© Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation Inc 2009
Public Health & Research Unit
What does the public health and research unit do?
Our key programs and projects are:
Aboriginal Health Promotion and Chronic Care (AHPACC) program
Strengthening Primary Health Care for Aboriginal People project
Victorian Advisory Council on Koori Health (VACKH)
Victorian Aboriginal Health Plan (VAHP)
Research:
Social Determinants of Health Workshops/Forum
Reducing Smoking Amongst Pregnant Aboriginal Women in Victoria: an holistic approach
Revitalising Primary Health Care
Health Information Management
Victorian Health Information Management Strategic Plan
Data exploration project—Koori Maternity Strategy
VACCHO website and members intranet
Public Health Medical Officer
Strengthening primary health care for aboriginal people
The Victorian Minister for Health launched a new initiative, Strengthening Primary Health Care for Aboriginal People, on 2 April at the Victorian Aboriginal Health Service (VAHS). VACCHO’s Public Health and Research Unit will lead the project which will be developed through two catchments—one in Mildura and one in Northern Melbourne.
The project will involve working with our member services—Mildura Aboriginal Health Service and VAHS—and mainstream health services in each catchment to support and better coordinate the delivery of primary health care services for Aboriginal people in Victoria. Findings from the project will assist the development of evidence-based models, which can be adapted to meet the health needs of Aboriginal people across Victoria.
Reducing smoking amongst pregnant aboriginal women in Victoria: an holistic approach
VACCHO has commenced a three year action research project to reduce the prevalence of smoking amongst pregnant Aboriginal women. The project will involve working with three sites to develop interventions around smoking cessation. This will include:
Training for health workers to support pregnant women to quit smoking;
Creating environments within health services and communities to support women to quit smoking in pregnancy; and
Mobilising community support for smoking cessation during pregnancy.
Victorian aboriginal health plan (VACKH)
VACCHO was commissioned by Victoria’s tripartite forum, the Victorian Advisory Council on Koori Health (VACKH), to coordinate the development of the Victorian Aboriginal Health Plan. The Plan outlines key health priorities and strategies to close the health gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in Victoria.
Development of the Plan involved extensive consultation with VACCHO member services. The aim is for the Plan to be launched in July/August 2009.
State-wide health information management strategic plan
The State-Wide Health Information Plan is being developed through funding from the Department of Health and Ageing, Office of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health (OATSIH).
Activities and projects included in the project include:
Creating strategies for Information Communications and Technology (ICT)/Information Management (IM) development and support
Coordinating the implementation of the ICT/IM plan and the tactical responses to the demands of the services over
VACCHO’s Health Information Team is to support member organizations and OATSIH-funded organizations, which will include:
Patient Information Recall Systems (PIRS)
ICT/IM
E-HealthPrograms
Programs for health information management
