News - 18 January 2012

18 January 2012

For articles from a previous HealthWest E-Bulletin, view our News Archive.

News in Brief

Update on South West Melbourne Medicare Local - Stakeholder Forum

In late 2011, the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing asked the Australian General Practice Network and General Practice Victoria (GPV) to work closely with local stakeholders to lead the development of a new proposal for the South West Melbourne Medicare Local. 

Work has been steadily progressing with the application led by GPV as the project manager and guided by a local steering committee. This steering committee has been collating information concerning local needs and health priorities and developing a preliminary model to ensure the Medicare Local engages locally with optimal scope and reach.  Pivotal to the Medicare Locals success is an understanding of the health needs of their population and engagement of a diversity of clinicians, services and health care recipients to inform planning and decision making.

Local stakeholders are invited to attend a forum to be informed of progress to date and consider the Medicare Local proposal. Two session times are available: an evening session on February the 1st from 7.30-9pm or alternatively a daytime session on February 2nd 10.30 am-12pm.

The steering committee is particularly interested in making sure the proposal builds on a) existing plans and priorities and b) existing coordination arrangements. So any input about existing plans and structures would be much appreciated. The forums will provide an opportunity to consider the preliminary model for the SWM ML within the specific needs and priorities of Hobson’s Bay and Wyndham.

When: Wednesday 1 February, 7:30-9pm or Thursday 2nd February, 10.30am to 12 midday
Where: Altona Meadows Library and Learning Centre Central Square Shopping Centre, 2 Newham Way, Altona Meadows
More info: To book a place and for catering purposes, please follow one of these links: 1st Feb PM Session 2nd Feb Daytime Session. For more information, contact the project consultant Anne Roseman on 0422 348 214 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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News at HealthWest

Staff update

HealthWest welcomes Karen Kimpton to the team. Karen is the HACC Service Development Project Manager and she will be working with existing HACC service providers to plan for the expected future growth in the catchment. The project aims to address potential infrastructure, service demand and workforce issues that will arise as a result of this growth.

Karen’s contact details are 90175843 and email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

HealthWest Network Meeting dates for 2012

Health Promotion Network

The health promotion network meets 6-weekly and is attended by health promotion workers and managers, local government health and social planners, and others involved in population health and health promotion activities across the HealthWest catchment. The two hour network meetings are held at ISIS Sunshine campus, Harvester Rd, Sunshine.

When: 2-4pm, 9 February, 22 March, 3 May, 14 June, 26 July, 6 September, 18 October, 29 November
More info: contact Jenny Reimers, Prevention Coordinator, HealthWest by phone 9017 5843 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Integrated Chronic Disease Management Steering Committee

The Integrated Chronic Disease Management steering committee meets every 2 months and is attended by managers and others who work within programs that offer services for people with chronic disease across the HealthWest catchment.  The two hour network meetings are held at HealthWest, Elgar Rd, Mt Derrimut.

When: 2:30-4:30pm, 3rd Wednesday of every second month: 15 February, 18 April, 20 June, 15 August, 17 October
More info:  contact Libby Jewson, Coordinator for Early Intervention and Chronic Care, HealthWest by phone 9017 5843 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Short-term Data Project

HealthWest Partnership is currently seeking expressions of interest from suitable applicants to undertake a short-term data project.

Please see project brief here for more information.

EOI are requested by 9am Thursday 25 January.

More info: Please contact Jenny Reimers at HealthWest on 9017 5843.

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Integrated Health Promotion/Population Health Planning

Expressions of Interest from members to attend Advocacy in Health Promotion workshop in the west

HealthWest would like to gauge the interest in having the Women’s Health Victoria Advocacy in Health Promotion Workshop run in the west at a discounted rate. The half day workshop is centrally offered by WHV for $66/participant. If organised for members, HealthWest intends to subsidise the cost to $30 per participant.

Expressions of Interest are requested from staff in HealthWest member organisations. A minimum of 8 is required to run the course (max of 18 participants). The  information requested in the EOI:

  1. Number of interested staff in your organisation
  2. Preferred month/day/time for workshop e.g. morning or afternoon

More info: Please send your EOI to Jen Reimers at HealthWest via email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it by 3 February 2012.

Preventing Violence Together – Progress Brief

Preventing Violence Together (PVT): Western Region Action Plan to Prevent Violence Against Women facilitates a coordinated, action-based approach across local government and community and women's health services, tailored to the particular characteristics of the western region. The action plan support work underway in health and community services in the west and provide opportunities to engage in collaborative, practical and strategic prevention initiatives.

