An innovative approach to outpatient care that has seen waiting times for orthopaedic services slashed at the Royal Children’s Hospital has been recognised by Health Minister Daniel Andrews at a major Victorian healthcare award ceremony.

Announcing the winner of the Innovation in workforce design category of the annual Victorian Public Healthcare Awards tonight, Mr Andrews said the hospital’s Orthopaedic Assessment Clinic had made a real difference to thousands of Victorian families.

“The clinic, which has been operating at the hospital since 2005, provides a service for families of children not generally requiring surgical assessment or intervention,” Mr Andrews said.

“Run by qualified paediatric physiotherapists the clinic provides assessment and primary care for outpatient referrals from the hospital.

“Discussion time with the physiotherapists is unrushed and practical advice and exercises can also be supplied as appropriate. There’s even toys for young children to play with.”

More than 2500 children have been assessed since the start of the service and almost 50 per cent of outpatient referrals are now seen initially at the clinic.

Benefits of the new approach include:

• Waiting times for referrals to general consultant clinics (semi-urgent) cut from three months to two or three weeks;
• Waiting times for referrals to general consultant clinics (non-urgent) reduced from 15 months to one month; and
• Children requiring both surgical and non-surgical intervention have improved access to orthopaedic services, with reduced frustration and anxiety for parents and children.

The Victorian Public Healthcare Awards were established in 2005 to celebrate the dedication and expertise of the people who provide publicly funded healthcare to the Victorian community. The awards have been embraced by the sector with great enthusiasm and generated considerable goodwill.

The award categories seek to honour the best health services and reflect important areas of practice across the health spectrum, regardless of the setting, service or specialty. With 10 categories plus the Minister’s and Premiers awards, they offer healthcare agencies the opportunity to be recognised for their commitment to providing the best possible care to the people of Victoria.

Representatives from health services, academia, non-government organisations and consumers judged the entries and the 72 judges, led by the Chair of Judging Dr Norman Swan, gave generously of their time and expertise to arrive at the finalist entries.

The 2007 Victorian Public Healthcare Awards give an illustration of the scope of innovation and excellence within Victorian healthcare and celebrates the health sector’s achievements.

Media contact: Tim Pigot on 9651 5799 / 0419 817 098. Contact  www.vic.gov.au