Category: Blog

An exciting opportunity to join the HCC Board – seeking Expressions of Interest for two Management Committee (Board) vacancies

Posted on August 15, 2024

We are now seeking Expressions of Interest for two Management Committee (Board) vacancies.

Health Consumers’ Council was launched by the Minister for Health in 1994 as an independent voice for the community on health policy, planning and decision making and to provide a recognised presence for health consumers. Since then, we have championed and supported thousands of people to assert their rights and have their say on health.

In 2024, our 30th anniversary year, we are renewing our commitment to ensuring a strong presence for consumers and community members in all decisions relating to the health of Western Australians. To do this, we will need to increase the resources available to us so that we can build more capacity in the community and extend our support to more people across WA.

We are a member-led organisation governed by a Management Committee (also known as a Board). Our members share our goals and support our purpose of:

amplifying and championing the voices of WA health consumers
to drive positive outcomes in health and healthcare
and achieve equitable, person-centred, quality healthcare and improved health outcomes and experiences for everyone in Western Australia.

HCC is a registered charity with responsibilities to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission as well as under the WA Associations Incorporation Act 2015. As such, Management Committee members play an important role in ensuring we meet these responsibilities and comply with all governance requirements. Management Committee members are also responsible for the overall strategy of HCC.

This year we have two Management Committee vacancies. These are voluntary positions – with any expenses reimbursed – and require attendance at bi-monthly meetings (usually online), along with representation on one sub-committee (usually monthly meetings).

We are interested to hear from people who bring any of the following perspectives or experience:

Aboriginal people
People with disability
People from the LGBTIQA+ community
People aged 18-24
People with lived experience and/or networks and connections to people managing health and other related challenges
People with experience of managing or working in a growth-stage organisation
People with connections in philanthropy and/or community foundation networks
People with connections/involvement in health/medical or other human research
People with regional experience and/or connections
People with skills and experience in social enterprise/fee for service work
People with experience in IT strategy planning and development in the non-profit sector
Previous NFP Board experience highly desirable but not essential

To be eligible to be a Management Committee member, you need to be a HCC member already, or be willing to become a member (free for individuals).

Want to know more?

On 29 August HCC will be hosting an online information session for people interested to learn more about the role of Management Committee members. In session you’ll have the chance to meet with three current members of the Management Committee, hear more about the role and HCC’s strategy, and find out why nominating to join the HCC Management Committee might be the right option for you.

Submit your EOI by 23 September

Please prepare a brief cover letter outlining your answers to the following questions:

Why would you like to become a member of the HCC Management Committee?
How will your skills and experience add to the effectiveness of both the HCC Management Committee and HCC?
What has been your experience as a health consumer or a health consumer representative?
What do you see as being the key strategic issues facing HCC over the next five years?

Submit your letter, along with a current CV, to:

Rebecca Smith, Head of Strategic Projects via Rebecca.smith@hconc.org.au

What happens next?

Shortlisting by the Nominations and Governance Committee will take place on 1 October. We may invite potential nominees to meet with Board members and the final list of nominees will be approved by the Management Committee by the end of October. If there are more than two nominees, a vote by members will occur at the Annual General Meeting in early December.

Digital Health Series – Interoperability

Posted on August 13, 2024

At the time of this post, WA Health has been funded for the next three years to write the specifications and choose a vendor to develop an Electronic Medical Record, or EMR. This will be a statewide EMR for WA Health’s public hospitals and health services. From January to June 2024 HCC has been working with our EMR Consumer Reference Group to up-skill ourselves on all things digital, so we are able to provide the consumer voice into this part of the process. In March 2024 we convened a webinar entitled Can the EMR stitch up our health system? This blog has links to the replay, transcripts and summary and provides insights into what consumers need to think about. Consumer involvement in WA’s EMR is being funded by WA Health to ensure a strong consumer voice. WA has been leading the nation in the level of consumer involvement in this important initiative.

This blog series has been written by Pip Brennan who is working for HCC on the project, co-located in the Health Department.

Interoperability is just a fancy word for your health information following you, from GP to hospital, allied provider to pharmacist to specialist and back again. In 2021, HCC co-designed an Electronic Medical Record Consumer Charter which has this to say about interoperability:

Accuracy: My health records are complete, accurate and up to date.
Equitable care: My health records are available to my treating clinicians regardless of where I am being treated.
Transparency, Choice and Control: I have access to my real-time health information at no cost to me or my family.

