As part of Healthy North Coast’s commissioning role, requests for tenders, proposals or expressions of interest will be periodically released for the delivery of primary health care programs or services.

Healthy North Coast aims to improve health outcomes by commissioning health services and project procurement opportunities to address local needs guided by community, clinical and stakeholder input. Registering with TenderLink will ensure you are notified as soon as an opportunity is advertised.

Current Opportunities

GP Services to Support People Experiencing Homelessness – Tweed Shire Closing time 9:00 am on 03 Jul 2024

GP Services to Support People Experiencing Homelessness – Tweed Shire

Healthy North Coast is inviting providers in the Tweed Shire to participate in an initiative to provide clinical services to those who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.

GPs are being sought to provide clinical services in one or more of the following:

  • Fred’s Place, Tweed Heads
  • Assertive Outreach Team, Tweed Heads

Program details
Funding will be allocated to provide one morning session per week at Fred’s Place (4 hour clinic). Fred’s Place is a drop-in service for people experiencing homelessness. Fred’s Place is run by St Vincent de Paul and provides services including meals, shower, washing facilities, social programs and support groups.

Funding will be allocated to provide one session per week (4-hours) working alongside the NNSW LHD Assertive Outreach Team (AOT). The AOT provides comprehensive assessment, care coordination and clinical intervention for homeless persons who are experiencing mental illness and provides outreach support to rough sleepers in public places in the Tweed Shire. Assertive outreach will be provided to clients in the community who may not attend Fred’s Place.

Fred’s Place, Tweed Heads
4-hour clinic per week
GP and Nurse or allied health provider (including Aboriginal Health Worker)$1300 a session, 48 sessions a year, $10,000 establishment funding
Total: $72,400

Assertive Outreach Team, Tweed Heads
4-hour clinic per week
GP and Nurse or allied health provider (including Aboriginal Health Worker)
$1300 a session, 48 sessions a year, $10,000 establishment funding
Total: $72,400

The successful applicants will work closely with St Vincent de Paul representatives and Northern NSW Local Health District clinicians and social workers.

The overarching goal is to create a healthcare system that is inclusive, accessible and responsive to the needs of people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in the Tweed Shire region.

Timeline
Clinical services in Tweed are due to commence in August 2024 and will be funded for 12 months.

Application instructions
Please click the provided link to access the online application form.

Applications are due 9am, Wednesday 3 July 2024.
If you would like further information about this initiative, please email the commissioning team at [email protected]

EOI: GP Services to Support People Experiencing Homelessness – Byron Shire Closing time 9:00 am on 03 Jul 2024

EOI: GP Services to Support People Experiencing Homelessness – Byron Shire

Healthy North Coast is inviting providers to participate in an initiative to provide clinical services to those who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless in the Byron Shire.

GPs are being sought to provide clinical services in one or more of the following:
• Fletcher Street Cottage in Byron Bay
• Assertive Outreach (service model to be discussed with interested providers)
• Mullumbimby (location to be confirmed)

Program details
• Funding to provide one morning session per week at Fletcher Street Cottage (4-hours). Fletcher Street Cottage is a drop-in service for people experiencing homelessness, providing breakfast, access to showers, washing facilities, social programs and support groups.

• Funding to provide Assertive Outreach one session a week within the Byron Shire (4-hours). The service model to be developed with interested providers.

• Funding to provide one session a week in Mullumbimby (4-hours). The service model and location for the service will be developed with interested providers.

Fletcher Street Cottage 4-hour clinic per week
GP and Nurse or allied health provider (including Aboriginal Health Worker)
$1300 a session
48 sessions a year
$10,000 establishment funding
Total: $72,400

Assertive Outreach
Byron Shire
(service model to be discussed with interested providers)
4 hours outreach per week
GP and Nurse or allied health provider (including Aboriginal Health Worker)
$1300 a session
48 sessions a year
$10,000 establishment funding
Total: $72,400

Mullumbimby (service location to be confirmed) 4-hour clinic per week
GP and Nurse or allied health provider (including Aboriginal Health Worker)
$1300 a session
48 sessions a year
$10,000 establishment funding
Total: $72,400

The successful applicants will work closely with Northern NSW Local Health District clinicians and social workers.

