HealthAccess Community Care supports governments and communities to address the impact of health and medical workforce shortages in rural, remote and disadvantaged areas.

​

Over the past 20 years, the Foundation has worked with 17 communities, servicing a combined catchment population of more than 300,000 people. We’ve helped establish, grow and sustain local health and social care services, including recruiting doctors and nurses in some of the most challenging locations in Australia. Today, every one of those communities continues to have on-site access to GPs and health care - thanks to long term partnerships between the Foundation and local communities.

 

Our mission is to help governments find innovative, practical and sustainable solutions to achieve health equity for all Australians, no matter where they live. We offer a range of consultancy services including needs analysis, community facilitation, planning and program design. We also provide mentoring, back-end management support and expert guidance to help build local capacity for community-led health services.

 

Recruiting a doctor or nurse is only the beginning when it comes to creating sustainable health services in rural and remote towns. Long-term success depends on planning for continuity, training future practitioners and building robust systems to support care delivery.

 

HealthAccess Community Care helps communities prepare for times when key staff are unavailable, ensuring that services continue without disruption. We support local efforts to engage with medical Colleges to train the next generation of GPs and assist with optimising Medicare billing systems to maximise legitimate revenue.

 

We also help communities identify and apply for grants and tenders that can strengthen service sustainability.

 

Robust clinical governance is essential for delivering safe, high-quality care in rural and remote communities. We help health services implement systems that meet strict national accreditation standards, ensuring compliance and best practice.

 

Our team also supports the introduction of secure patient management systems and data policies that align with ISO 27001 and the Essential Eight. These frameworks provide a high level of information security, helping ensure sensitive health data is protected.

 

Access to care depends on more than just medical staff. We work with communities to strengthen links between health services, local support organisations, and transport providers - ensuring people can reach the care they need, whether locally or when travelling.

 

HealthAccess Community Care has helped many communities design sustainable, effective and community-led models of care. Our role is to bridge local capacity gaps, provide expert support and gradually transition service management to full community control.

 

Unlike many rural service providers based in capital cities, HealthAccess Community Care is located in rural and remote Australia, with 88% of our staff living in the communities we serve. As a charity, we reinvest every dollar we generate into strengthening continuity of care and advancing health equity in rural, remote and disadvantaged areas. We prioritise keeping locally generated funds in your community to create jobs and boost local economic opportunities.

 

​