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Your Partner in Health

Strategic Plan 2005-2008

Incorporating the Austin Hospital, the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital and the Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre

Your partner in health

Austin Health STRATEGIC PLAN 2005 - 2008

Contents

Message from the CEO and Board Chairman 3

Introduction 4

Section One: Our Vision, Strategic Priorities and Goals 6

Section Two: Who we are and who we serve 10

Section Three: Achieving our vision 19


1. Message from the CEO and Board Chairman

Austin Health is the leading tertiary, teaching hospital in northeast Melbourne. The 2005-2008 Strategic Plan will consolidate this position and build on our reputation for excellence and outstanding leadership in healthcare, research and education. The Plan has been developed with the assistance of our staff, our local health service providers, consumers and government. It will guide and shape the way we work over the next four years.

The past four years have seen a period of significant and rapid change at Austin Health, both physically, with the redevelopment nearing completion, and in the way we care for our patients. We have watched the new Austin Hospital tower emerge and the Mercy Hospital for Women grow alongside it. The new Austin hospital, which opens in mid 2005, will continue to provide high quality services to our community, only now with state-of-the-art facilities to match. The next four years will see Austin Health build on the high standards of patient care and safety that earned us the maximum four-year accreditation from the Australian Council of Healthcare Standards in 2004, with the objective of improving even further. The next phase of site developments across the health service will include the Mental Health redevelopment, an integrated research building, the Olivia Newton John Cancer Centre and redevelopment of the Repatriation Hospital site including a new Veterans’ mental health precinct and community rehabilitation centre. The co-location of Mercy Hospital for Women will bring with it exciting new opportunities in terms of clinical service delivery and possible changes in the population and demographics of our patients. The next four years will also see a continuation in the growth of hospital services delivered in the community in partnership with community providers. Austin Health already provides a large range of ambulatory care services, and services to people at home and in the community such as Hospital in the Home, Post Acute Care, Hospital Admission Risk Program (HARP) and Aged Care packages. The next four years will also see us working hard to improve access to our services by:

• further reducing the waiting times for elective surgery; • reducing the time between referral and outpatient appointments; • reducing the waiting time to be seen in the emergency department; • minimising the number of patients waiting longer than 12 hours to be admitted to

a hospital bed from the emergency department, and; • minimising the time on ambulance bypass.

None of this is achievable without the dedication and commitment of our staff. We will strive to do all we can to attract, retain and value staff by providing professional development and a working environment that is both safe and supportive.

Dr Brendan Murphy Mr Tim Daly


Chief Executive Officer Chairman of the Board


2. Introduction Our Strategic Plan has been developed following an extensive internal and external consultation process and taking into consideration overall health sector trends, Commonwealth Government priorities and Victorian State health planning guidelines. This Plan is also consistent with the 2004 Austin Health Statement of Priorities, both of which will be updated annually to reflect the dynamic nature of the health care industry. The Australian health care industry and Austin Health continue to face the challenges of providing high quality, integrated health care to a growing and ageing population with increasingly diverse needs and expectations, and within limited resources. In developing this plan, major issues facing the whole of the health sector have been taken into account including a projected growth in demand for nearly all types of services, but particularly services in the community, a decline in the availability of out of hours and bulk billing general practitioner services, an ageing population, with an expected 25% growth in this decade to 3.9% of the population and an ongoing increase in the use and cost of medical technology. Other health system issues that have been considered include the ageing of the workforce and emerging staff shortages in some professional areas. Strategies to address these are already being considered, and we will look to trial some of these in the coming four years. Consumers are increasingly better informed about their diagnosis and health care treatment options and we will ensure that we remain responsive to consumer and community needs through ongoing consultation. The Victorian Department of Human Services Directions for your health system; Metropolitan Health Strategy (2003), provides the overarching framework within which the Austin Health Strategic Plan has been developed. This Strategic Plan addresses the key policies, strategic directions and enablers of change outlined in the Metropolitan Health Strategy. Our Strategic Plan has been developed through an extensive consultation process and we thank all staff members who provided their time and ideas so willingly. The Mission, Vision, Motto, Strategic Priorities and Goals outlined in this plan emerged as a result of input from staff, the senior management group, the Executive team and the Board of Directors through twenty-five workshops and individual questionnaires. The Austin Health Community Advisory Committee and Primary Care and Population Health Committee provided valuable community, community healthcare provider and local government perspectives for consideration. Discussions with the Department of Human services during the development phase have also been valuable in shaping our priorities. Section One of this plan outlines our Vision, Mission, Motto, Strategic Priorities and Strategic Goals. Section Two provides supporting information about who we are and what we do and why these priorities are important to Austin Health to achieve our Vision.