The overarching goal is to create a healthcare system that is inclusive, accessible and responsive to the needs of people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in the Byron Shire region.

Timeline
Clinical services in the Byron Shire are due to commence in August 2024 and will be funded for 12 months.

Application instructions
Please click here for the provided link to access the online application form.

Applications are due 9am, Wednesday 3 July 2024.

If you would like further information about this initiative, please email the Commissioning Team, at [email protected]

 

 

EOI: GP services to Support People Experiencing Homelessness – Coffs... Closing time 9:00 am on 03 Jul 2024

EOI: GP services to Support People Experiencing Homelessness – Coffs Harbour

Healthy North Coast is inviting providers to participate in an initiative to provide clinical services to people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.

GPs are being sought to provide clinical services at the following location:
• Pete’s Place Coffs Harbour

Program details
Funding will be allocated to provide one morning session per week at Pete’s Place (4-hour clinic). Pete’s Place is a drop-in service for people experiencing homelessness that provides services including meals, shower, washing facilities, social programs and support groups. Pete’s Place is run by St Vincent de Paul.

Pete’s Place 4-hour clinic per week
GP and Nurse or allied health provider (including Aboriginal Health Worker)
$1300 a session
48 sessions a year
$10,000 establishment funding
Total: $72,400

The successful applicants will work closely with St Vincent de Paul representatives and Mid North Coast Local Health District (MNCLHD) clinicians and social workers.

The overarching goal is to create a healthcare system that is inclusive, accessible and responsive to the needs of people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in the Coffs Harbour region.

Timeline
Clinical services at Pete’s Place in Coffs Harbour are due to commence in August 2024 and will be funded for 12 months.

Application instructions

Please click this provided link to access the online application form.
Applications are due 9am, Wednesday 3 July 2024.

If you would like further information about this initiative, please email the Commissioning Team, at [email protected]

 

Healthy North Coast’s Tenderlink Portal can be found at:

www.tenderlink.com/hnc

Healthy North Coast acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the lands across our region, and pay our respect to Elders past, present and on their journey. We recognise these lands were never ceded and acknowledge the continuation of culture and connection to the land, sky and sea. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the Land’s First Peoples and honour the rich diversity of the oldest living cultures. 

Healthy North Coast is an independent, not-for-profit organisation proudly delivering the PHN program in North Coast NSW. We are committed to improving the health of our communities through quality primary health care.
The PHN program is an Australian Government Initiative.
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Our regional partners

  • Local Health District partners in our footprint: Mid North Coast Local Health District (MNCLHD) & Northern New South Wales Local Health District (NNSWLHD)
  • Aboriginal Medical Services (AMS)
  • The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP)
  • Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM)
  • Rural Doctors Network (RDN)
  • Rural Clinical Schools & Regional Training Hubs
  • General Practitioners
  • Registrars and International Medical Graduates
  • North Coast Allied Health Association (NCAHA)
  • Local Councils
    Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA)
  • Universities including: Charles Sturt University (CSU), University of New South Wales (UNSW), Southern Cross University (SCU)

Aged Care Disaster Management Planning

Strategic Priority Area: One team

North Coast is identified as the region most likely to be impacted by climate change in Australia and also forecasted greatest growth in those 65+.

Healthy North Coast takes a lead role in ensuring the older population and the sector that supports them are prepared for, can respond to and recover from disasters and other emergencies.

We have led eight regional disaster management capacity building workshops, bringing together SES, community organisations and the aged care sector.

We have also developed disaster preparedness tip sheets for both residential and community aged care providers.

Read the media release: Aged Care Homes Prepare for Disasters

Voluntary Assisted Dying

Strategic Priority Area: One team

In May 2022, the NSW Parliament passed the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2022. Effective from Tuesday, 28 November 2023, eligible people have the choice to access voluntary assisted dying. 

