REMOTE INTEGRATED
& COLLABORATIVE
HEALTH INITIATIVE
A collaborative trial to explore sustainable models of primary health care delivery in remote communities.
THE PROGRAM
The Remote Integrated and Collaborative Health (RICH) initiative is funded by a grant from the Murray Darling Basin Authority, Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation, the Commonwealth Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water and the Foundation.
PROGRAM RATIONALE
Our current approaches to community and individual health are not working. Our health system is designed around 'illness and injury', not keeping people healthy in their communities.
The Remote Integrated and Collaborative Health (RICH) program was co-designed by the Foundation, InterHealthCare (a private allied health company with a passion for rural health) and our communities to reimagine health care as a high quality, community-led and integrated system that places people at the centre of care.
PROGRAM SCOPE
General Practice
Exploring better use of team-based care and case conferencing to improve patient management and outcomes, and make rural practice more sustainable.
Nutrition
Evaluating a senior student-delivered model of nutrition support with online clinical supervision.
Telehealth
Using GP-led telehealth for routine and low acuity care, and access to specialists.
Nursing
Examining the expanded use of nurses to manage chronic disease, immunisations and women's health.
Speech Pathology
Trialing asynchronous app to support non-verbal children and adults stroke survivors.
Practice Nursing
Deploying a virtual practice nurse to support local health care services during temporary shortages and to augment medical care in residential aged care facilities.
Physiotherapy
Developing a student-delivered model of on-site and virtual physiotherapy.
Dentistry
Evaluating the latest generation digital scanners to reduce travel and time costs for dentists to make remote delivery more viable.
Aboriginal Health Workers
Trialing the employment of Aboriginal Health Workers to build connections to community and improve health.
Exercise Pysiology
Designing a student-delivered model of on-site and virtual physiotherapy.
Chronic Disease Management
Exploring improved use of qualified nurses to undertake preliminary patient assessments and to prepare care plans.
Clinical Pharmacy
Examining how to best integrate clinical pharmacists in medication management for chronic disease patients to improve health outcomes.
PERFORMANCE
The RICH Steering Committee has established a robust performance framework to evaluate the effectiveness of integrated person-centred care on:
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the quality of care;
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patient health outcomes;
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the financial viability of integrated models.
Performing reports will be shared with other providers to encourage more organisations to adopt the community-led integrated person-centred care approach.
GET INVOLVED
Want to help rural and remote communities to access primary health care, but don't know how? We get it. Making rural practice financially viable is difficult under current funding models, and without a dedicated program to support bookings, payments and service coordination. The RICH Program is designed to help allied health, pharmacy, nursing and other services to provide services to rural and remote people by taking away the complexities of consulting remotely. The aim of the Program is to develop a fully scaleable model that is viable and rewarding for health practitioners. If you have a new idea for delivering care to remote people and would like to participate in a trial then please contact us at info@thcfa.org.au.
RESOURCES
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PARTNERS
This RIICH Program is managed by the Healthy Communities Foundation Australia.
©2022 by Healthy Communities Foundation Australia (formerly Rural and Remote Medical Services)
ABN: 29 097 201 020 CFN:25452