Section Three outlines some of the areas of work for the next four years that will not only assist us to meet our goals, but also demonstrate our commitment to key areas identified by the Department of Human Services in their planning guidelines. The Strategic Plan 2005-2008 was completed and endorsed by the Austin Health Board of Directors in February 2005 and submitted to the Department of Human Services for ratification by the Minister for Health.


SECTION ONE

OUR VISION, STRATEGIC PRIORITIES AND GOALS

This section of the Strategic Plan describes Austin Health’s Vision and Mission for 2005-2008. Our Strategic Priorities and Goals for the next four years describe the issues that our organisation has identified as the most important to ensure that we meet our Vision and Mission statements. The Strategic Priorities and Goals have been arrived at through an extensive consultation process that has sought input from staff at all levels of the organisation and key external stakeholders. A range of actions, strategies and key performance indicators will be developed for each goal with timetables. These will inform departmental, annual Business Plans and guide our activities over the next four years.


3. Vision, Mission and Values

Vision

Austin Health will be renowned for excellence and outstanding leadership in healthcare, research and education.

Mission

Austin Health is the major provider of tertiary health services, and health professional education and research in the northeast of Melbourne.

Values

Our values1 (listed below) guide our behaviour. Integrity – we exercise honesty, candour and sincerity Collaboration – we work in partnership with others Accountability – we are transparent, responsible and answerable Respect – we treat others with dignity, consideration, equality and value Excellence – we continually strive for excellence Empathy – we are compassionate and empathetic

Motto


1 These values are underpinned by the Austin Health Corporate Code of Ethics and its principles and practices.

19/07/06


4. Our Strategic Priorities

Our key areas of focus for the next four years are:

1. Delivering the right services well We will provide safe, quality care and deliver timely services that serve the needs of our community.

2. Working through partnership and participation We will work in partnership with our patients, carers, families, the community and other health service providers.

3. Leading in research and education We will provide excellence in education and training and lead in advancing basic, clinical and applied research through the Austin Biomedical Alliance.

4. Investing in our staff We will attract, retain and value all of our staff through professional development, ensuring a supportive work environment while seeking to address current and future workforce challenges.

5. Building a strong, sustainable future We will ensure ongoing financial viability and continue to plan and develop high class facilities to meet our communities needs

6. Advancing leadership and innovation We will support clinical and management leaders to develop a strong culture of leadership and innovation and explore opportunities for advances in service delivery.

These six priorities reflect the most important areas for Austin Health to focus on over the next four years in order to achieve our Vision. The priorities will guide our work at all levels of the organisation. The way in which the plan is implemented will be critical to achieving our Vision. This plan will be actioned at all levels of the organisation through the Executive team and the development of individual department business plans. The following Strategic Goals linked to each of the Strategic Priorities will also guide the work that we will undertake in the coming four years.


