Year in review 2022-23

Team Care Coordination

• 2,601 referrals received, representing a 20 per cent increase (compared to previous year) in referrals received. Leading reasons for referral included falls or frailty, COPD, cardiovascular disease, dementia, osteoarthritis and diabetes.
• 1,604 clients supported.
• 17,872 client interactions – 3,652 more than last financial year.
• 81 per cent of clients had their goals fully met.
• 98 per cent clients rated the quality of the service as very good or good.

Regional Assessment Service

• 6,455 referrals accepted and actioned. Assessors noted increasing complexity of clients’ needs.
• Clients indicated over 98 per cent satisfied or very satisfied with quality of service.
• Completed 281 Integrated Assessments (IAT) trailing the new IAT Tool for the proposed Single Assessment Service.

• Launch of PHN Talk blog with 12 good news stories, to increase the visibility of the work of our project teams across the organisation and to stakeholders.   
• Conducted and finalised a six-month consultation and review of our publications resulting in more targeted, fit-for-purpose communication to GPs.  
• Refreshed Brisbane North PHN's brand identity, incorporating visual elements from our RAP artwork, Flowing Knowledge, Healing Country. 
• Relaunched the Metro North Health Forum, jointly hosted with Metro North Health.  
• 24 Network Link publications sent fortnightly to over 2500 health professionals.  
• 16 Practice Link publications sent to over 525 practice managers, nurses and staff each month.  
• Partners in Health publications providing regular updates to over 1,300 PHN stakeholders, partners and allied organisations. 

• Commenced review of our Strategic Plan.
• New contract management system Folio implemented to streamline contracts processes and create greater efficiencies across our organisation and for providers.
• Successful audit outcomes for Aged Care Standards, ISO9001 and 27001.

• Commonwealth Home Support Program delivered 156,158 outputs (one output equates to one hour of service or one transport trip) to 9,059 clients, 18 per cent of whom identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.
• Care finder program launched with six local organisations. Care finder support to navigate the aged care system is provided to 220 highly vulnerable people.
• Intergenerational program co-designed in four locations by three service providers, including one First Nations specific program.
• CarFreeMe driving cessation program started across the North Brisbane and Moreton Bay region for culturally and linguistically diverse communities.
• $777,400 (96 per cent) of telehealth grant funding provided to 85 per cent of residential aged care services.
• An action plan to improve access to at-home palliative care for people with disability was created following consultation with 52 stakeholders including consumers, carers and professionals from health and disability sector.
• 44 per cent of Residential Aged Care Homes in the North Brisbane and Moreton Bay region have had a support visit from the Out of Hours team to provide assistance and guidance in developing documented After-Hours Action Plans.

• Commissioning Collaborative convened.
• First patients admitted by GPs to First Nations Integrated Hospital in the Home program.
• The Care Collective – Caboolture reaches 12-month milestone with evaluation showing a 75 per cent reduction in ED presentations and a 48 per cent decrease in clients with greater than one ED presentation per month – an average saving to the health system of $311,488 per month. The program's success will see its expansion to Redcliffe next financial year.

• After Hours Health Needs Assessment undertaken and delivered.
• Provided support to the Morayfield Minor Accident and Illness Centre.

• Social Prescribing program co-designed and commenced in Caboolture and Kilcoy hospital catchments jointly undertaken with the Healthy Ageing program team.
• 24 new localised HealthPathways published.
• Funding secured to deliver two new Medicare Urgent Care Clinics (UCCs) – one in the vicinity of the Redcliffe Hospital, one in the vicinity of The Prince Charles Hospital.

• 79 commissioned programs delivered.
• Norfolk Island Health Needs Assessment submitted in conjunction with the Priority Communities program team.
  
• Population health snapshot, including a dedicated women's health snapshot, launched.
• Development of a roadmap for the Primary Health Insights conference.
• Annual Practitioner Survey conducted.

Mental Health Lived Experience Engagement Network (MHLEEN)

• 100 per cent of PHNs represented on the National PHN MHLEEN network.
• Average of 65 per cent attendance rate at monthly meetings, a 15 per cent increase from last financial year.
• Representation from 72 per cent of PHNs at the annual MHLEEN forum, 50 per cent of attendees who were people with a lived experience.

Under the National Mental Health Consumer and Carer Forum (NMHCCF) Queensland partnership:

• Lived Experience Leadership Digital Library initiative launched
• scoping paper – Pathways for Supporting the 'Not Negotiable’ Lived Experience (Peer) Workforces to Thrive – for formal lived experience training programs and supports delivered
• Lived Experience Governance Framework launched
• a toolkit to authentically embed lived experience governance launched.

Alcohol and other drugs

• Alcohol and other drugs services delivered to 142 individuals including 20 who identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, across 2838 occasions of service. 96 per cent reported satisfaction with services.
• The data for this period shows an increase in the number of referrals received, which is reflective of the work being done within the MHAOD program team to increase our direct referrals.

• Support given to 342 general practices in our region.
• 232 general practices transitioned to Primary Sense.
• Funding granted from the Department of Health and Aged Care for two endometriosis and pelvic pain (EPP) clinics.
• 295 grant payments delivered to practices under the Strengthening Medicare General Practice Grants program.
• Provided general practice support to the Norfolk Island Health and Residential Aged Care Service.
• 20 training sessions offered to general practice to support GP capacity building for after-hours education.
• Commenced the Bribie Island After-Hours Pilot Project. From October 2022 to June 2023, 740 patients presented to the service between the hours of 6.00 pm and 10.00 pm Monday to Wednesday, including 32 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients.

Brisbane North PHN transitioned from having a Human Resources (HR) function to having a more holistic People and Culture function in February 2023. Since this transition:

• 52 recruitments on ELMO (including those where we had to recruit more than once), thanks to the finalisation of ELMO Recruitment implementation.
• recruitment undertaken for 65 roles – this includes where we had to recruit more than once and non-ELMO internal moves, direct recruitment from sector groups.
• 111 new contracts issued in April as we changed from maximum term to permanent contracts for all relevant roles.
• supported 45 new starters through the induction process.
• a review of our internal Vaccination Policy led to removing mandatory vaccination as a requirement for most roles, resulting in better recruitment opportunities.
• Family Domestic Violence Leave Policy updated to better support our people.
• Psychosocial safety training for leaders and staff as part of the implementation of new Psychosocial Safety legislation.
• team expansion to have a full-time People and Culture Coordinator (replacing a part-time HR advisor) and now includes Office Management and Workplace Health and Safety.
• Reward and Recognition Policy went live via ELMO with first awards presented at all staff development day in May.
• Leadership Lunchbox Series – a short, targeted, monthly development opportunity – implemented for all people in leadership roles.
• Leadership Community of Practice development opportunity around all operational matters implemented monthly.
• paid parental leave implemented – with one team member already enjoying paid leave and another two team members soon to realise this new initiative.
• standardised, transparent salary benchmarking implemented to support staff in understanding their role and assist with quality candidate recruitment.
• Engagement Survey conducted to enable our people to be heard.

Currently underway is the development of a People and Culture Strategy to support the refreshed Organisation Strategy.

• Launch of the GP Workforce Planning and Prioritisation (GP WPP) program, with Brisbane North PHN as the Lead Agency for the Queensland PHN Consortium comprised of all seven Queensland PHNs.
• Submission of the first Workforce Needs and Training Capacity Report for Queensland, providing independent planning and prioritisation advice to inform the distribution and placement of Registrars training on the AGPT program across the states 164 GP Catchments within seven PHN regions.