Update, Monday September 30:
A spokesperson to Health Minister Jenny Mikakos has responded to concerns that Primary Care Partnerships have not got secure funding past the end of December 2019.
"No decisions have been made about primary care partnerships," she said.
"We've always said that we're looking across the board to ensure every tax payer dollar is invested in priority areas including delivering high quality health services for all Victorians.
"We're providing record funding to our hospitals across the state, so now is the time to have a good look at what we could be doing better.
"We're investing a record $2.5 billion in this year's Budget for our hospitals - nearly 40 per cent more than the Liberals' last Budget - and we're getting on with the job of delivering our $3.8 billion pipeline of hospital projects."
This year's Budget includes $136.2 million to deliver 500,000 specialist appointments in rural and regional Victoria.
With private specialist appointments costing between $175 and $565, this investment has the potential to save Victorian patients thousands of dollars, as well as reduce the time away from family and loved ones.
Other Budget investments that deliver on the Labor Government's commitments include:
- $117.8 million to recruit and train more nurses, midwives and frontline health workers, and make further improvements to ratios that will see 1,100 extra nurses and midwives in Victorian public hospitals
- $100 million boost to the Regional Health Infrastructure Fund
- $321.9 million for free dental for Government school students
- $116.5 million for cutting-edge medical research projects, including for new cancer therapies.
Friday:
THE future of Victoria's 28 Primary Care Partnerships are in doubt after Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said no funding guarantees had been made past the end of the year.
Currently the PCPs have a four year funding and service agreement with the state government, due to expire on December 31.
However, during a sitting of the Legislative Council earlier this month the Minister said "there has been no decisions made about future funding of PCPs".
The statement came in response to questions from Shadow Health Minister Georgie Crozier and her colleagues asking for a funding commitment in 2020.
On September 12 the Legislative Council moved a motion that this response be considered again on the next day of sitting, scheduled for October 15.
The PCP network includes approximately 600 organisations, including hospitals, community health services, Primary Health Networks, local governments, mental health services, drug treatment services and disability services.
Grampians Pyrenees Primary Care Partnership chief executive Suzannah Burton said the health organization will take part in a state-wide advocacy campaign, co-ordinated by VicPCP, as well as leading a local advocacy campaign.
"We are asking our partners and community members to support our campaign through letters of support and liking and sharing our social media content," she said.
"We are gathering stories to showcase the great work of GPPCP and its' partners across the Grampians Pyrenees.
"These stories will be posted to our web page, a state-wide Vic PCP web page, and social media sites.
"In the meantime , we will be continuing to work with our partners and community stakeholders leading diverse and innovative partnerships to support the well-being of our communities."
Some of the work that Grampians Pyrenees PCP focuses on includes:
- Playing a key role in building capacity, fostering partnerships and reducing organisations working in silos to reduce duplication of work and enable successful outcomes;
- As an established platform, PCPs have the skills and capacity to drive systems change and be at the forefront of government reform. Grampians Pyrenees PCP leverage our broad membership base to support new policy directions, partnerships and outcomes;
- Grampians Pyrenees PCP have an intimate understanding of issues facing our local communities and are perfectly placed to bring diverse stakeholders together, to work on collaborative local solutions to local problems;
- Grampians Pyrenees PCP drives strategic partnerships, innovation and collective impact for better community health outcomes across our region;
- PCP's have been building and brokering successful partnerships to respond to local, regional and state-wide health and social issues for over 19 years.
The PCP also has a strong focus on improving mental health in the region - an issue at the forefront of rural health challenges.
Member for Ripon Louise Staley said PCPs are "often the first step to tackling some of Victoria's serious health challenges."
Read more: Telehealth program coming to Ararat
"This comes on the back of a long line of failures and funding cuts to front line health services by Labor since the 2018 election, including a range of cuts to dental and community health, women's health, palliative care services, health protection, and cancer treatment technology," Ms Staley said.
"In addition to concerns about these community programs being axed, what will happen to the local jobs for those who provide these vital services?
"Health prevention is often the first step to tackling some of Victoria's serious health challenges, yet Daniel Andrews has decided to cut funding to this crucial area of need.
"Primary Care Partnerships have played an important role in Victoria's health network for two decades, yet these latest cuts are another example of Daniel Andrews' inability to manage money.
"These vital services, provided by Grampians Pyrenees Primary Care Partnership, are important to the Stawell, Ararat, St Arnaud, Beaufort and Avoca communities and we need to make it clear we won't stand for these cuts."
Member for Lowan Emma Kealy said Labor had let western Victorian communities down.
"PCPs bring together local health and human service providers to improve access to services and provide continuity of care for people in their community, focusing on better coordination among services," Ms Kealy said.
"Our three local PCPs continue to deliver a range of programs with recent focuses including rural mental health, promoting healthy living, family violence and telehealth programs for cancer care.
"We have fought hard for the Rural Outreach Program and Mental Health First Aid training in the region to fill gaps in the public mental health system.
"Without PCPs these programs just wouldn't exist, which would be devastating for mental health support in our region.
"In addition to concerns about these community programs being axed, what will happen to the local jobs for those who provide these vital services?
"Health prevention is often the first step to tackling some of Victoria's serious health challenges, yet Daniel Andrews has decided to cut funding to this crucial area of need.
"PCPs have played an important role in Victoria's health network for two decades, yet these latest cuts are another example of Daniel Andrews' inability to manage money.
"The vital services provided by our PCPs are important to western Victorian residents and we need to make it clear we won't stand for these cuts."
Minister Mikakos' office has been contacted for comment.
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