Snowy Valleys

A new program is being trialled in the Snowy Valleys to address local needs in primary health care. The Collaborative Care Program is a community-led planning approach to improve access to primary health care services. Primary health care encompasses general practice, nursing, pharmacy, and allied health.

It begins with the question: ‘What do we know about primary health care needs in our local communities?’

Collaborative Care is a joint initiative between Murrumbidgee Local Health District, Murrumbidgee Primary Health Network, NSW Rural Doctors Network, and local stakeholders.

Tumut local, Catherine Cusack, is the community contact for the Snowy Valleys project. Catherine previously worked for Tumut District Community Transport and spent many years teaching community services and aged care with Riverina TAFE.

Over the coming months, Catherine will be meeting with communities in the Snowy Valleys to hear their views. She believes it is vital that people can access primary health services at the time and in the way that they need.

“Together, we can achieve much more and find more creative solutions to problems than we can as individuals,” said Catherine.

“If people receive the best primary health services possible, they are less likely to need acute services and end up in a hospital, which is often far from their home.”

Community members in the Snowy Valleys now have the chance to share their experiences through a community survey. Catherine urges people in the Snowy Valleys to take this opportunity to express their needs.

“I hope that people in the Snowy Valleys take an active role in this process which is relying on them sharing their experiences of primary health care services,” said Catherine.

The Collaborative Care Program received funding through the Australian Government and is expected to run until mid-2022.