Preventive Health Matters

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Neil Brooks
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1 Preventive Health Matters

2 Overview What is Preventive Health Matters (PHM) Governance Objectives Focus areas Features Mechanisms to foster engagement Effectiveness Feedback from baseline evaluation user profile, benefits, intended use, participation Questions/comments

3 Preventive Health Matters Preventive Health Matters has been funded through the Disease Prevention and Health Promotion in Medicare Locals Program managed by the Australian National Preventive Health Agency (ANPHA). The Disease Prevention and Health Promotion in Medicare Locals Program is also supporting other Medicare Locals (MLs) to deliver preventive health initiatives and improve health outcomes and reverse the impact of preventable chronic disease in their communities. Visit for more information.

4 Medicare Locals The aim of the 61 MLs across Australia is to coordinate Primary Health Care delivery, tackle local health care needs and service gaps. MLs are funded to drive improvements in Primary Health Care, improve access to preventive health and health promotion, and ensure services are better tailored to meet the needs of local communities.

5 Preventive Health Matters The Preventive Health Matters web tool has been purposely developed to facilitate the knowledge transfer between Medicare Locals and to harness the use of research and evidence to improve the planning, implementation and evaluation of preventive health initiatives within MLs. This web tool supports MLs across Australia to deliver an evidence based focus on prevention; sharing ideas, resources, and contemporary evidence in a collaborative way.

6 Preventive Health Matters Informing, facilitating and encouraging collaborative relationships. Fostering a culture of knowledge translation and exchange within MLs. Having knowledge translated into practice settings. Multiple participants participating in ongoing, accountable, peer level exchanges. Values diverse knowledge and skills among MLs.

7 Preventive Health Matters Also about strengthening linkages between MLs and ANPHA in relation to ANPHA s research agenda and translational research capabilities to support MLs in the development of their preventive health programs. PHM currently has 288 members from 55 of the 61 Medicare Locals across Australia.

8 The Difference Already a large volume of information available through social media and social networking sites but there are possibilities for inaccuracies posted on these sites. Uncontrolled formats present significant challenges to ensuring validity, reliability and accuracy of information. While there are benefits to the use of social networking for health communication, the information exchanged needs to be monitored for quality and reliability. This is one of the principle advantages of PHM over other tools and will contribute to its success.

9 Governance Wide Bay ML host the Project Manager/Knowledge Broker position. Wide Bay ML team initially drove the uptake and adoption of PHM. Project Manager/Knowledge Broker position responsible for operation, administration and evaluation of PHM. PHM team WBML and ANPHA staff PHM Reference Group representation from ANPHA and at least one member from a ML in every state and territory. Reference Group act in an advisory role for project implementation.

10 Objectives The intent of PHM is to become the preferred source of knowledge, advice and support on issues relating to Australian preventive health practices for MLs by the end of June 2015 (current funded period). Five key benefits: Increased interactions with other preventive health practitioners. More available, shared and tailored information. Increased accessibility to evidence based health information. Collegial/peer support. Potential to influence culture and policy.

11 Focus Areas Engagement and interaction within the Web Tool fall under a number of key topic areas that include (but are not limited to): ANPHA funded Health Promotion in ML Projects. Strategy areas of obesity, tobacco and alcohol (consistent with the National Preventive Health Strategy) and disadvantaged, hard to reach or at risk, priority population groups. Evidence based practice in preventive health. Frameworks and tools (i.e. preventive health, population health, health promotion in ML framework)

12 Features It is a social media style platform user profile, can set up connections with other members, new communities can be added. The tool offers: a resource library, events calendar, latest news, blogging capabilities, bulk capacity, and discussion groups/threads.

13 Features It allows users to generate peer discussions which is quite unique compared to other preventive heath/health promotion websites. It also offers free monthly webinars.

14 Mechanisms to Foster Engagement Mechanisms to foster engagement and interaction: Participation in group discussions One on one conversations Provision of up to date and relevant preventive health ideas and practices Supporting professional debate over cutting edge health issues Webinars Q and A sessions Showcasing current projects and findings Responding to needs expressed by MLs Peer reviewed publication discussions Case studies Identifying and communicating existing professional development opportunities

15 A community of practice The use of Preventive Health Matters is expected to deliver many benefits to its user community, including: It aims to foster a community of practice generating excitement and attracting and maintaining Medicare Local member s involvement. Online knowledge brokering resource will assist in disseminating evidence on what works and what does not across settings and target groups, in order to improve practice.

16 Measures of effectiveness Outlined in the project objectives that both quantitative and quantitative data will be collected throughout the project to monitor the process, impact and outcome of the project. Baseline evaluation has been conducted. Process evaluation series of indicators will be used and periodically assessed throughout the project. All feed into a continuous improvement cycle. Impact evaluation to be conducted towards the end.

17 User Profile Even distribution across Metro, Regional and Rural/Remote MLs. All who responded to the survey were professionally qualified from undergrad to PhD. Over half had five years or less experience working in health promotion and/or preventive health. Three quarters were not members of any professional associations.

18 Evaluation to date Items that members highlighted as being most useful/utilised were: Viewing shared resources (library) Downloading shared resources (library) Webinars Discussion posts Members using PHM weekly or fortnightly

19 Evaluation to date

20 Evaluation to date

21 Progress Report Just as an example (as at Feb 13 th 2014 ): 1. Recently shared resources (library) 238 documents total views 938 downloads 964 comments 3 marked as favourite 8 shared 5, and recommended 10 (Standard file upload 179, YouTube -33, Hyperlink 2, Egroup/discussion group attachment 24) 2. Discussion Threads - New 63, Replies (to all) 175, Reply (to sender) 41.

22 Ultimate success The ultimate gauge of success of PHM is whether it will be able to enhance the capability of MLs to effectively deliver a range of health promotion/prevention activities. Further evaluation required to determine this.

23 Your participation Two broad methods of participation: Registration: Medicare Local staff register to become a PHM member. Collaborative opportunity: Capitalise on the ML national audience to distribute articles, presentations, professional development opportunities etc.

24 Key contact Dr Meg Adam Preventive Health Matters Project Manager Mob:

25 Questions

STRATEGIC PLAN

STRATEGIC PLAN 2 0 1 1 2 0 1 5 ISBN 978-0-9871821-0-4 Commonwealth of Australia 2011 This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any