Overview
In the 2008-09 Federal Budget, the Commonwealth Government announced the restructure of the Aged Care GP Panels Initiative. Commencing 1 July 2008, funding for the Aged Care GP Panels initiative was redirected to support primary care service provision in residential aged care facilities through the Aged Care Access Initiative (ACAI).The Commonwealth Government has confirmed that it will continue to provide funding for the ACAI for 2009-10 and 2010-11.
The aim of the ACAI is to improve access to primary care (GP and Allied Health services) for Residential Aged Care Facilities (RACFs) through:
- GP Incentive Component: An incentive payment through the Practice Incentives Program (PIP) to encourage GPs to provide more services in RACFs which will be administered by Medicare;
- Allied Health Services Incentive Component: A payment for clinical care provided by Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) in RACFs where these services are not currently covered by Medicare or other government funding arrangements. This component is managed by SBOs in collaboration with divisions of general practice.
Stakeholders
The key participants in the Aged Care Access Initiative (ACAI) include:- Allied health service providers
- Australian General Practice Network (AGPN)
- Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing (DoHA)
- Divisions of general practice
- GPs
- Residential Aged Care Facilities (RACFs)
- State Based Organisations (SBOs)
Services by divisions
- Please click here for a summary of ACAI services by divisions in 2010 - 2011.
Resources
- Aged and Community Services Australia - Residential Care News and Updates
- Aged Care Access Initiative Guidelines: Please note that program guidelines are currently under review and unable to be accessed from Australian Government Department of Health and Aging website. Until the updated guidelines are released the 2009-2010 guidelines continue to apply.
- Aged Care Queensland
- Alzheimer’s Australia
- Council on the Ageing
- Medicare
- Palliative Care Australia - Guidelines for a Palliative Approach in Residential Aged Care
- Medical Care of Older Persons in Residential Aged Care Facilities - RACGP Silver Book 4th Edition: This fourth edition of the Medical care of older persons in residential aged care facilities ('silver book') is primarily for use by GPs who are commencing, or already providing, care for patients in residential aged care. It recognises the multidisciplinary nature of care and may also be useful as a clinical or educational resource.
- Aging with Vitality: This flyer resource provides an everyday guide to healthy active living and is full of tips, real life stories and sample exercises to make being healthy and active fun. The guide is freely available and suggests everyday activities and exercises for strength, balance, flexibility and endurance that can be done at home.
- Absolutely Ageless Consumer Website (to go live on 14 August 2010): General practitioners (GPs) play a vital role in the prevention and management of physical health conditions .Many factors that contribute to the poor state of physical health for people include lifestyle, medication side effects and limited access to physical health checks. GPs can support the improvement of the physical health conditions by providing regular physical health checks, engaging consumers in regular healthy lifestyle counseling and referring patients to specialist appointments where necessary. This website aims to provide access to information which supports people to lead a healthy lifestyle particularly as we get older. The website provides healthy lifestyle tips, ideas and resources, access to documents that provide information on important physical health checks and interventions, and how you can access your general practitioner effectively for healthy lifestyle advice.
Further information
Please contact Phillipa Grant - Senior Program Leader on 3105 8300 or pgrant@gpqld.org.au