Healthy North Coast has developed a webpage for both health professionals and consumers, with links to available information and resources.

Visit the Voluntary Assisted Dying webpage

Living with Dementia resources

Strategic Priority Area: No one is left behind

Healthy North Coast has worked with people living with dementia, their families and local service providers to develop an information booklet that will help them connect with local and national supports along their journey.

The booklet includes commonly asked questions for people to ask their GP and/or specialist.

The resource is available in digital and printed copies, with more than 5,000 distributed across the region. An e-version is available to clinicians via the Dementia and Cognitive Impairment HealthPathway.

View the Living with Dementia booklet (PDF)

Deteriorating Resident Triage Tool Pilot

Strategic Priority Area: One team

The Deteriorating Resident Response Tool (DRRT) has been developed to guide RN’s in Residential Aged Care homes (RACHs) to better understand, anticipate and make clinical decisions responding to the deteriorating health of residents.

The objective of the DRRT is to give RACH staff clear information to triage and provide appropriate care for a range of residents’ health conditions, and, in turn, prevent unnecessary presentations to ED.

The tool has been designed together with a specialist geriatrician, consulting with stakeholders such as Residential Aged Care Managers, NSW Ambulance, GPs, and experts from Mid and North Coast LHDs.

The pilot commences in March with four participating RACHs. Evaluation measures will include effectiveness in building RN confidence and reported reduction in unnecessary hospitalisations. Findings will inform a future planned, region-wide implementation.

View the deteriorating resident response tool

North Coast Care Finders Program

Strategic Priority Area: No one is left behind

The Care Finders program is a free region-wide service to support vulnerable older people who have no-one else to help them, to learn about, apply for and set up support services.

Care finders can help people understand what aged care services are available, set up an assessment, and find and choose services. They also help people with access to other supports in the community, both accessing services for the first time and changing or finding new services and supports.

On the North Coast, Healthy North Coast has commissioned four organisations to provide this important service: EACH, Carexcell, Lifetime Connect and Footprints.

Download the 'Older people with a focus on priority target populations and access to services' Needs Assessment
Visit the commissioned services listings to find out more, including service contact information.
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Psychological services in residential aged care homes

Strategic Priority Area: Improving Lives Now

Healthy North Coast commissions two service providers to deliver psychological therapies and supports for older people with, or at risk of developing, a mental illness and who are living in residential aged care homes (RACHs).

The aim of the program is to both provide direct support to residents and their families and carers, as well as upskill the RACH workforce to respond to the needs of residents presenting with mental health concerns.

Visit the commissioned services listings to find out more, including service contact information.​

Social prescribing (Healthy Me Healthy Community)

Strategic Priority Area: Securing a Healthier Future

Delivered by Feros Care, the Healthy Me, Healthy Community program aims to build individual and community connections to reduce loneliness and improve wellbeing in Port Macquarie.

The program helps people to connect with community, activities, supports and services that address their broader social determinants of health, as an alternative or supplement to a clinical approach.

Visit the Healthy Me Healthy Community service page
Read the consumer story: Jim’s confidence boost brings a new lease on life
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Digital Health in Residential Aged Care

Strategic Priority Area: Improving Lives Now

Timely access to primary health care professionals, whether through face-to-face consultation or telehealth, is recognised as an issue for many Residential Aged Care Homes (RACHs), that in some cases can lead to potentially preventable hospitalisations. RACHs require adequate telehealth facilities to support access to virtual consultations for their residents.

Project goals

  • Assist participating RACHs to have appropriate telehealth facilities and equipment to enable their residents to virtually consult when needed with their primary health care professionals, specialists and other clinicians. 
  • Provide training to participating RACH staff to support them to have the capabilities to assist their residents in accessing virtual consultation services.
  • Encourage increased use of My Health Record by RACHs, to improve the availability and secure transfer of resident’s health care information between RACHs, primary care and acute care settings.
For more information, visit the Residential Aged Care Virtual Care Project webpage
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Greater Choice at Home Palliative Care Program

Strategic Priority Area: Improving Lives Now

Aims to provide people who have life limiting conditions the opportunity to exercise choice and receive high quality care at home, harnessing improved and better coordinated supports and services that meet their individual needs.

