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Rural Health

Rural Innovation Fund
Successful Applicants


2009/10 | 2008/09 | 2007/08 | 2006/07

2009/10


The successful applicants for the 2009/10 allocation of the Rural Innovation Fund received funding for the following initiatives:

Fiordland Medical Centre

The Fiordland Medical Practice is the first port of call for many injuries that require x-ray imaging. They currently use hard-copy films. Patients and carers often have to travel for four hours return (plus their time in hospital) to see a hospital doctor then repeat the exercise for follow up. Funding is going towards purchasing a digital cassette reader and cassettes so they can develop images which can be stored and sent electronically.

Southland Hospital doctors will then be able to view the images while Fiordland Medical Centre discuss them. This should save patients travel, reduce emergency department workload, reduce fracture clinic workload, enhance general practitioners' knowledge, improve patient care and reduce the environmental impact of vehicle use.

Waikato Community Pharmacy Group

This project seeks to build and strengthen the role of rural community pharmacy in the provision of education, support and monitoring for their patients with mild to moderate mental illness to improve their health outcomes. This is being achieved through the development of a medication counselling service (via community pharmacies) focussing on increasing medication adherence and optimising the use of medications for mental illness.

Provision of medication counselling and treatment monitoring by community pharmacists has been shown (in overseas studies) to improve adherence to antidepressant medication in those starting out on treatment.

The project includes close collaboration with Waikato Primary Health linking to the Primary Care Mental Health:Achieving for Tomorrow Action Plan.

Waiuku Medical Centre

This project takes a doctor and a nurse to a marae-based health clinic, visiting regularly each week. They hope to be able to provide health promotion and education (e.g. smoking cessation, healthy eating and weight loss, women's health) both on site and through recordings onto a website already set up by the local iwi. There are plans to offer health screening for diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, blood pressure, breast and cervical screening and immunisations, as well as providing chronic care management of diseases.

Otaki PHO

Development of GP-led clinics delivered within local kohanga reo and other kindergartens in the Otaki region is a very unique and innovative solution to improving access to GP services for this target group which often find it difficult to address their particular health needs through mainstream methods.

The common health issues at local kohanga reo in Otaki include hearing, vision, nutrition and dental services. While there are many benefits from the nurse-led clinics, it was felt by the kohanga reo that greater gains could be achieved with a GP visiting on a regular basis. The concept has been discussed with the remaining three kohanga in Otaki area, all of which expressed interest in also participating.

The GP-led clinics provide comprehensive quality GP services once a month from the premises of local Kohanga Reo or kindergartens and also enable a specific follow-up by the GP to the comprehensive health assessments previously undertaken by the PHO Outreach Nurse. Parents/caregivers of the children are encouraged to attend the clinic along with their child.

The GP-led clinics are aimed at reducing barriers to accessing primary care services, reducing inequalities for this particular age group and enhancing community, family/whānau and individual resilience and independence for people who are rurally isolated.

Western Bay of Plenty PHO

This project aims to provide a primary health care service to the residents of Motiti Island and other isolated islands. This involves a doctor and nurse travelling by air to the island fortnightly to establish, then operate a clinic. An internet connection with a camera will be installed to enable islanders to maintain contact with their clinicians should they need to. The doctor will take an array of medicines with him to dispense as and when required. A nurse now residing on the island will be supported to provide urgent care.

Tararua PHO

Funding for Taranaki PHO is going towards a Mobile Service Delivery Unit (MSDU) which enables the PHO to deliver services within each and every community in their District. This MSDU would be equipped to allow any and all of their services to travel to communities and set-up for on-site clinics and appointments. These services include:
Immunisation, Diabetes, Respiratory, Cancer Support, Cardiology, Physical Activity, Smoking Cessation, Nutrition/Dietary Mobile Nursing and Innerstrength – Mental Health.

2008/09


The successful applicants for the 2008/09 allocation of the Rural Innovations Fund received funding for the following initiatives:

West Coast Primary Health Organisation

To undertake a rural pharmacy facilitation project enhancing the integration of community pharmacy with general practice and the West Coast PHO, focusing on a clinical pharmacological level and enabling further gains in chronic care management.

Dannevirke Community Hospital

To integrate health provision in the Tararua District and to improve health care provided to the whole Tararua population by:

  • centralising an IT data base
  • developing chronic care plans across the District
  • utilising new initiatives in specialist community based nursing fully
  • creating quality work environment for training and staff
  • developing a organisational structure and management ensuring sustainable health services.

