Palliative care, cardiology, and urgent care will be the first three Statewide Clinical Networks established later this year, as part of new State Government reforms to rebalance the health system.
Minister for Health and Wellbeing Stephen Wade said the Networks will bring together clinicians and providers of a particular speciality or service area from across hospital and community settings to identify best practice and maximise health outcomes for patients.
“Statewide Clinical Networks are a core component of our commitment to work in partnership with clinicians and consumers,” Minister Wade said.
“They will work collaboratively to provide a better clinical oversight and consider how their service can best improve care for patients in response to changing community needs.
“As we move to establish the new Commission of Excellence and Innovation in Health, stronger clinician and consumer engagement will be at the forefront of future healthcare planning and delivery in South Australia.
“The Networks will be supported and overseen by the new Commission, to be led by Professor Paddy Phillips, and will operate across the continuum of care, across private and public sectors and all Local Health Networks – both country and metropolitan.
“What we want to create is an environment for all interested clinicians involved in the delivery of a service to lead implementation changes to improve South Australia’s health services and deliver innovative, world-class care.”
Clinical networks operate effectively in other health systems, both in Australia and overseas. In South Australia, Statewide Clinical Networks operated between 2008 and 2015.
Each newly formed Statewide Clinical Network will be supported by a small steering committee, guided by a Clinical Lead.
The Clinical Leads will be selected by a panel chaired by the Commissioner of Excellence and Innovation in Health, following an expression of interest and merit based selection process.
Minister Wade said, as a priority, the Statewide Palliative Care Clinical Network Steering Committee will oversee the expansion of specialist palliative care services to improve access to community based palliative care services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
“It will also work to review and update the Model of Care Framework for the Specialist Palliative Care, and in the medium term develop a new South Australian Palliative Care Service Plan,” Minister Wade said.
“We will also look to establish as a priority the Statewide Cardiology Clinical Network, which will guide the development and coordination of public and private cardiac services.
“We want to put ourselves in the best position to ensure that South Australia is well placed to respond to an increasing rate of heart disease and to embrace emerging areas of cardiac care.”