I’m just pausing for a moment to remind people of the difference between an Electronic Medical Record and My Health Record. The dot points from the Charter above refer to WA’s future Electronic Medical Record. The Electronic Medical Record and My Health Record are different as per the image below. An Electronic Medical Record is based within a hospital or health service. My Health Record contains federally based information such as GP care and immunisation records. We want the two to talk to each other. That is interoperability.

Image highlighting the difference between My Health Record (federal, GP and scripts etc) and Electronic Medical Record (state-based, everything that happens within the hospital walls

Australia is doing a significant amount of work on interoperability at a national level. We now have a National Healthcare Interoperability Plan, and this potentially offers WA an opportunity to have a more joined-up EMR than other states and territories who developed their EMRs prior to this policy coming into being.

There’s a change in the air that as if to say everyone recognises that we have an opportunity, probably a once in not just a single generation, but multi generation opportunity to fundamentally transform the way our health system works
Harry Iles Mann

Webinar – Can an EMR stitch up our health system?

Because of all the work happening nationally, we invited National Consumer Leader and Digital Health Expert Harry Iles Mann to talk with WA’s Chief Clinical Information Officer Dr Peter Sprivulis about WA’s Electronic Medical Record and how that could connect up our health care.

You can read the whole transcript, or highlights here, or watch the whole replay here.

Key messages about interoperability:

It’s all about culture. The technology is the easy bit. It’s the culture that is the difficult aspect to digital health transformation.
Get workflows right. Ensure that the words mean the same on each side of the transaction – that GPs and hospital staff mean the same thing. e.g. allergies.
Legal and regulatory levels. There is potential for the My Health Record Act to be broadened to become My Health Information Act. This will provide a safety for health consumers, and puts very clear obligations on health services to share data appropriately. This is a long term reform.
Financial and cultural piece – we need to deal with perverse incentives to make the right thing the easy thing for clinicians. For example, currently if a GP speaks to a specialist about a patient, neither is compensated, even though this could expedite care for a patient and avoid unnecessary, inconvenient, costly consultations. There needs to be a joined-up conversation with private, public, state and federal health to sort this out.
My Health Record is still key – There is ongoing investment in the My Health Record as a platform to facilitate interoperability and consumer access to their information. Yes, My Health Record has its issues – but a key reason for the ongoing investment is that regardless of what states and territories or different vendors do in developing EMRs, there will be something that is sitting within the custodianship of government that is a point of access for you and your health information.
We’ve made a start – WA has digitised parts of the Electronic Medical Records in WA’s hospitals, but this will see us take a bit leap forward. An EMR is all about the bedside workflows – this is where all the risk sits.
Patient portals can really assist with ensuring you have access to your EMR health information and can participate more actively in your own care.
The OpenNotes approach might be possible through WA’s EMR Project. (Google it. It’s very exciting!) This is quite aspirational though and may not be on the table, depending which vendor is chosen. OpenNotes will help clinicians think carefully about what they write about people, and will support the accuracy of information.

Importance of EMR Consumer Involvement

There are three levels of consumer input into training clinicians, and driving culture change:

1. Telling stories about what’s working, and what isn’t – this is effective with policy makers. Consumer stories are much more effective than clinicians providing feedback about what isn’t working for them as clinicians. Consumer stories can drive digital investment.

2. Co-designing solutions – so that the workflows centre around the patient, not the clinician. Information isn’t captured and shared for free. It always takes time and resources to share data.

3. Change management initiatives need consumers present, to make sure the tools are used in the way that helps consumers. Harry’s example of the test results not being available in the ED – it’s likely there is a portal that would allow the clinician access, but they don’t know how to use it. Consumers need to provide motivation for busy clinical staff to learn how to use the packages effectively.

Being a Digital Health Consumer/ Carer Rep:

You know more about digital health than you think you know.
You don’t need to understand every last technical detail – it’s important to ask naïve questions. This can prompt important critical thinking in digital health project.
There are no stupid questions – sharing your experience is more valuable than learning “geek language” “Insist on answers in plain English. If the geeks can’t explain to you what they’re trying to do in plain English, then then you’ve probably got a program that’s not really set up for success anyway.”
We need to think of ourselves as allies with clinicians for change, working collaboratively together. “we’re not two different actors, trying to find common ground from across the chasm, we’re actually allies working towards a common goal.”

