Western Sydney partnership leads the way in health care reforms

The two largest health bodies in Western Sydney have renewed their commitment to collaboration and providing person-centered care.

Western Sydney Local Health District (WSLHD) and WentWest (the Western Sydney Primary Health Network) continued their collaborative partnership last week at their joint board meeting.

This is the second year the two boards have come together to reflect, problem solve and discuss future opportunities to maintain the momentum built over more than a decade of collaboration, service redesign and innovation to advance health system reform.

Richard Alcock AO, WSLHD board chair commenced the day by reflecting on the unprecedented challenges 2020 had brought to the health sector and the community at large, while acknowledging the considerable successes achieved by the partnership throughout the year.

“We am incredibly proud of our enduring partnership, the effectiveness and resilience of our established programs, and our agile response to COVID-19, while remaining on track to deliver our next suite of reform programs set to roll out in 2021,” Mr Alcock said.

Diana O’Halloran AO, WentWest board chair said while both organisations focus primarily on different parts of the health system, working together was critical to achieving value-driven, integrated care and delivering ‘one Western Sydney health system’.

“Our primary health care responsibilities perfectly complement WSLHD’s responsibility for acute services operating out of four hospitals and community-based care through the region’s seven community health centres,” Ms O’Halloran said.

“It is rewarding to be part of multidisciplinary teams operating across professional, financial and organisational boundaries to deliver on our shared Quadruple Aim: improved health care outcomes, consumer and provider experience and health system sustainability.”

The joint board meeting also allowed both organisations to celebrate the progress made on their Ministry of Health-sponsored Collaborative Commissioning program, which enables the collective to develop specific, groundbreaking pathways of care tailored to community needs through innovative frameworks which are co-designed by GPs, specialists and consumers.

Emma McCahon, acting chief executive of WSLHD said having the Secretary for NSW Health, Ms Elizabeth Koff presenting on the Collaborative Commissioning initiative demonstrated an important milestone in the program and highlighted the leadership role the Western Sydney partnership was playing in this future focused program.

“We have been amazed at how health care workers across acute and primary care continue to work tirelessly together to roll out innovative models of care, lead cutting edge research collaborations and stay at the forefront of data driven, technology enabled care. This difficult year has proven the strength of the WSLHD and WentWest partnership,” said Dr McCahon.

Ray Messom, chief executive officer, WentWest said looking ahead to 2021 both organisations were thrilled about the work they have achieved to date.

“We are excited for the rollout of new service reform programs such as Collaborative Commissioning, celebrating the continuation of established programs like Western Sydney Diabetes, while taking collaborative measures to support our health services and communities as they manage the impact of COVID-19.

“2021 looks bright and our commitment to each other and our overarching goal to improve the health of people across Western Sydney has never been stronger – we will continue to build on the fantastic momentum we have achieved. We are really look forward to seeing what the future holds,” said Mr. Messom

For more information about the partnership, visit https://wentwest.com.au/ and https://www.wslhd.health.nsw.gov.au/