Statement of Support – Treaty for Victoria
Western Victoria Primary Health Network (WVPHN) recently released a statement supporting a Treaty for Victoria. Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs) have repeatedly told us that they believe that a Treaty for Victoria will help achieve better health outcomes for their communities. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health is one of WVPHN’s seven key health priority targets and in bringing about better outcomes we strongly believe that self-determination for First Nations people is vital. To quote from our statement on treaty, “Aboriginal organisations know their communities best. Aboriginal health must be in Aboriginal hands.” You can read the full statement here.
Face-to-Face Training for Practice Nurses and Nurse Practitioners
In May and July, we have a series of face-to-face training events for practice nurses and nurse practitioners that we’d like to highlight.
In late May, we are offering free sessions on Chronic Disease Management in Primary Care in Ballarat, Hamilton and Geelong. The training is run by Sara Drew RN/IPN/ Nurse Manager from the Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association (APNA) and will cover the fundamental of chronic disease management, including models of care, guidelines and MBS billing, patient-centred care planning and more.
In late July, we are running annual refreshers on Managing Immunisation Emergencies in Warrnambool, Horsham, Ballarat and Geelong for practice nurses and nurse practitioners. This training is running by Steph Bedggood, a registered Nurse Immuniser, and it will renew your knowledge, refine your assessment skills and refresh your confidence and competence in immunisation emergencies. This workshop includes HLTAID009 Provide Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation.
These trainings are an excellent way to get together with other clinicians from your region, to meet face-to-face and update your learning, and our Workforce Development Team has made a big effort to make sure they’re available across the western Victoria region.
World Immunisation Week
Next week is World Immunisation Week (24-30 April). Immunisation campaigns have been a force for global good, enabling us to eradicate smallpox, nearly defeat polio, and ensure more children survive and thrive than ever before. This year the week is being used to celebrate 50 years of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI). When it kicked off in 1974, the EPI aimed to protect all children against six childhood illnesses, but over time this number has increased to 13 universally recommended vaccines across a person’s lifespan, with an additional 17 vaccines recommended depending on the context.
While vaccination rates for children in western Victoria remain high – according to the Department of Health and Aged Care the percentage of fully vaccinated five-year-olds is 95.83% – during the last few years global progress on immunisation has slipped because of the pandemic and related effects, including economic downturns, growing conflicts and vaccine hesitancy.
World Immunisation Week is also a good reminder that winter is coming, and that it’s a good time to get vaccinated against the flu and COVID-19. While our childhood vaccination rates for our region are excellent, at the other end of the age scale only 21.3% of western Victorians aged 65 plus have been vaccinated for COVID-19 in the last six months and 45.2% vaccinated in the last year. We should all be encouraging people in this cohort to update their vaccination status and protect themselves and our health system.
Andy Giddy, Acting CEO WVPHN
17 April 2024