Piki Te Ora Nursing Services Ltd

To provide Māori nurse-led case management for Māori diagnosed with or having symptoms of cancer, trialling and evaluating a mobile Māori nursing service in North Taranaki.

Wairarapa Community PHO

To pilot a technical solution to improve the communication capability of one South Wairarapa practice, the WCPHO office in Masterton and the Wellington Independent Practitioner’s Association (WIPA) office in Wellington. The goal of the pilot is to investigate ways to use technology to improve synchronous professional and collegial networking, support and development for health professionals in Wairarapa.

Waikato Primary health

To employ a fixed-term Rural Workforce Development Project Manager to improve the recruitment and retention of rural health professionals in the King Country.

Waikato Clinical School

To research the potential of video-conferencing as an educational tool for teaching General Practice in rural areas, trialling web-based video for teaching as well as web-based message board for asynchronous teaching.

Hokianga Health Enterprise Trust

To study the impact of point-of-care-testing (POCT) on decision making by General Practitioners in a small rural hospital, including assessing and evaluating the:

  • impact of the POCT introduction on patient management
  • POCT acceptability to clinicians
  • implementation of quality assurance for POCT
  • costs of the POCT implementation.

2007/08


The successful applicants for the 2007/08 allocation of the Rural Innovations Fund received funding for the following initiatives:

Kere Kere Healthy Communities Network

For trialing three practice-based community health development nursing positions for one year in the Kere Kere communities to enrich existing care.

New Zealand Institute of Rural Health (NZIRH)

For the development of an Online Library on innovative rural health projects to raise awareness of these projects, to provide examples of how the Primary Health Care Strategy was implemented in an innovative ways and to avoid duplication of resources.

Otago Southern Region Primary Health Organisation (OSR PHO)

For the provision of coordinated after-hours care in the Otago Southern Region PHO area. The OSR PHO will establish a coordinator position and form a partnership arrangement between the local practices/trusts, including the local hospital (Clutha Health First).

West Coast District Health Board – Reefton Integrated Care

For redesigning existing services and developing a single integrated model of care for Reefton.

West Coast District Health Board – Rural Nursing

For the development of a career pathway for rural nursing, including a comprehensive education and professional progression strategy.

West Coast District Health Board – Training Centre

For the development of a local Teacher Training Faculty as part of the West Coast Training Centre for Rural Excellence, which already trains undergraduate and post graduate students from a variety of clinical professions. The project aims to provide local practitioners with the skills and practical experience needed to become teacher/clinicans.

2006/07


The successful applicants for the first allocation of the Rural Innovations Fund received 2006/07 funding for the following initiatives:

Aotearoa Rural Health Apprentices (ARHA)

For the ARHA Summer Research project and for ten ARHA members to attend a face-to-face meeting in Wellington in February 2007.

Gore Health

For initial development and a feasibility study for the New Zealand implementation of “My Personal Health Record”, a tool for patient self-management in rural areas.

Jean Ross

For the production and publication of a text, which summarises research generated by rural nurses in New Zealand as part of their Masters’ degree.

View Jean's publication - Rural Nursing: Aspects of Practice.

Kati Kati Medical Centre

For provision of equipment to enable accessible investigation and treatment for those patients suffering from exertional chest pain and/or breathlessness in this rural community.

New Zealand Institute of Rural Health (NZIRH)

For a research project to identify ways to responding to an identified rural health service gap using a different model of care involving the Allied Health Assistant. As part of this research project, NZIRH completed in October 2007 a report The Feasibility of the Role of the Allied Health Assistant in the Rural Health Delivery Model, which is available from NZIRH.

Northland Collaboration of General Practitioners

For establishing a position to assist and support medical students and locums in engaging with the local community while on placement in Northland. The purpose of this role is to enable students and locums to participate in their communities more fully while in the area, and improve the quality of their experience of rural general practice.

Schizophrenia Fellowship Central Otago (SF Otago)

For development of a local website and forum to increase access to information and support for SF Otago clients and SF Otago staff.

Te Whanau A Apanui Community Health

For employing a new Practice/Hospital Interface Manager (PHIM) who will work to reduce the number of patients who do not attend hospital post-discharge appointments, and to improve hospital discharge planning for rural practice patients.

Wairarapa District Health Board and Wairarapa Community PHO

For role modeling and the development of nurse practitioners as a key component of general practice in rural South Wairarapa.

Related information
Media Release: Rural health projects get government funding, 18 Jan 2007 (www.beehive.govt.nz)
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Page last updated: 19 December 2008


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