Preventing Overdiagnosis Conference (5-7 December 2019) in Sydney by Karin Calford
2 March 2020
Late last year three HCCA members attended the Preventing Overdiagnosis Conference (5-7 December 2019) in Sydney: Karin Calford, Russell McGowan and Kathryn Briant. The conference was co-sponsored by the World Health Organization. Wiser Healthcare was a partner organisation and they provided funding to support consumer participation at the conference. Wiser Healthcare is a research collaborative that conducts […]What do consumers want from patient portals? by Kate Gorman
4 December 2019
At our recent Members’ Forum we had a representative talking about digital patient journey boards. The presentation prompted many questions about digital health and patient portals. Since then I have had a few conversations with people about electronic patient portals. Consumers have been promised a patient portal for many years, dating back to the E-Healthy […]Better Understanding Dementia by Kathryn Briant
21 November 2019
Did you know that while dementia is most commonly associated with ageing, it is not considered to be a normal part of the ageing process? Only around 10% of those aged over 65 years have a type of dementia. But of all the types of dementia, about 90% of these occur in people over the […]Consent, information for decision-making and the Patient Journey by Fiona Tito Wheatland
19 August 2019
Fiona Tito Wheatland is the HCCA consumer representative on the Consent Working Group with Canberra Health Services. Fiona has been drafting materials to support the discussions. We thought that this document sets out consent issues as they relate to the patient journey really well and others would be interested to read this. There are a […]Parkinson’s is not a death sentence by Katrina Muir
5 August 2019
Parkinson’s is not a death sentence. The words which have stood out through my Parkinson’s journey are the ones I have learnt through my exploration of mindfulness. Mindfulness is a way of being fully present and awake in every moment; a way of relating to all of life as it happens and changes. I got […]When anyone is unsafe, everyone is unsafe by Kate Gorman
24 June 2019
HCCA welcomes the news that a pilot program, known as SafeWards, will be implemented in the ACT’s secure mental health facility Dhulwa. Safewards is a program originally developed by Professor Len Bowers and colleagues in the UK, which has been shown to be effective in reducing the rates of conflict and containment in psychiatric wards and facilities. The ACT […]Finding freedom via a support group – part 2: types of groups by Suzanne Newnham
4 June 2019
Continuing from my previous article the following looks at the types of support groups that are available and potential challenges in joining a group. Again, this article is from my own experience and based on two questions on pain in 2012: Are support groups necessary? Aren’t they just a stagnant group consisting of a stream […]Finding freedom via a support group – part 1: my story by Suzanne Newnham
Are support groups necessary? Aren’t they just a stagnant group consisting of a stream of complaints, commiseration, and occasional messages of hope and encouragement? These are two questions that headed a discussion on pain in 2012. My comment then about the wonderful freedom that a support group can offer is still applicable. I am a […]
Report on National Forum on Mesh Implants by Kate Gorman
30 April 2019
Melbourne, April 5 2019 People came from all over Australia. They came with walking sticks and wheelchairs. Mesh injured women and men, their loved ones, health professionals, consumer advocates and government policy and regulation people. There were trauma counsellors on hand. There were couches at the front. There were private rooms with a place to […]Drawing on One’s Strengths by Claudia Cresswell
15 April 2019
Reuben is a young man and musician. A few years ago, he started to lose weight despite eating all the time. He was also chronically tired and had no idea of what was happening, “I carried on as blokes do”. Eventually blood tests led to a doctor calling early one evening “Get to the hospital […]Page 4 of 5