Program objectives:

  • Improve access to palliative care at home and support end-of-life care systems and services (in primary health care and community care)
  • To enable the right care at the right time and in the right place (to reduce unnecessary hospitalisation)
  • Generate and use data to support continuous improvement of services across sectors
  • Use available technologies to support flexible and responsive palliative care at home, including in the after-hours.

These objectives will contribute to achieving the following intended overarching outcomes of:

  • Improved capacity and responsiveness of services to meet local needs and priorities
  • Improved patient access to quality palliative care services in the home
  • Improved coordination of care for patients across health care providers and integration of palliative care services in their region.
Read more about the Greater Choice at Home Palliative Care Program
Download the 2023 Palliative and End-of-life Care Needs Assessment (PDF)

Education & training funding elibility

Funding is open to all primary care providers within disaster affected communities across the Healthy North Coast footprint.

References

  1. Healthy North Coast Health Needs Assessment, 2022-2025
  2. Northern Rivers Community Foundation (2023). Northern Rivers Vital Signs, 2023
  3. Northern Rivers Community Foundation Flood Impact Report, May 2023
  4. Ang, C., Abdo, M., Rose, V., Lim, R., and Taylor, J. (2023). Participatory Grantmaking: Building the Evidence. Centre for Evidence and Innovation. 
  5. Lee, G., Vine, K., Atkinson, A-R., Tong, M., Longman, J., Barratt, A., Bailie, R., Vardoulakis, S., Matthews, V., & Mizanur Rahman, K. (2023). Impacts of Climate Change on Health and Health Services in Northern New South Wales, Australia: A Rapid Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20, 6285. 
  6. Sewell, T., Stephens, R., Dominey-Howes, D., Bruce, E., & Perkins-Kirkpatrick, S. (2016), Disaster declarations associated with bushfires, floods and storms in New South Wales, Australia between 2004 and 2014. Scientific Reports (6). 
  7. Dominey-Howes, D., Bruce, E., Stephens, R., Perkins-Kirkpatrick, S., & Sewell, T. (2016). Natural disasters are affecting some of Australia’s most disadvantaged communities. The Conversation. 

Workforce Locum support and R&R funding criteria

  • Available to primary care services in disaster impacted communities within the Healthy North Coast footprint.
  • Available to support short-term workforce coverage, allowing clinicians to rest and recover.
  • Workforce-support funding in total is capped for each site, over a 12-month period:
    • $10k for GPs and/or
    • $5K for nursing and/or
    • $5k administration support and/or
    • $5K allied/pharmacy and other.
  • Funding is not to be used to fill gaps in staffing that have not been able to recruit to and not to replace existing staff.
  • Healthy North Coast will assess requirements and approve available funding directly with the service requesting support.
  • Priority will be given to sites that have immediate, short-term workforce support needs.
  • Requests will be reviewed and supported on a case-by-case basis.
  • Program funding administered via RCTI Agreement (Recipient Created Tax Invoice) to be paid monthly, or on completion of the placement (whichever comes first).
  • Practices will be required to complete a request for payment form monthly, or on completion of the placement (whichever occurs first).

Wellbeing Flexible Funding Criteria & Eligibility

  • Open to all primary care providers within disaster affected communities across the Healthy North Coast footprint.
  • Activity must be purposeful, with the aim of increasing the wellbeing of your team.
  • Requests will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, with funding allocated based on team size.*
  • Following approval by Healthy North Coast, funding will be administered via RCTI Agreement (Recipient Created Tax Invoice) upon providing proof of expenses.
  • Funding cannot be used for the purchase of alcohol, or any other goods or services where the vendor cannot quote their Australian Business Number.
  • Planned activities must occur prior to 30th June 2024.
  • Funding will not be available for retrospective activities.
*Team Size
(Total staff and contractors)		Funding Available
Small (1-5)$500-$1500
Medium (6-20)$1500-$4000
Large (>20)$4000-$5000