More Allied Health Services
The More Allied Health Services (MAHS) Program was established in 2001 to help rural communities gain better access to allied health services and to address rural health workforce shortages. MAHS also support betters links between the GP and the allied health sector, allowing the GP to focus on general practice.
The aim of MAHS is to:
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improve the health of people living in rural areas through access to allied health care and improve local linkages between allied health care and general practice.
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Improve the health care of key groups within a rural community through the provision of efficient and effective allied health services which have been selected on the basis of the identified needs of the community.
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Provide additional (in quantity or range) professional allied health services to rural communities.
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Facilitate an integrated approach to health care provision by allied health care professionals and general practitioners working together to meet the care needs of patients, and by the Division linking the More Allied Health Services Program with the State/Australian Government funded health initiatives and services.
A review of the MAHS program in 2007 by the Department of Health and Ageing established:
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overwhelming evidence that MAHS was meeting rural workforce need;
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the MAHS Program is increasing access to and use of allied health services in rural areas through the extension of services outside major centres; decreasing waiting periods;
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making available services to people who cannot afford private consultation;
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increased team work, communication and shared knowledge amongst Divisions, GPs and allied health
professionals have been important outcomes of the MAHS Program.
MAHS funded allied health services should be accessed by consumers in rural communities through their general practitioner (ie initial referral via a general practitioner). This approach increases the opportunities for collaborative work between general practitioners and the allied health professionals employed under MAHS, provides opportunities for increased use of care planning and case conferencing, and promotes continuity of care.
USEFUL LINKS:
Department of Health and Ageing