5. Our Strategic Goals A series of high-level Strategic Goals have been developed to guide us in working towards our Strategic Priorities. The goals reflect the issues raised through the environmental analysis and those identified by our staff through our internal consultation process. PRIORITY 1 Delivering the right services well GOALS

• Providing safe, quality care • Improving access to care • Delivering appropriate services • Streamlining the flow from the community through the hospital

back to the community PRIORITY 2 Working through partnership and participation GOALS • Ensuring patient focussed care

• Promoting consumer participation • Planning for service development jointly with key provider,

consumer and government partners PRIORITY 3 Leading research and education GOALS • Providing advanced education and training for clinical staff

• Building on our reputation as a centre for research excellence • Strengthening the Austin Biomedical Alliance

PRIORITY 4 Investing in our staff GOALS • Planning for a changing workforce demographic, including

recruitment and retention • Ensuring the provision of professional development opportunities • Enhancing our work culture through performance management

and feedback for all staff • Enhancing internal communication

PRIORITY 5 Building a strong, sustainable future GOALS • Ensuring financial viability

• Developing and expanding fundraising opportunities and capabilities across the organisation

• Furthering Austin Health Capital Development and Master Planning

• Considering Austin Health corporate positioning and image PRIORITY 6 Advancing leadership and innovation GOALS • Fostering clinical and management leadership opportunities

• Leading advances in service delivery • Enhancing information, communication and technology • Improving knowledge management capabilities


SECTION TWO

WHO WE ARE AND WHO WE SERVE

This section of the plan provides a brief description of Austin Health and the services we deliver at each of the three campuses. This section also provides a high-level analysis of the population in our primary and secondary catchment areas, which is an important consideration to ensure that we are delivering the right services to meet the needs of our community.


6. Austin Health Service Profile and Catchment 6.1 Who we are

Austin Health, one of Australia’s leading teaching facilities and medical research centres, comprises three hospitals, the Austin Hospital in Heidelberg, the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital in Heidelberg West and the Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre in Kew. It has 930 beds across the 3 campuses and provides acute tertiary referral services, an extensive range of specialty and super-specialty services, mental health services, and subacute services including aged care, rehabilitation and palliative care. Our new hospital tower has been designed and built to allow for expanded capacity in a number of areas, particularly in our Intensive Care Unit and Emergency Department and we will work closely with the Department of Human Services in the commissioning of this extra capacity. Austin Hospital: The Austin Hospital is a major tertiary hospital providing an extensive range of medical, surgical and mental health services, including specialist services for spinal cord and head injuries; respiratory, cancer and neurological disorders, including epilepsy and stroke; liver transplantation and child and adolescent mental health services. Austin Hospital 2002-2003 2003-2004 Separations multi day 18,610 19,470 Separations same day 27,612 28,957 E D presentations 39,670 39,925 Emergency % 41.1% 40.9% Elective % 58.9% 59.1% WIES per separation 0.91 0.95 Beds

Acute multi day Acute same day Mental Health inpatient

468 60 24

Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital: Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital has a significant history providing health services to veterans and war widows. The Repatriation Hospital amalgamated with the Austin Hospital in 1995. It now focuses on ambulatory care and day surgery, some acute surgical services, aged and residential care, palliative care, radiation oncology and mental health. Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital 2002-2003 2003-2004 Separations multi day 3,279 3,113 Separations same day 15,618 15,114 Emergency % 2.5% 3.4% Elective % 97.5% 96.6% WIES per separation 0.33 0.28


Beds Acute multi day Acute same day Rehabilitation Aged Care Aged Care residential Palliative Care Mental Health inpatient

32 40 32 40 60 18 81

Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre: Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre provides general rehabilitation services and specialises in spinal and neurological (acquired brain injury) rehabilitation and specialist mental health brain disorders. Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre 2002-2003 2003-2004 Separations multi day 800 754 Separations same day 5 3 Beds

Rehabilitation Mental Health inpatient

81 33

Statewide Services

Austin Health provides the following statewide services . • Victorian Spinal Cord Injuries Services (VSCI) • Victorian Liver Transplant Unit (VLTU) • Victorian Respiratory Support Service (VRSS)Child Inpatient Mental Health • Veteran’s Mental Health • Toxicology Service