The first Implementation Progress Brief was produced by Women’s Health West, in partnership with the PVT Implementation Committee in December 2011. The progress briefs provide PVT endorsee and partner agencies, as well as other key stakeholders, informed about PVT activities and updates. Download the latest Progress Brief.

More info: See WHW website or HealthWest website

“Closing the Health Gap” Clearing House

This online clearing house provides access to evidence-based information on what works to overcome disadvantage for Indigenous Australians.  The clearing house is a Council of Australian Governments initiative, delivered by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare in partnership with the Australian Institute of Family Studies.

More info: Visit the On-line Clearing House

Summer edition of community and planned activity group guide now available

A summer edition of the Community and Planned Activity Groups – An Activity Guide for the West is now available.  Summer in the West! highlights the range of activities, festivals, exhibitions and events happening across the west during summer 2012 that are cost effective and cater for the range of abilities of PAG and community group participants.

Summer in the West! is the companion guide to Community and Planned Activity Groups – An Activity Guide for the West.

More info: HealthWest website

Guide to support local government with pokie applications now available

In late December, the Responsible Gambling Advocacy Centre released The Gap Project: Guides to the Application Processes associated with EGMs.

The Guides were developed in response to community confusion about the licence and planning processes associated with Electronic Gaming Machines (EGMs).

These Guides aim to make planning and licence processes for EGMs clearer and enable communities and local government officers to develop informed responses to any application for an EGM in their community.

More info: Responsible Gambling Advocacy Centre website

New study into distribution and concentration of liquor outlets

A new study has been released by Turning Point and VicHealth, which shows that the poorest areas of Victoria have up to six times more bottle shops in their neighbourhoods than those who are well-off. The study used census data to rank 10 rural and regional and 10 metropolitan areas by level of social disadvantage, and compared those areas with liquor licensing data from 1991 to 2008. The researchers included general licences (pubs, hotels, taverns), on-premise licences (restaurants, bars and nightclubs), packaged licences (bottle shops, grocery stores) and club licences (RSLs, sporting clubs).

More info: Download the report here

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Integrated Chronic Disease Management  

Arthritis Victoria Calendar and Information session

Arthritis Victoria have produced two calendars, one for professional and peer leading training available here and one for community programs and activities available here. The calendars cover the period of January–June 2012.

More info: contact Kerrie Giannakidis, Program Administrator, Training, Information and Programs Division, Arthritis Victoria incorporating Osteoporosis Victoria on email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it '; document.write( '' ); document.write( addy_text38016 ); document.write( '<\/a>' ); //--> This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or phone 03 8531 8017

Alzheimer’s Victoria Information sessions

Alzheimer's Victoria are offering information sessions about Dementia and Alzheimer’s to CALD communities in the West.

More info: Contact Claire Naffah; Diversity Officer; Strategic Initiatives on 9816 5794, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit the Fight Dementia Campaign website

Chronic Illness Alliance Forum Relating to the New National Disability Insurance Scheme

The Chronic Illness Alliance have organised a public forum to provide information about the New National Disability Insurance  Scheme

More info: Download the flyer here or to register contact Marion Wilde on phone 03 9882 4654 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Melbourne Carex Forum

The Melbourne Carex forum is an expo for health professionals and health managers who work in fields relating to aged care and disability.

When: April 18 and 19th 9:30-4:00pm
Where:Caulfield Racecourse.
Cost: Free admission
More info: To register click here  or contact Wayne Woff, Manager, Total Aged Services on phone 03 9571 5606 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

HACC  Position Paper

The HealthWest response  for the Victorian HACC Program Position Paper Triennial Plan and Expenditure Priorities 2012-2015 can be found on the HealthWest website

Information about diabetes in the west

Check out the information on the Australian Community Centre for Diabetes (ACCD) website
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Service Coordination

New HealthWest Initiative - Western Intake Network Meeting (WING!)

This network is for intake workers from health and community agencies in the western suburbs of Melbourne.  It has come from the Active Service Model Intake Forum held in November 2011.  At that Forum, it was identified that there is a need for Intake workers to be able to network and to share common challenges, information about their services, and to look at common trends and issues such as waitlists and service gaps.

When: Thursday 15th March at 9:30-11:30am
Where:Wyndham Civic Centre, 45 Princes Highway  Werribee
More Info:Contact Libby Jewson : 9017 5843 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

More info: Download the flyer here for 1st meeting and register via the HealthWest website.

Active Service Model Intake Forum - Report Available

The Active Service Model: Forum on Intake Report is now available. The report details outcomes of the Forum which included development of principles, language and competencies related to HACC intake services in the West. 