Feeling the need to geek out? All the federal initiatives for you to google are listed below:

Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) – manages My Health Record. Used to be called National Electronic Health Transition Authority (NEHTA)
Recently released the National Healthcare Interoperability Plan
Council for Connected Care provided strategic advice on interoperability and supporting the implementation of the National Healthcare Interoperability Plan.
Department of Health and Aged Care – Digital Health Branch.
Recently released the Australian Digital Health Blueprint and Action Plan
Recently released the Aged Care and Data Digital Strategy
Currently negotiating with states and territories on the National Health Reform Agreement
HL7 = Health Level Seven International not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting interoperability of healthcare data
FHIR = Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources “an HL7 specification for Healthcare Interoperability”.
Sparked Program – partnership of Australian Digital Health Agency, CSIRO, Department of Health and Aged Care and HL7. They are developing the Australian Core Data for Interoperability (AUCDI)

There’s a change in the air that as if to say everyone recognises that we have an opportunity, probably a once in not just a single generation, but multi generation opportunity to fundamentally transform the way our health system works

Harry Iles Mann

Want to stay in touch with the project? Just fill in The EMR Consumer Network form or email p.brennan@hconc.org.au

Join our team – Marketing and Communications Coordinator, part-time job, applications close 19 August

Posted on August 6, 2024

Marketing and Communications Coordinator, part-time (maternity leave cover)

We are seeking an experienced marketing and communications coordinator who can help us achieve our goal of improving health outcomes and experiences for everyone in WA by championing and amplifying the voices of WA consumers.

This role will be 3 days p/w, for a 12-month contract.

The role offers:

A high degree of variety – working across all areas of HCC’s work and playing a key role in driving our impact.
The opportunity to be part of a consumer-first organisation with a focus on improving health equity and championing health rights.
A welcoming and inclusive workplace where everyone is encouraged to bring all of themselves to work.
A competitive not-for-profit annual base salary with salary packaging.
Flexible working with the opportunity to work from home one day a week when settled in to the role.
Additional leave entitlements.

About you:

You’re looking for a role where you can apply your marketing and communications skills to work you care about.
You’re interested in the health system and care about people’s experiences of it.
You’re able to across the broad spectrum of marketing and communications activities from drafting content, to planning marketing campaigns.

Position overview

This Level 5 SCHADs position contributes to, and coordinates the implementation of, HCC’s Marketing and Communications strategy to achieve HCC’s purpose and objectives. They create engaging informative content that is distributed across a number of channels including social media, email, web and online and hard copy publications and materials.

A typical fortnight might see you doing a range of activities:

Collating and crafting content for our monthly e-news and laying it out in Mailchimp.
Interviewing a consumer and writing their story for our blog.
Writing an article about a particular health topic from a consumer perspective for a medical newsletter.
Scheduling social media content for the coming week.
Creating engaging visuals using Canva for an upcoming event.
Developing a tailored marketing and communications plan for project.
Producing a report on our marketing and communications metrics with suggestions for improvements for the Leadership Team.
Updating content on the HCC website.

See the job description for a full outline of responsibilities for the role. This role is being offered as a maternity leave cover contract for up to 12 months with possibility of extension.

Essential
- Experience in a marketing or communications role (minimum 2 years) developing, maintaining and enhancing online presence, including websites, social media, electronic newsletters and direct marketing lists.
- Ability to write clear and engaging marketing content, including but not limited to social media posts, news articles, media releases, website content and articles for external publications.
- Knowledge and experience in contemporary marketing, communications and promotions principles and practices, including a sound understanding of SEO principles.
- Experience using WordPress or similar website platform, Canva (or other graphic design program), Survey Monkey, Mailchimp, Zoom, MS Teams, Google Analytics and social media scheduling platforms.
- Excellent literacy, writing, editing and proofing skills, and outstanding communication and interpersonal skills.
- Ability to think creatively and strategically and manage multiple deadlines and stakeholders.
- Collaborative working style with an ability to work flexibly within a team.
Desirable
- A tertiary qualification in a relevant discipline.
- Experience in media relations, both reactive and proactive.
- Experience in overseeing the implementation of websites, mobile applications, digital marketing strategies, SEO and online advertising and promotional strategies.
- Good understanding of the WA health system.

To apply for the position

If you require any adjustments to submit your application or wish to have a confidential discussion about the role, please contact Clare Mullen, Executive Director on (08) 9221 3422 (Ext 2) or email clare.mullen@hconc.org.au

You can apply for this role via Ethical Jobs.

Applications close 8:30am on 19 August. Shortlisting will commence on 12 August. Applications are welcome until the closing date but we reserve the right to appoint earlier.

