Information Resource Needs and Preference of Queensland General Practitioners on Complementary Medicines: Result of a Needs Assessment

Objectives. To explore in a cohort of Queensland (Qld) GPs' their attitudes to; knowledge about; and practice behaviour regarding complementary medicines (CMs), and to identify their perceptions of need for information resources on CMs. Design. A faxed self-administered survey to a random sample of 800 GPs in Qld. Participants. 463 completed surveys were returned, representing a 58% response rate. Results. The majority of GPs had a positive attitude about incorporating CMs in their clinical practice; however, only 12% perceived they had adequate knowledge to be able to advise patients about CMs. GPs most preferred evidence-based resources for receiving information on CMs (fact sheets, booklets, and journals) that contain clinical, pharmacological, and toxicological information. Most GPs perceived a need for an information resource on herbal medicines, vitamins, minerals, and trace elements, and nutritional supplements. Conclusion. GPs are open to integrating CMs into their clinical practice. They identify a current lack of knowledge coupled with a substantive level of interest to learn more. GPs perceive a high level of need for information resources on CMs. These resources should be developed and readily available to GPs to increase their knowledge about CMs and better equip them in communicating with patients about CMs use

Building capacity in those who deliver palliative care services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

The role of culture in palliative care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples builds on over 60 000 years of history and includes meaningful practices to support a good “finishing up”. The Gwandalan National Palliative Care Project aims to build capacity in those who deliver palliative care to embed culturally responsive care in all end-of-life settings. Community consultation, value co-creation and user-centred design ensured that diverse Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives informed the Gwandalan curriculum. Emerging communities of practice serve as yarning circles where barriers to and enablers of service delivery can be shared and addressed collaboratively

Responding to GPs' information resource needs: implementation and evaluation of a complementary medicines information resource in Queensland general practice

Background: Australian General Practitioners (GPs) are in the forefront of primary health care and in an excellent position to communicate with their patients and educate them about Complementary Medicines (CMs) use. However previous studies have demonstrated that GPs lack the knowledge required about CMs to effectively communicate with patients about their CMs use and they perceive a need for information resources on CMs to use in their clinical practice. This study aimed to develop, implement, and evaluate a CMs information resource in Queensland (Qld) general practice.Methods: The results of the needs assessment survey of Qld general practitioners (GPs) informed the development of a CMs information resource which was then put through an implementation and evaluation cycle in Qld general practice. The CMs information resource was a set of evidence-based herbal medicine fact sheets. This resource was utilised by 100 Qld GPs in their clinical practice for four weeks and was then evaluated. The evaluation assessed GPs' (1) utilisation of the resource (2) perceived quality, usefulness and satisfaction with the resource and (3) perceived impact of the resource on their knowledge, attitudes, and practice of CMs.Results: Ninety two out of the 100 GPs completed the four week evaluation of the fact sheets and returned the post-intervention survey. The herbal medicine fact sheets produced by this study were well accepted and utilised by Qld GPs. The majority of GPs perceived that the fact sheets were a useful resource for their clinical practice. The fact sheets improved GPs' attitudes towards CMs, increased their knowledge of those herbal medicines and improved their communication with their patients about those specific herbs. Eighty-six percent of GPs agreed that if they had adequate resources on CMs, like the herbal medicine fact sheets, then they would communicate more to their patients about their use of CMs.Conclusion: Further educational interventions on CMs need to be provided to GPs to increase their knowledge of CMs and to improve their communication with patients about their CMs use

The Partners in Recovery program: Mental health commissioning using value co-creation

The Australian Government's Partners in Recovery (PIR) program established a new form of mental health intervention which required multiple sectors, services and consumers to work in a more collaborative way. Brisbane North Primary Health Network applied a value co-creation approach with partners and end users, engaging more than 100 organisations in the development of a funding submission to PIR. Engagement platforms were established and continue to provide opportunities for new co-creation experiences. Initially, seven provider agencies - later expanded to eight to include an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander provider organisation - worked collaboratively as a Consortium Management Committee. The co-creation development process has been part of achieving the co-created outcomes, which include new initiatives, changes to existing interventions and referral practices, and an increased understanding and awareness of end users' needs