Austin Research Precinct The Austin Research Precinct is recognised in the Victorian Government Biotechnology Strategic Development Plan for Victoria 2004 as one of four biotechnology precincts contributing to Victoria’s strong research and development base. The Austin Research Precinct brings together world class research groups including: • Austin Health • University of Melbourne • Austin Research Institute • National Stroke Research Institute, including the Brain Research Institute and the

Epilepsy Research Institute • Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research • Institute for Breathing and Sleep • Parent and Infant Research Institute


Financial Position Ensuring ongoing financial viability is a goal under Strategic Priority Five – Building a strong, sustainable future. Austin Health has worked hard over the past four years to re-establish a stable financial position for the hospital. Despite our achievements in maintaining a viable financial future, cash reserves have declined.


6.2 Who we serve

Primary And Secondary Catchments

Our primary catchment has a population of over 250,000 people, with 48.5% males and 51.4% females2. It represents those statistical local areas where Austin Health treated the highest number of public patients (inpatient separations) based on the residence of the patient, excluding same-day renal dialysis. The primary catchment covers:

• Darebin – Preston • Banyule – All (includes Heidelberg and North) • Nillumbik – All (includes South, South West and Balance)

Our secondary catchment has a population of over 266,000 people, with 49.2% males and 50.8% females. It represents those statistical local areas where Austin Health treated the second highest proportion of public patients (inpatient separations) based on the residence of the patient, excluding same-day renal dialysis. The secondary catchment covers:

• Darebin – Northcote • Whittlesea – All (includes North and South) • Manningham – All (includes West and East)

The Department of Human Services catchment analysis identifies Yarra Ranges Central and Yarra Ranges North as included in our secondary catchment area. Given the very low activity from these areas we have not considered these areas as part of our catchment. A catchment map can be found on the following page. The table below shows the percentage of the population from our catchment areas that were treated at Austin Health and other major public hospitals in 2003-20043. Primary catchment (%) Secondary catchment (%) Austin Health 47.0 24.0 The Northern Hospital 12.8 21.6 St Vincent’s Hospital 5.8 8.9 Mercy Hospital for Women 3.9 2.8 Box Hill Hospital 1.9 13.4

2 Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2001 Census data 3 Department of Human Services, 2003-2004 Victorian Admitted Episode Data