Exploring healthcare across WA – East Kimberley

Posted on July 23, 2024

By Clare Mullen, Executive Director

As I write this in Perth we are deep in the Noongar season of Makuru which is the coldest and wettest time of the year in the south west of WA. It’s hard to believe that only a week ago I was waking to warmth and sun as I spent a few days in and around Kununurra on the land of the Mirriwoong and Gajerrong people in the East Kimberley. It was my first visit to the region, but it won’t be my last!

I was there because I’ve set myself a goal of visiting more of this beautiful state because through this job I’m often in the situation where I’m representing the whole of the WA community. Early in my time in WA, I had the opportunity to travel to Meekatharra, Wiluna, and Geraldton to learn about people’s experiences of accessing maternity care. This was my first exposure to the WA country and what I saw and learned then has stayed with me since. I’m keen to deepen my understanding of the reality of people’s experiences accessing healthcare and achieving their health goals across this vast landmass.

HCC doesn’t yet have a budget for these kind of exploratory trips, and so I’m incorporating a few work-related meetings into my holiday. (I’m a big fan of community events like Agricultural Shows so if you know of any community activities that are happening that I could coincide a trip with in your region, please let me know!)

I’ve returned from the East Kimberley re-energised to continue to champion and amplify the voices of consumers and community members living in that region, as well as with a new appreciation of the reality of delivering healthcare in that regional setting.

Clare, Rose and Reggie at the Kununurra Hospital

When I was there I met with Maxine, the Chair of the District Health Advisory Council (DHACs are the consumer committees in the WA Country Health Service) and I learned a bit about some of the local health issues. Maxine also volunteers at the Wyndham Museum, so I took the opportunity to visit and drove there from Kununurra – a 2 hour round trip which many people in Wyndham need to do if they need inpatient care, which is accessed at Kununurra Hospital. I learned a bit about the reality of accessing healthcare in a community with a relatively small population – there are just under 1,000 residents in Wyndham – and the practical challenges faced by people who may be trying to access healthcare 100km away from home with no public transport. And that’s not even talking about when people have to travel to the metro area for specialist care!

Still in Wyndham, I met with James Gibson, CEO of the Ngnowar Aerwah Aboriginal Corporation. As well as convincing me that I need to visit the region in the wet season to really appreciate its beauty, James outlined the experiences of Aboriginal people in Wyndham and the surrounding areas when trying to access culturally safe healthcare. We also discussed the broader issue of culturally safe care across all health services, including the importance of individual advocacy. Ngnowar Aerwah already do a lot of advocacy for the people who use their services, and HCC is keen to extend the availability of our Individual Advocacy to more parts of the state, so there may be opportunities for us to work together.

Back in Kununurra, I met with Maria and Kylie at the Majarlin Kimberley Centre for Remote Health, Mary at the Ord Valley Aboriginal Health Service, and Dale, Jo and the team at WA Country Health Service – East Kimberley.

Clare, Maria and Kylie

From these discussions I’ve come away with a better sense of some of the local health issues, including:

The fierce passion and commitment that everyone working in the region has to delivering great care for the people of the East Kimberley
The practical challenges of navigating the Patient Assisted Travel Scheme (PATS) and how the logistics of travelling to the metro area can impact negatively on people’s experience of healthcare
The challenges of providing palliative care across a huge geographical area with a small population
The pressures on volunteers and community leaders in a small community where multiple demands can make it difficult for people to be involved in every opportunity that comes up
The importance of ensuring a variety of mechanisms for gathering and responding to consumer feedback that enable people who may not respond to “standard” approaches to still have a say in health.

I had timed my trip to coincide with the Kununurra Agricultural Show and on the flight up to Kununurra I had the good fortune to be seated next to Owen from Regional Men’s Health. He was heading to Kununurra as they had a stand at the show, something they do regularly in the East Kimberley and elsewhere.

In amongst these work meetings I also had plenty of down time – including swimming in the vast waters of Lake Argyle, taking in the awesome (in the true meaning of the word) landscapes, and just sitting in the peace of Mirima National Park, surrounded by the spectacular rock formations while listening to the birds.

I feel very privileged to live and work in WA and I’m looking forward to exploring more of it.

Clare and James Gibson

Acknowledging Country: Where Workshop Proceeds Go

Posted on July 4, 2024

By Tania Harris, Engagement Manager, Aboriginal and Disability Engagement Lead

A Gesture That Gives Back

When professionals and organisations take part in Health Consumers’ Council’s Acknowledging Country workshops, they’re not just learning to honour the traditional custodians of the land. They’re also contributing to a bigger cause that supports Aboriginal health consumers in Western Australia.

