Primary Health Care

Key Directions grants
www.moh.govt.nz/keydirectionsgrants

The Ministry of Health has set up a grants strategy to provide funding for health sector initiatives that develop standards, protocols and guidelines that contribute to the Key Directions programme.

More information about the Key Directions grants is provided below:

What is Key Directions?

Key Directions is a work programme supporting the Primary Health Care Strategy. The Primary Health Care Strategy outlines a clear direction for ensuring that primary health care services play a central role in improving the health of New Zealanders.

It’s vision is that:

people will be part of local primary health care services that improve their health, keep them well, are easy to get to and enable co-ordination of their ongoing care
primary health care services will focus on better health for a population, and actively work to reduce health inequalities amongst different groups.

There are six elements that support the vision.

Working with local communities and enrolled populations.
Identifying and removing health inequalities.
Offering access to comprehensive services to improve, maintain and restore people’s health.
Co-ordinating care across service areas.
Developing the primary health care workforce.
Continuously improving quality using good information.

Key Directions provides tools that enable primary health care to:

identify population health needs
support tailored care
enable the co-ordination of care
improve performance and evidence-based decisions
support self-care by individuals, whānau and families.

Some of the tools include:

codes of practice for access to, and use of, patient data
protocols for safe sharing of information
agreed minimum data set standards for primary health care and to support early childhood health
a data standard for the composition of clinical notes for electronic transfer
a messaging standard for clinical notes transfer between health provider systems (including capability for clinical notes transfer in mainstream practice management systems)
published standards for the quality of clinical electronic decision support tools in New Zealand
legal protocols required to support electronic clinical decision support tools in New Zealand
guidelines for the assessment of evidence and for supporting assessment processes.

View more information on the Key Directions programme in the Services & Projects section.

The grants strategy

The Key Directions grants strategy supports innovation in the health sector by:

supporting and strengthening health sector-wide relationships around standards development
enabling development of standards by supporting active participants in the local community
supporting local standards development that have the potential to be used nationally.

Projects may receive funding through a process approved by the Ministry of Health. The grants process builds on local investment of time, effort and resourcing. This approach encourages innovation and collaboration between individuals or groups, and minimises the chance of duplication. The grants process provides opportunities for local pilot projects that have the potential to be applied nationally.

There are already some projects and initiatives under way. The people and groups involved have invested time and skills in their projects, and the Ministry sees an added benefit from maintaining enthusiasm and momentum. In particular, the Ministry does not want to lose the intellectual investment in these initiatives.

Grant applications

Who can apply?

A person or group currently working on an initiative that contributes to the Key Directions programme. This process is designed to assist collaborative groups rather than provide a funding channel for commercial enterprises.

Funding is available for:

current work or projects that contribute to the Key Directions programme
meeting travel, accommodation and, in approved circumstances, per diem costs for people working directly on the activity to which the grant applies
supporting projects that contribute to the development of standards, protocols or guidelines for information collection and/or sharing to improve patient care.

Funding is not available for:

purchasing capital items
permanent staff salaries
initiating new work or new projects. New projects will be funded through established procurement processes.

How can I apply?

Applications may be made at any time. A simple written application is all that is required, and there is no specified format the application must follow. However, it is recommended that applicants use the attached coversheet - see Application Forms. The context of, and outcome sought, from the project are the determining factors.

Applicants who are unfamiliar with the requirements of the grants strategy should contact the project manager, Neil Gyde.

Send applications to:

Neil Gyde
Project Manager
Key Directions, Information Directorate
Ministry of Health
PO Box 5013
Wellington.

Neil_Gyde@moh.govt.nz

What is the process after an application has been submitted?

Information on the administration process for grant applications is provided in the flowchart below:

Flowchart showing the process for the administration process for grant applications.

Flowchart showing the process for the administration process for grant applications.

Text description of flowchart:

Once an application has been submitted it will be processed by the Ministry of Health and reviewed by a panel. The grant will be either approved or declined.

If appropriate, feedback will be provided to the applicant with either 1. reasons for declining the application or 2. a request to modify and resubmit the application.

For approved grant applications a formal letter of agreement will be developed between the applicant and the Ministry of Health. This will include the specification of stages/deliverables and the payments schedule.

The specified outputs are then delivered by the applicant - where applicable, payments tied to the successful delivery of the agreed outputs/stages are made.

The final project outcomes will be evaluated by a panel.

Application forms

Key Directions grants application cover sheet and grant application approval sheet (Word, 104 KB)

Selection process and criteria

How are the projects selected and approved for grants?

There is a selection panel comprising two or more people. They may be either Ministry of Health staff, nominated members of the Health IT Cluster, or a panel drawn from the immediate health care area to which the project relates. Applicants will be advised about membership of the panel.

What are the selection criteria?

The selection criteria are, by virtue of the expected nature of the applications, relatively broad. Projects need to demonstrate how they contribute to Key Directions and, where applicable, specify the stages and/or deliverables of the project, timeframes and a breakdown of the funding being sought.

Successful grant applications

The table below gives details of successful Key Directions grant applications to date.

Name of Organisation	Brief description of project for which grant has been awarded
HealthLink	Development of a concise business plan for implementing the forthcoming Online Forms Interface Standard (Health Information Standards Organisation (HISO) Standard 10014-2) for use within chronic care management projects.
KP Ltd – trading as Help4U	Development of a data dictionary of plain language interpretations of clinical terms that may be integrated with clinical data sets and SNOMED-CT terminology
New Zealand Guidelines Group	Analysis of the requirements for development and implementation of standards for electronic clinical decision support tools.
HIQ Ltd	Development of an electronic health record for chronic conditions in the Midland Region DHBs.
Auckland UniServices Ltd	Contribution to the ASSET programme, which is evaluating the benefits of self management of chronic conditions in a home-based setting using biometric equipment to measure and record patient health status.
Independent Practitioners Association Council of NZ Inc (IPAC)	Analysis of the information requirements of the QI4GP (quality information for general practice) initiative for input to a stage 2 business case.

Please contact us if you would like further information about these projects.

Additional information

Confidentiality

Projects supported by “Key Directions” grants are managed in a collaborative environment. Whilst recognising matters of personal privacy and commercial sensitivity, within the context of that collaborative environment applicants should expect the award of a grant to be common knowledge. Similarly, progress reports on any project in receipt of a grant will be shared with the community of interest.

Agreements and contracts

The grants strategy is a transparent process that requires clear communication about deliverables, timelines and payment. In most instances a ‘letter of agreement’ signed by both parties will be sufficient to formally agree and document the responsibilities of each party. This process is aligned with the Ministry’s policy for buying goods and services.

Payments

Funding is exclusive of Goods and Services Tax. Before any payment is made the applicant(s) must provide the Ministry with either a tax invoice or a current tax exemption certificate. The applicant(s) is/are responsible for all taxation liabilities and all other costs and expenses arising in relation to the grant.

Conflicts of interest

Applicants may be required to certify that they are not subject to conflicts of interest in respect of any grant prior to signing a letter of agreement or any contract for services.

Intellectual property

Unless otherwise determined, intellectual property rights belong to the person or group developing and delivering the innovation to which the application relates. However, it is important that any standards developed within the context of the grants strategy be shared across the sector.

Contact us

Send enquiries to:

Neil Gyde
Project Manager
Key Directions, Information Directorate
Ministry of Health

PO Box 5013
Wellington

Neil_Gyde@moh.govt.nz

Page last updated: 20 October 2009