More info: The report is available via the HealthWest website

Palliative Care Research Project

On behalf of Palliative Care Victoria, independent research company UltraFeedback would like to formally invite you to participate in a research project which will inform the development and implementation of a Palliative Care Cultural Diversity Plan for Victoria.  At the moment they have an overrepresentation from Eastern service providers and are seeking input from the West.

Your participation will involve:

  • One on one qualitative interview (face to face or telephone);
  • Location and date of your choice- from now until the end of January 2012;
  • The interview will take approximately 45-60 minutes;
  • Your identity will not be linked to your responses and will be used for research purposes only.

This research will provide recommendations to assist in raising awareness of palliative care and increasing the utilisation of palliative care services among culturally and linguistically diverse communities, as well as facilitating culturally competent palliative care staff and services. 

To download a letter by Palliative Care Victoria’s CEO Odette Waanders, please click here.

More info: To schedule an interview or for any other queries, please contact Fiona Hossack at UltraFeedback on (03) 9439 7789 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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For Your Diary

Grants

No news this week

Call for Papers

No news this week

National

No news this week
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Statewide

Gambling from a public health perspective

Leading public health researchers and gambling reform advocates will participate in the conference and workshops, which will focus academic, political and advocacy expertise on issues confronting gambling reform. Professionals in public health and public policy will consider and discuss how to apply lessons from successful public health reforms to gambling reform, and provide participants with ample opportunity to engage with and apply these lessons to the gambling reform process.

This conference will provide a valuable networking opportunity for a broad group of social and public health interests, including researchers and public health advocates ranging from those working in child health to addictive consumptions such as tobacco, alcohol, and gambling.

When: Friday 10 February, 1.30-5pm
Where: Centre for Regulatory Studies, Monash Law Chambers, 555 Lonsdale St
Cost: Free
More info: Contact Darshini Ayton on 9903 1660 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

New Monash University postgraduate course: Studies in Refugee Health and Wellbeing for Nurses

Monash University post-graduate studies in refugee health and wellbeing for nurses are commencing in semester one of 2012. The course i involves on-line learning, directed reading activities, field work and 2 days on campus face-to-face workshop which will be held in March 2012. The unit may be taken as part of a Master of Nursing (Refugee Health) or Master of Clinical Midwifery, as part of a Graduate Certificate or Diploma of Nursing (Refugee Health) or as a stand-alone unit. This unit and stream have been developed in partnership with the Victorian Foundation for Survivors of Torture and the Statewide Refugee Health Nurse facilitator, sponsored by the Victorian Department of Health.

Closing date for enrolments: 13 January 2012.
Cost: This is a full-fee paying unit.
More info: See the course outline at www.refugeehealthnetwork.org.au. Contact Suzanne Willey on 9904 4328 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Seminar - Getting to Know Your Rights: Human Rights Education for Immigrant and Refugee Women

This seminar run by the Multicultural Centre for Women’s Health will focus on sharing experiences for developing human rights education programs tailored to immigrant and refugee women. It will explore effective strategies for human rights education including the use of story sharing as a method for enabling women to make sense of human rights issues and problems in relation to their day-to-day lives.

When: Thursday 23 February 2012
Where: Multicultural Centre for Women's Health, Suite 207 Level 2 Carringbush Building, 134 Cambridge Street Collingwood Victoria Australia
Cost: $88.00 per person (includes lunch)
RSVP: Places are limited.  RSVP by Wednesday 15 February 2012. Payment is due by Wednesday 22 February 2012 (upon receipt of invoice).
More info: Contact Dr Salma Al-Khudairi,  Education and Training Officer MCWH on 9418 0999, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit the MCWH website  www.mcwh.com.au 

Making Culture Count - Rethinking measures of cultural vitality, wellbeing and citizenship

In recent years, culture and cultural development have become internationally recognised as important dimensions of contemporary governance and public policy. As in other policy areas (economic, social, environmental), the production of accurate and relevant data has become central to cultural policy and how the cultural lives of citizens are understood. Conceptual and practical developments in measurement tools, such as new forms of cultural indicators, have the potential to enrich our understanding of culture's role in wellbeing, vitality and citizenship.

When: 9am-5pm, 3-4 May 2012
Where: Woodward Conference Centre, University of Melbourne
Cost: TBC
More info: Kim Dunphy on 9658 9976 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit the website

Regional/Local

No news this week
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E-Bulletin Archive

For articles, information or links from previous issues of HealthWest's Weekly E-Bulletin view our news archive.