Proceeds from these workshops are quarantined and used solely for supporting Aboriginal health consumer initiatives.
The funds go towards training scholarships for Aboriginal consumer representatives, covering participation payments, and establishing an Aboriginal Consumer and Community Advisory Committee for Health Consumers’ Council.

Empowering Through Education

The Acknowledging Country workshops are intentionally kept to small numbers to allow for an immersive and personalised experience. This approach ensures that participants can practice delivering an Acknowledgement of Country, receive immediate feedback, and have something meaningful they can use right away.

Beyond the workshop, participants are provided with resources for a continuous learning journey.
HCC is committed to using the proceeds to further the cause of Aboriginal health consumers, fostering a cycle of empowerment and respect.

An Ongoing Commitment to Aboriginal Health

By attending the workshops, you’re making a tangible contribution to the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal people and communities.

The funds contribute to initiatives where Aboriginal perspectives are needed but may not be otherwise funded.
By investing in the continuous learning of Aboriginal consumer representatives, we’re ensuring their crucial voices are heard in healthcare decisions.

A Workshop That Makes a Difference

The Acknowledging Country workshops go beyond cultural training; they’re an investment in the future of Aboriginal health and a step towards closing the gap in health outcomes between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.

Make an Impact

Booking an Acknowledging Country workshop is not just a step towards reconciliation, but also a constructive way to give back to the communities we serve.

Book now for one of our available dates, or make an enquiry about a group booking for your organisation, and make a commitment to both your personal growth and the health equity of Aboriginal communities.

Learning from the past, looking to the future – will you join us?

Posted on June 21, 2024

By Clare Mullen, Executive Director

One of the first tasks I was given by our Management Committee when I took on the role of Executive Director just over 12 months ago was to refresh HCC’s strategy. I was also keen to learn from HCC’s proud history as an independent voice for the community since we were established in 1994 as we prepared to mark our anniversary in April 2024.

It was great that these two tasks aligned as I was able to be thinking about our future, while learning about our achievements in the past. We met with and gathered feedback from members, consumer leaders and representatives, health leaders and decision makers across WA health services, fellow advocacy organisations and HCC’s founders and elders.

Some things we heard and learned:

Health Consumers’ Council “emerged” from within the WA Department of Health and an earlier iteration – the Health Consumer Network – was chaired by Janet Holmes A Court. Consumer leaders and forward thinking public servants at the time recognised the need for the consumer voice to be independent of government and the public service – and so Health Consumers’ Council was born as an independent not-for-profit organisation
Many of the ideas that the team and I kick around today have already been tested in the past
WA is a leader both nationally and internationally by having the state peak health consumer body provide individual advocacy service that is free at the point of delivery for the WA community – something that’s not available in any other state or territory and…
- …there’s much more need for this service that is currently available
HCC has a solid reputation with health leaders and decision makers and…
- …many of our members and people in the health consumer community would like to see us have a more visible presence in the community and be careful to guard our independence
There is a pressing need to continue growing the number, capacity and connectedness of WA consumers who are confident, capable and willing to fulfil a range of consumer representative and advocacy roles at a time of significant reforms in health and social care and…
- …we need to go beyond being a critical friend to being catalysts for change

As we were immersed in all this history and feedback, a couple of us had the opportunity to participate in training for advocates, campaigners, activists and changemakers run by Australian Progress. That too was great timing as we’ve been able to apply some of the ideas and tools we’ve learned as we think about what next.

Health rights are met | People power is rallied | Consumers drive positive change | HCC finances are sustainable | HCC is strong and agile

These are the outcomes we’ll be working towards over the coming months and years. They blend our enduring priorities with an invitation to our members, the health consumer network and people in the community because we are stronger together.

We’ll be sharing our refreshed strategic plan at a briefing and get together for members, health consumers and stakeholders on Wed 26 July at 4pm – 6.30pm.

Read about our new strategy here https://www.hconc.org.au/about-us/strategic-direction/

Join our team – Project and Program Support Officer, full-time job, closing date – 8am Monday 8 July 2024

Posted on June 20, 2024

To help us achieve our vision of improved health outcomes and experiences for everyone, driven by strong health consumer voices at every level of decision making in health, we are growing our small but mighty team.

Project and Program Support Officer, full-time, permanent

We are seeking a highly organised Project and Program Support Officer who loves people and being in a fast paced environment with lots of variety. The role plays a valuable part in supporting a range of projects, as well as being the first port of call for people connecting with Health Consumers’ Council. This role will be full-time, although 30 hours/week may be considered if able to work them across five days of the week Monday – Friday.