The Collaborative Care Program is a place-based planning approach to addressing healthcare challenges in rural and regional NSW. These communities have smaller populations that are more dispersed, a lack of transport options, and fewer locally available services. The Program is coordinated by Rural Doctors Network (RDN) and works with local partners to provide communities with the tools and support they need to solve complex healthcare challenges.

The Collaborative Care approach is an adaptation of RDN’s town-based health planning approach, which has proven successful for more than 35 years. The Program works with local health professionals and communities to create a healthcare access model that fits their needs. It does this by bringing stakeholders together to develop shared priorities and solutions that make sense for each community.

The map below shows the five projects that are currently open in NSW. You can click the markers to find out more information.

Map of NSW

How does it work?

The Collaborative Care Program adopts a step-by-step approach to community-based primary health care planning. The coordinating organisations form a project team that guides their communities through the five planning phases below. Community engagement and local representation is a central part of each step.

1. Investigate needs: What are the primary health care needs in the community?
2. Prioritise needs: Which of these needs should we tackle first?
3. Co-design solutions: Decide together how we could improve access to these important services for the community.
4. Implement solutions: Put the plan into practice and make sure communities know what to expect.
5. Reflect & learn: Look at what is working well and where improvements can still be made.

In practice, it is often an iterative process. As the community stakeholders continue to collaborate, they uncover more opportunities to improve access to healthcare in their communities. The learnings from previous activities lead to new investigations, new opportunities, and new ideas to be trialled.

For more information, contact: Justyn Walker, Program Lead - Collaborative Care, Rural Doctors Network, on 02 4924 8066 or jwalker@nswrdn.com.au