipient-determined-make-difference-dental-health-rural-areas?utm_source=miragenews&utm_medium=miragenews&utm_campaign=news

The Pandemic Kindness Movement was created by clinicians across Australia, working together to support all health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. They have curated respected, evidence-informed resources and links to valuable services to support the wellbeing of the health workforce. Learn more here: https://aci.health.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/kindness

Rural Health West is collecting resources and ideas from practices across rural WA as they prepare and adapt to protect patients and staff from COVID-19 infection. Visit the new Innovation at the Frontline webpage for inspiration or share your tips, tricks and photos to help your network. How is your practice adapting? Share your strategies, ideas and photos to: marketing@ruralhw.com.au 

Key points: Due to COVID-19, telehealth patients are now eligible to receive Medicare rebates The changes to the telehealth scheme are due to be reviewed in September Before the coronavirus pandemic hit Australia, telehealth was a vital but complicated way for rural patients to access required medical care. But sweeping reforms have been introduced to allow telehealth appointments to be covered by Medicare and to drop the previous requisites for patients to see professionals via the screen. The Karumba Health Clinic's director of nursing, Hannah Dawes, said for her patients in the lower Gulf region of north west Queensland, the relaxation…