Updates from our clinical networks

• The Mental Health Network has been building the team to better support the mental health needs across the NSW health system.
• Christina Lowry, Project Officer, started in January 2021 to support the Zero Suicides in Care project. This is one of 15 initiatives in the Premier’s Priority Towards Zero Suicides Program. She is looking forward to working closely with local health districts to develop their specific suicide care pathway. ACI will support local health districts to develop their suicide care pathways using a co-design approach to ensure they reflect both clinician and consumer requirements and needs when accessing care within the local health district for suicidal ideation.
• Louis Talay joined the Mental Health Network in April 2021 as a project officer. Louis is passionate about mental health and social equity. He will be working on the COVID-19 Virtual Mental Health Implementation Check project. This short-term project will support the Mental Health Branch at the Ministry of Health to obtain in-depth information about the clinical activities and outcomes of the COVID-19 Virtual Mental Health statewide initiative. This will include identifying gaps and opportunities through the implementation of the initiative.
• Angela Wicks joined the Mental Health Network as a project officer in April 2021. She is passionate about equity, mental health and person-centred care and is looking forward to working on the COVID-19 Virtual Mental Health Implementation Check project with Louis.
• The Mental Health Network successfully partnered with Melbourne University on the National Health and Medical Research Council special initiative for Mental Health 2020: ALIVE, a national research translation centre aiming to deliver mental health at scale in the primary care setting. This program focuses on partnering with people who have lived experience to change the way mental health care is designed and delivered.

Find out more and contact the Mental Health Network.

Experience-Based Co-Design project

New resources are being developed as part of the Experience-Based Co-Design project to help improve the experience of people who are blind or have low vision when they are in hospital.

A conversation guide, blind and low vision patient resources and staff capability program were piloted by members of the community at three sites: Bankstown, Fairfield and Sydney Eye Hospitals. Feedback from staff and patients revealed the resources are useful for facilitating communication for the provision of individualised care and understanding patients’ needs.

As a result of the pilot, consumers commented on how they were acknowledged and treated as individuals. Staff found the structure helpful in tailoring a specific conversation to understand the needs of a patient who is blind or has low vision.

The final resources are currently being formatted to ensure accessibility for those who are blind or have low vision. They will be available to download from the ACI and Vision Australia websites.

NSW public ophthalmology eye clinics

Information has been updated on the ACI’s Ophthalmology Network web page, to include links to eye clinic referral criteria, templates and guidelines.

Welcomes and farewells

• After many years as Network Manager for Ophthalmology and Anaesthesia and Perioperative Care, we farewell Sarah-Jane Waller who has taken a permanent position at the Ministry of Health. The executive committees extend their gratitude and thanks to Sarah-Jane’s valuable work, commitment and dedication to improving ophthalmology and anaesthesia and perioperative services; and the support she has given to help shape health initiatives in NSW.
• We welcome Kerrie Martin as the Acting Manager for the Ophthalmology and Clinical Genetics Networks.
• Michaela Ward is the Acting Anaesthesia and Perioperative Care Network Manager.

Find out more and contact the Ophthalmology Network.

• In February 2021, the ACI Pain Management Network hosted an online Brief Pain Management refresher course for eight multicultural health workers who completed their full training more than two years ago. The University of Sydney’s Pain Management Research Institute originally developed the training package and resources and delivered the refresher course. Maintaining the skills of these health workers is important, as they provide an invaluable community-based service to the culturally and linguistically diverse community, helping them to self-manage their chronic pain.
• In March and April, the Network also hosted a new face-to-face facilitator workshop on Brief Pain Management for 10 multicultural health workers. The program covered the educational and practical training that health workers need to be able to run a community group for those experiencing chronic pain. The cultural groups represented included Italian, Arabic, Chinese, Vietnamese, Greek, Macedonian and Farsi.

Find out more and contact the Pain Management Network.

• The Renal Network has started testing a carer-reported experience measures (CREMs) survey with carers across a range of sites and clinical areas. The survey is designed to be generic, for use by any service where carers play a critical role in patient care. The purpose of this survey is to explore if renal health services are asking carers the appropriate questions, in the right way.
• Carer managers from local health districts, the Ministry of Health and Bureau of Health Information are interested in learning how a survey, in a de-identified and aggregated report form, can be used to improve the services offered to carers of patients with chronic disease or traumatic injury.
• This testing phase will continue until mid-May and clinicians across NSW with access to willing carers are welcome to join in the carer feedback round. Contact the Renal Network if you are interested in getting involved.

Find out more and contact the Renal Network.

• The Spinal Cord Injury Health Maintenance Toolkit is a comprehensive resource developed to help people with spinal cord injury understand and troubleshoot problems they may experience. The toolkit is split into five modules – pain, bladder, bowel, skin and autonomic dysreflexia. The project was funded by iCare and led by Professor James Middleton, Director of the NSW State Spinal Cord Injury Service, and Dr Mohit Arora from Sydney University. ACI has supported the toolkit by promoting it among our stakeholders.
• Pressure Injury Prevention and Treatment for Spinal Cord Injured Patients was a two-day course for health professionals held on 4-5 March at Royal North Shore Hospital. The course covered a range of topics, from a holistic multidisciplinary approach to prevention and management of pressure injuries. A wide range of clinicians across the state attended the course and feedback was positive. Experts in the field presented an evidence-based approach which clinicians found to be beneficial. The SCCIS will work with the Clinical Excellence Commission to develop policies relating to transport of people to minimise pressure area occurrence.
• Danelle Collins, Head of Occupational Therapy at Prince of Wales Hospital, has volunteered to fill the position of co-chair of the SSCIS Clinical Development Committee while Jacqui Cornell is on leave.

Find out more and contact the SSCIS.

Dr James Evans has joined the Stroke Network as Medical Co-Chair. James is a stroke neurologist working as a staff specialist at Gosford and Wyong hospitals and is the Deputy Director of the NSW Telestroke Service. James completed his neurology training in 2016 including two stroke fellowships, one at Gosford Hospital and a year with the Calgary Stroke Program in Canada. He has a specific interest in neurovascular imaging and stroke systems of care implementation.

James is a full-time clinician with a keen interest in service delivery improvement across the acute and subacute stroke patient journey. His role on the Central Coast provides him with an understanding of the multidisciplinary requirements and challenges of a metropolitan stroke service. He has significant exposure to the needs of regional NSW through his role in Telestroke. James is passionate about stroke care and using real time analytics to allow a data driven understanding of care and an active approach towards system improvement.

Find out more and contact the Stroke Network.