High-quality primary health care is key to containing spiralling health costs while getting better health outcomes for individuals and communities.
“Primary Health Care in Australia is mostly delivered by general practices; but we don’t know where, when and how patients get high quality care from their GPs (or when they don’t), because there’s no agreed way to measure it,” says Professor Jennifer Reath, Chair of General Practice at the Western Sydney University School of Medicine.
Professor Reath is lead investigator on the ‘QUEST’ project, which will see researchers working with communities and GP organisations around Australia to develop ways to identify the quality of primary health care.
DHCRC is funding this two-year collaboration between Western Sydney University (WSU), Western Sydney Primary Health Network (WentWest), and the Western Australia Primary Health Alliance (WAPHA), with input from six Primary Health Networks in NSW, Victoria and Qld, and from governments and professional bodies.
Through the innovative use of data, quality indicators and data visualisation, research can transform primary health care via actionable insights at general practice, regional and national funding levels.
Participants
- Western Sydney University
Professor Jennifer Reath, Chair of General Practice, School of Medicine - WentWest (Western Sydney PHN)
Ray Messom, CEO, - Western Australia Primary Health Alliance (WAPHA)
Chris Kane, General Manager Strategy and Engagement
Project partners
- Nepean Blue Mountains PHN
- South Western Sydney PHN
- North Western Melbourne PHN
- Western NSW PHN
- Brisbane North PHN
- Central and Eastern Sydney PHN
Header Photo: Dr Mark Little, Emergency Medicine Specialist from the Women and Children’s Hospital in South Australia / Photo by: Gemma Haines / Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade / Creative Commons 2.0 license
