From the CEO - Gretchen Scinta

Over the next few weeks, there are a number of planning forums focused on the COAG Closing the Gap initiative. GPSA will be participating in workshops on 12 and 13 August 2009, aimed at developing advice on priority regions for the key summary areas of the initiative. On 28 August, the Implementation Advisory Group in South Australia will meet again to discuss the next stages of the initiative. GPSA will continue making information available to our member Divisions, as we receive it.

It is time again for GPSA’s quarterly scheduled meetings with the State Office of the Department of Health and Ageing, SA Health and Country Health SA. We will be in contact with Divisions over the next week to link in with specific activities and focus in local areas to inform priority items on the agendas for those meetings.

This week culminates in the AGPN CEO/Chairs Meeting being convened in Adelaide on Friday 7 August. Leading up to the national meeting, the GPSA Board of Directors are hosting a gathering of the CEOs and Chairs of the South Australian Divisions today for a look at SA perspectives in relation to the impending health reform agenda.

Program Updates

Health Provider Registry – 2009 Survey Results, Satisfaction of Discharge Summaries. The results of the HPRy 2009 Survey are in. With 531 Responses from General Practice, Specialists and Allied Health the responses provide an insight into the thoughts of medical practices. This is the first of a series which covers discharge planning. For information click here

Upcoming GPSA Supported Events

GPSA Quarterly Meetings, SA Health, Country Health SA, DoHA – 20 August 2009

Rural Divisions Group – 21 August 2009

GPSA Board Meeting – 3 September 2009

GPSA Quarterly Meeting, Minister Lomax-Smith – 8 September 2009

2009 GP Hospital Liaison Conference – Friday, 11 September 2009, hosted by GPNS, for details click here

Communiqués

Mental Health Shared Care Steering Committee meeting – 23 July 2009. For communiqué click here

Items of Interest

Influenza (H1N1) 2009 Pregnancy Fact Sheet Update. An updated version of the Swine Flu and Pregnancy fact sheet has been uploaded to the swine flu website under Information for General Practitioners. For fact sheet click here, and website click here

2009 Best Practice Nurse Awards – Call for Nominations. The Australian Practice Nurses Association is proud to announce that nominations for the 2009 APNA Best Practice Awards are now open. With five award categories the APNA Best Practice Awards aim to recognise and reward extraordinary nurses working in general practice. For details click here

SA to host Australasian Mental Health Conference. South Australia has won a bid to host the 2011 Mental Health Services Conference, an international forum for advancing mental health services in Australasia. For details click here

Invitation to provide comments on the Do It For Life program referral criteria. There is still time to provide feedback on some aspects of the Do It For Life program referral form. For further assistance or information contact Sinead O'Brien or Bruce Whitby at SA Health, or telephone (08) 8226 6020.

Klinefelter Syndrome (KS). Andrology Australia, the national men’s health organisation, together with the Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Prince Henry's Institute of Medical Research and Monash University, want to understand more about KS. They are seeking individuals with KS to participate in a study and to share their views on how their lives have been affected by being diagnosed, and living with, various aspects of KS. For details click here

Community Events

Health in Transition: Researching for the Future – 16-20 August 2009, Adelaide Convention Centre. This 4th international conference on community health nursing research will be a vibrant forum designed to facilitate the sharing of community health research and practice experiences, and will focus on the health of individuals, their families and communities in transition. For details click here

Community Engagement Training. IAP2 Certificate Training is available as a public course or an in-house course in the following modules: Planning For Effective Public Participation (27-28 August); Techniques For Effective Public Participation (3-4 September); Communication For Effective Public Participation (7 September). For details click here

HIC 2009: Frontiers of Health Informatics, Redefining Healthcare – 19-21 August 2009, Canberra. The conference captures the diversity of achievement in linking science and medicine with Information technology. Importantly, it looks at the practical systems and process issues that need to be addressed now, to meet the challenges of the future. For details click here

The Health Professional’s Role in Advance Directives for People with Dementia – September and October 2009, Adelaide. Two 3-hour sessions: Session 1, The Window of Opportunity; Session 2, Putting it into Practice – the Role of Health Professionals. For further information, date options and registration click here

University of Adelaide, Information Evening for Public Health and Related Studies – 16 September 2009. For details click here

Rights, Responsibilities and Rhetoric: Unpacking the policy and practice issues in mental health, law, guardianship and trusteeship – 8-9 October 2009. This conference brings together experts in their field and practitioners and consumers to examine current and potential future practice and service provision in the areas of guardianship, advocacy, the involuntary treatment of mental illness and trusteeship. For details click here

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander: Health Checks, A Team Approach – 13-14 October 2009, The Shores, Adelaide. More details will become available over the coming weeks.

Practice Nurse Clinical Education – 15-16 October 2009, Technology Park, Adelaide. This event provides practice nurses with a forum in which they can network and discuss key issues affecting their profession with other practice nurses. For details click here

Rural Medicine Australia 2009: Healthy careers. Healthy communities – 29 October to 1 November 2009, Melbourne. For details, click here

The 28th Diabetes Refresher Day: Theory, Practice and Reality – 4 December 2009, Adelaide Convention Centre. For details click here