As a part of the Health Infrastructure Program (previously known as the Capital Asset Development Program), ACT Health has built a new community health centre at Gungahlin; is building a new enhanced community health centre at Belconnen; and is expanding and refurbishing the existing health centre at Tuggeranong.
The release of preliminary sketch plans in early 2011 for the new centres represented the culmination of two years of planning and consultation with user groups, key stakeholders, staff and the community.
Each community health centre will be embedded into the local community to reflect their needs, as well as the overall needs of the ACT and surrounding region population.
Background
The health centres will deliver a comprehensive range of services to a growing population in an innovative, integrated, quality model. Care will be streamlined and provided locally where possible. The client will be the centre of care; they and their families will be involved in decision making; and there will be a focus on connecting and integrating all aspects of a person’s care and treatment.
The new/refurbished health centres will provide care in a significantly different physical and operational environment than currently exists. The following principles are the foundation from which all changes are based:
- Care will be person/family centred
- Service provision will be multidisciplinary and collaborative
- Care will be accessible and provided in a culturally safe environment
- Safe and high quality provision of services
- There will be a population health approach
- All community health centres will be divided into reception, treatment and staff zones
- There will be a central reception area which will provide support to all services housed in the health centre.
- The treatment areas will have shared bookable space for the services to provide their clinical/patient contact services. The space will be made up of consult, treatment, interview and meeting/group rooms. There are also specialised treatment spaces eg dental and podiatry.
- The staff zone will utilise shared support and amenities e.g. shared staff room
- All people will enter the centre through one main door. Exceptions might be Walk-in Centres, should one be co-located with a community health centre.
The health centres will deliver extended health services aimed at assisting clients to manage acute and chronic conditions in the community. They are intended to improve the quality of life and wellbeing in the local community while reducing the reliance on hospitals.
For further information contact (02) 6205 9060 or email: HIP@act.gov.au
In this section:
