A Mudgee Health Service asthma project was among the winners at the Western NSW Local Health District’s Living Quality and Safety Health and Innovation Awards.
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Staff and teams from across the LHD submitted entries leading up to the awards, with projects focussing on ways better health results can be achieved for patients through innovation.
Asthma in Mudgee: Hitting the targets in a rural setting was named the ‘Delivering Integrated Care’ category winner.
The project aims to establish a service model for patients with asthma. Partnerships were formed with key local stakeholders and best practice guidance sought from Asthma Australia.
Asthma in Mudgee (AIM) commenced in September 2016 with asthma-focused clinics established in General Practice in Mudgee.
As a result of this project, there are 492 patients currently enrolled in AIM.
Local and external evaluations of the program have shown improved clinical symptoms, significant reductions in emergency presentations and hospital admissions post enrolment in AIM with positive patient and provider feedback.
The AIM program provides an effective approach to asthma management in a rural setting.
Over 100 award submissions were received this year including 77 projects across 10 project award categories, with 29 individual submissions received.
Award finalists presented their projects via video and poster presentation at a symposium last week, allowing projects to be showcased to staff and managers from across the district so that innovative ideas could be shared.
Special guests Dr Fiona Kerr and Ben Austin OAM spoke to participants on the day to share their individual stories.
Dr Fiona Kerr has over 30 years of experience in the areas of complex organisational strategy and transformation across the public, private and tertiary sectors and within various industries.
Ben Austin, who was born in Wellington, is one of Australia’s most successful and recognised Paralympian swimmers.