Funding boost to regional cancer services
Services for cancer patients across the Hunter and New England regions will improve, following the announcement of more than $329,000 in funding for four cancer care projects from the NSW State Government.
Area Director of Cancer Services, Dr Colum Smith said the projects focus on a specific area of cancer care and the delivery of improved and more accessible cancer services to people living in the Hunter New England Health region.
The four successful projects include:
• $80,000 for an Aboriginal Cancer Care Coordinator
• $79,921 for Re-designing Psycho-Social Care: Routine screening with QUICA_TOUCH project
• $79,488 for expanding psycho-oncology support to rural areas
• $90,000 for the implementation of GP Tele-colposcopists in rural centres
“Each project has significant benefits in terms of delivering more accessible services, in particular psychological support, to people living with cancer in rural centres. There is also a strong focus on improving the delivery of culturally appropriate cancer care to Indigenous Australians,” Dr Colum Smith said.
A description of each project is below:
Aboriginal Cancer Care Coordinator
$80,000 will be invested in piloting an Aboriginal Cancer Care Coordinator position for Hunter New England Health.
The role will aim to:
• Increase the number of Indigenous people being diagnosed at an earlier stage
• Improve adherence to cancer treatment
• Improve the patient journey for Aboriginal patients and families with cancer
• Improve the quality of cancer treatment for Indigenous people.
An Aboriginal Cancer Care Coordinator (with an understanding of some of the barriers to Indigenous people being diagnosed at an earlier stage and the challenges of adherence to cancer treatment) could significantly increase early diagnosis and improve the quality of cancer treatment for Indigenous people.
Redesigning Psycho-Social Care: Routine screening with QUICA -TOUCH
The additional funding will enable further development and roll out the QUICA-TOUCH - Quick, Individually Customised Assessment Touch screens are an innovative and successful way to assess pain, distress and physical symptoms in oncology outpatients.
The touch screen questionnaire provides feedback to clinicians when intervention is required. It also streamlines referrals to other professionals in the patient care team and provides a direct referral for psychological care.
The funding enhancement will also mean an increase in staff levels to ensure patients are screened, assessed and referred quicker, and will ensure a good outcome for patients requiring other interventions.
Expanding psycho-oncology support to rural areas
$79,488 will be used to employ a Clinical Psychologist who will develop a comprehensive training program for psychologists working with cancer patients in the community.
The additional support and training, specifically in psycho-oncology will enable these teams to increase the number of patients able to receive psychological support as well as being able to provide care needed in a more timely way to patients and families in rural areas.
Implementation of GP Tele-colposcopists in rural centres
The aim of Tele-colposcopy is to assist in the early detection and treatment of cervical disease and to reduce / avoid women having to travel long distances in rural and remote communities for initial assessment after an abnormal Pap test.
Tele-colposcopy involves storing digital, computerised images of the cervix at the time of colposcopy and sending these images for expert assessment at another site.
The Tele-colposcopy Project aims to establish clinics in outlying centres within the Hunter New England Health region. The clinics will be conducted by GP Tele-colposcopists. The project follows on from the Tele-colposcopy Pilot Project conducted between Tamworth Hospital and Royal Hospital for Women, Randwick in 2004.
Contact: Clare Siddins
Phone: 6767 7137