A training program that aims to better educate doctors about skin cancer is having great success in Sutherland Shire.
The Multilevel Integrated Healthcare project was launched by Integrated Specialist Healthcare at Miranda, through its non-profit education foundation.
It is a NSW Health Department initiative that was established last year, after it received a $1.5 million government grant.
The three-year project involves using the expertise of specialists who volunteer to train general practitioners to improve bulk-billed skin checks.
Through an intensive program of lectures, demonstrations and supervised assessments, doctors are trained to better identify ‘at-risk’ patients.
In 2016, 14 GPs signed up to the project – six more than last year.
Project lead, associate professor Anand Deva, said the idea was to bring ‘innovation’ to the public sector.
“Private health is becoming more out of reach for Australians because of out-of-pocket expenses, so what we’re seeing is a gap in what’s available to public hospitals and what’s accessible in private,” he said.
“The system is fragmented – separate GPs, specialists, long waiting lists, patients becoming anxious...how they interact is archaic.
“This is about bring public and private operators together in an integrated system that is cost effective.”
The project removes the need for a referral, but a specialist is available during a patient’s assessment as a back-up.
Dr Anand said although not a new concept, the program aimed to deliver long-term solutions.
“We are looking at two big areas here – skin cancer and chronic wounds in the elderly,” he said.
“The secret of our success is that GPs and specialists are already well-connected in Sutherland Shire, and people are proactive about their health.
“We have motivated GPs who feel they don’t have the skills to do skin cancer checks, but we want to get to a point of them providing treatment, risk assessment and even diagnosis.”
