Chronic Disease Program
Program Coordinator: Matthew Moylan
Katherine Office | P: 08 8971 9300 | M: N/A | E: matthew.moylan@kwhb.com.au
Program Literature: Chronic Conditions – An Overview
At Katherine West Health Board, the Preventable Chronic Disease Strategy was developed to address five main chronic diseases - Type 2 diabetes, Hypertension, Heart disease, Kidney disease and Chronic airways disease.
Intervention aimed at reducing or changing risk factors is important, as these diseases are related to each other through their underlying causes.
The goal is to minimise or reduce the consequences of chronic disease and prevent or delay potential complications through effective management for the client, such as good glycaemic control in diabetics and self-management programs for clients living with a chronic disease.
The chronic disease program has the following elements:
- Screening to identify people at risk of disease (adult health checks)
- Best practice management using Central Australian Rural Practitioners Association protocols
- Regular reviews according to guidelines by a patient information recall system
- Early referral for specialist review for kidney disease
- Prevention through brief intervention at every opportunity (SNAPE – smoking, nutrition, alcohol, physical activity and exercise).
The focus of the Preventable Chronic Disease Strategy is to reduce chronic disease incidence, early diagnosis of new cases and best practice management of cases.
CHRONIC DISEASE PROGRAM 2010/2011
This year, KWHB introduced a Chronic Disease Program Coordinator (CDPC) to support KWHB health centres and communities with chronic disease resources and provide feedback to KWHB health centres on their progress in providing best practice chronic disease management.
Commencing in March 2011, the CDPC has visited each KWHB health centre and discussed with Health Centre Coordinators and Aboriginal Health Workers what they required from the chronic disease program and what health centres were currently doing to prevent and manage chronic conditions.
- Rheumatic heart disease resources have been provided to each health centre
- Diabetes resources have been collected and approved for use by the Ngumpin reference group
- Orientation has been provided to new primary health care staff during
- Coordinated quality improvement activities including One21Seventy clinical audits
- Assisted with Freedom Day Festival in Kalkarindji
- Organised presenters to provide education at the Primary Health Care Meetings
In 2012 the CDPC, Healthy Skin and Eyes Coordinator and Environmental Health Officer will be working on a joint project aimed at improving health literacy and knowledge around germ theory with the goal of reducing the incidence of chronic illnesses such as rheumatic heart disease, trachoma, and scabies.
In addition the chronic disease program coordinator plans to visit KWHB communities and assist health centres by providing rheumatic heart disease and kidney disease education in 2012.