HEALTHACCESS COMMUNITY CARE
HealthAccess Community Care supports governments and communities to address the impact of health and medical workforce shortages in rural, remote and disadvantaged areas.
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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.
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OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
Below are the communities we have worked with - or are currently working with - to help deliver local services
Communities we have supported to deliver local services
Bourke

Bingara, Warialda

Braidwood

Coolah

Brewarrina

Hay

Tenterfield

Coonamble

Hilltops

Walgett, Lightning Ridge

Gilgandra

Condobolin

Warren

Communities we have supported to plan for sustainable local services
Alice Springs

Tumby Bay

Kimba

Dundee

Wudinna

Port Lincoln

Cleve

Elliston

Wee Waa

Streaky Bay

Ceduna

MEET OUR TEAM

Manager, HealthAccess Community Care
Hunter

Join our team! Email us today at ihealthaccesscommunitycare@thcfa.org.au.

Donna Armistrong
Hunter

Christie Pritchett
Hunter
Social Impact