By Helen  Peterson

The Government’s latest New Zealand Health Targets require primary health staff to improve diabetes and cardiovascular services, and increase immunisation for two-year-olds.

The Health Targets, announced last month, directly affect Turanganui Primary Health Organisation’s general practices which have already been focusing on increasing diabetes and cardiovascular screening, and immunisations administration. More specifically Turanganui PHO is expected to provide an additional 240 diabetes annual reviews and 66 two-year immunisations.

Providing better help for smokers to quit, improving access to elective surgery and reducing stays in hospital emergency departments are also target areas.

Turanganui PHO Chief Executive Keriana Brooking said while staff were being asked to do more to help meet the new targets, there were several ways the PHO could help.

Pinnacle Group Limited (PGL) Practice Liaison Robyne McKeague would be able to regularly monitor performance at a practice level, and PGL will also send out quarterly reports to general practices to keep them up-to-date with progress.

Small amounts of Services to Improve Access Funding might also be available to help practices improve their performance by purchasing additional nursing or administration time.

“Lifetime Lifestyle Nurse and Project Nurse Carol Ford might be available to provide catch-up clinics for practices which have fallen behind, but this will be subject to both Carol’s availability and space within a practice,” says Keriana.

The use of some health promotion funding to revamp the immunisation brand could also heighten awareness within the community, while The PHOnetic could help explain the Health Targets and their relevance to Turanganui PHO providers.

Doctor Ken McFarlane, of Mangapapa Medical Centre, said although the targets were not particularly “visionary” they were all achievable. Immunisation rates could be further improved - but the rates were already “pretty good”.

Diabetes and cardiovascular services were already improving, he added. “This is already underway but it takes time to find everyone and for their risks to become as close to optimal as possible”.

“If this project is successful there will be a noticeable increase in declining rates of heart disease and stroke over the next five years.”

With regard to the smoking cessation targets, Ken said smoking was the most significant risk factor for heart disease in this region and it needed a public health type of approach.

“This would involve the Ministry of Health and the Government making some hard decisions which may be unpopular in some sections of the community, especially for small dairy owners.”

He said the easiest way to stop smoking is never to start in the first place and this message needs to be highlighted to the younger population.

Click here for a snapshot of the 2009/10 Health Targets.

For more information please see http://www.moh.govt.nz/moh.nsf/indexmh/healthtargets-targets

By Hayley Redpath

Fulton Hogan roading crew boss Raymond Rogers has bravely agreed to be the face of a Gladstone Road flag campaign starting this week aimed at encouraging over 35-year-olds with a chronic health condition to have a health check.
 
The 46 year-old Ngati Porou man wasn’t looking for exposure, and certainly isn’t in perfect health, but like many others working for Fulton Hogan, he is making a change to his long term health and wellbeing.

He agreed to take part in Turanganui Primary Health Organisation’s advertising campaign because “it’s the type of health programme that might have given my mum and dad a few more years with whanau”.

“I don’t mind doing it. Mum died at 47 and dad died at 67. It seems many of us are dying of preventable things so if you get the call up for the programme, I reckon you should go.”

Turanganui PHO’s HealthRight Lifetime Lifestyle programme has participating General Practices’ inviting men and women, with known health problems such as cardiovascular disease or diabetes, for a free check up. Men must be aged 35-74 and women must be aged 45-74.
 
HealthRight Manager Diane Williams said the programme offers patients the chance to learn more about their weight, blood sugar levels, cholesterol, exercise, and diet.

“Managing a chronic condition sometimes ends up on the backburner for some people, and so we want to help them take control of long term health problems before the problems take control of them.”

As of June 2009, 320 patients have already been seen. 

Raymond says if any of his family or friends tell him they have received a call up for HealthRight Lifetime Lifestyle, he will encourage them to go. 

“Maori, we like bread, potatoes and meat. We look at all our uncles and aunties and we have got to watch it, so they should give this a go.”

Turanganui PHO sought a Fulton Hogan staff member as the face of its campaign as the company is well known for its commitment to health and safety. It has a zero harm from injury target, has run Commit to Quit smoking programmes and offered staff Green Prescription. It’s Fitness for Role wellness programme helps staff with lifestyle choices and monitors their health. 

Raymond welcomes his employer’s interest in his health and reckons the programmes are paying off. “We’ve got guys in the gang who are into fitness now, guys carrying their own dumbbells in the truck, it’s about little steps.”

“I now have sandwiches, apples, and healthy drinks.”

Raymond’s attitude is the right one, says Diane, who is this district’s only Nurse Practitioner. “The challenge now is for local families and whanau to be proactive and encourage their husbands, fathers, brothers, uncles, colleagues, and other males and females invited to HealthRight Lifetime Lifestyle to visit their GP.”

Participating general practices are: Kaiti Medical Centre, Serendipity Health Ltd, City Medical Centre, Desmond Road Medical Centre, and The Village Clinic.

The HealthRight Lifetime Lifestyle main street flag campaign is part of a wider awareness raising flag campaign encouraging this district’s men to get a health check. Just over 200 large and colourful street flags will hang in Gisborne’s central business district throughout the year including the One Heart Many Lives get your heart checked campaign, and the Movember moustache campaign.