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Libby Kalucy, PHC RIS
At the West Australian General Practice Network (WAGPN) forum Terry Keating, CEO of Goldfields Esperance GP Network (GEGPN) reported on this successful initiative. With the support of a cohesive group of GP members in 17 practices (100% active engagement in the Division) and of local government, GEGPN started the Eastern Goldfields Regional Reference site as part of an Access to Broadband Technology initiative funded by the Australian Government in 2002-2003.
Sites were connected to a virtual private network using a variety of types of bandwidth. Phase 1 sites were 17 GP practices, 93% GPs homes, two ACCHS, three local specialists and GEGPN. Phase 2 covered two hospitals, rural clinical schools, aged care facilities and other sites, in this vast area that includes metro-like, rural and remote regions. Clinicians benefit from rapid and secure availability of information and enhanced communication, and rapid access to all sorts of support resources which assist to recruit and retain GPs in the bush. Terry had a long list of lessons learned from this project, in overcoming the many challenges. In the last year they have enjoyed almost uninterrupted service, a contrast with previous years when rats ate cables, floods disrupted service, and unreliable satellite connections caused many headaches.
At the end of the project in 2006 the Division worked for a price structure so all practices remained in the Goldhealth network, which had to be commercially viable to be sustainable. They are now working towards a shared electronic health record, with new funding from the Australian Government. They aim to go live in March 2008, starting with 400-500 ‘frequent fliers' in opt-in system.
Further information: see Terry Keating's presentation under resources at www.wagpnetwork.com.au
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