Public Hospital Separations (excluding Dialysis and Childbirth) - 2003-04

Primary Banyule - Heidelberg 12,144 8,005 65.9% 61,266 198 131

Banyule - North 8,617 4,844 56.2% 52,956 163 91

Darebin - Preston 19,811 7,271 36.7% 79,233 250 92

Nillumbik - Bal 1,290 564 43.7% 8,922 145 63

Nillumbik - South 3,229 1,595 49.4% 27,486 117 58

Nillumbik - South-West 2,359 1,249 52.9% 21,753 108 57

Primary Total 47,450 23,528 49.6% 251,616 189 94

Secondary Darebin - Northcote 8,887 2,446 27.5% 44,615 199 55

Manningham - East 1,274 96 7.5% 101,036 13 1

Manningham - West 14,475 3,132 21.6% 13,046 1,110 240

Whittlesea - North 2,597 466 17.9% 14,517 179 32

Whittlesea - South 18,581 3,571 19.2% 93,403 199 38

Secondary Total 45,814 9,711 21.2% 266,617 172 36

Austin Health Primary and Secondary Catchment SLAs Based on 2003-04 Separations

Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre

Austin Catchment SLA of Patient's Residence Total Seps

Austin Health Seps

Austin % of Total Seps

TotalPopulation

Seps per 1000 pop - All Hospitals

Seps per 1000 pop - Austin

Health

Your partner in health The table above shows the number of patients treated in 2003-2004 from our primary and secondary catchment areas. A key factor that we will need to closely monitor is the impact of the opening of our new modern hospital tower on our catchment areas, which may change or increase over the next few years. Mental Health Services Austin Health provides a range of local, regional and statewide services for Mental Health. The services and their catchments are outlined below: Child and Adolescent Mental Health Child Services Statewide Adolescent Services Banyule Booroondara Darebin Nillumbik Whittlesea Yarra North East Regional Victoria & adjacent NSW border areas Secure Extended Care Banyule Nillumbik Whittlesea Darebin Manningham Whitehorse Knox Yarra Booroondara Maroondah Yarra Ranges Monash Banksia House (Mood, Eating Disorder Mother & Baby Unit) Banyule Nillumbik Whittlesea Darebin Manningham Whitehorse Knox Yarra Booroondara Maroondah Yarra Ranges

Your partner in health Monash Alpine Delatite Indigo Millawa Toowong Wodonga Yarrawonga Brain Disorders Program State Wide Veterans Psychiatry State Wide Crisis Assessment & Treatment Service Mobile Support & Treatment Service Nillumbik and Banyule Continuing Care Team Nillumbik and Banyule Acute Psychiatry Unit (12 beds) Nillumbik and Banyule Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit (4 beds) * Statewide * PICU beds transfer to the Alfred Hospital in mid to late 2006

6.3 The services we deliver Planning and review of our services is an ongoing process and is essential to ensure that we meet the needs of our population. Key elements of service planning over the coming four years will include consideration of:

• all types of services provided by Austin Health including acute care, mental health, rehabilitation, aged care and ambulatory services.

• the types and extent of services that other health care providers within the catchment areas supply

• analysis of the features of our population including socio economic status, our aboriginal population and our cultural and linguistic diversity.

An important element for consideration in planning the clinical services that we provide to our community is future population and projected hospital activity. The Department of Human Services has provided Austin Health with public hospital admitted patient activity projections to 2016-20174. These projections show that our acute patient numbers will grow by an average of 4% over this period, with a greater increase in the number of patients being treated on a same day basis, and the majority of the growth in patients over 85 years of age. Sub acute, rehabilitation and mental health separations are also projected to grow. Austin Health will work with local government and community healthcare providers to jointly review and plan appropriate services for our population. We will seek to utilise

4 Department of Human Services, Policy and Strategic Projects Division, 2004


population based data collected and utilised by these providers to further ensure the provision of appropriate services. In addition, as we provide a number of Statewide services, we recognise the need to consider the population trends over and above those for our primary and secondary catchment areas. The major diseases that Austin Health patients present with, in order of morbidity and mortality burden are:

• Cardiovascular disease • Cancer • Respiratory illness • Mental illness and disability • Diabetes Mellitus • Dementia and Parkinson’s disease5

Each of these major disease groups is noted by DHS as areas for growth to 2016-2017.6 The Metropolitan Health Strategy identifies a number of key policies to be addressed by health services over the next four years. Issues that we have identified and proposed actions in relation to these policies include:

• The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) population residing in our primary catchment area is 1,339 people, which represents 0.5% of the catchment population. Of the ATSI people in our primary catchment area, there were 281 episodes of care in 2003-2004, which represents only 21% of their acute hospital separations from any public hospital. Austin Health will employ an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Development Officer in early 2005. This position will work closely with ATSI consumers, local government and community health service providers to develop new programs that will deliver appropriate services for this community.

• Austin Health will conduct a review of Paediatric services, again in the light of

the co-location of the Mercy Hospital for Women. A new Professor of Paediatrics will be appointed in 2005 who will oversee a review process that will take account of future needs for both medical and surgical paediatric services and include consideration of impacts on our Emergency Department and our Paediatric Ward.

• Significant changes in our Cancer Services are planned for the next four years

with the Olivia Newton John Cancer Centre development and the establishment of the North Eastern Metropolitan Integrated Cancer Service.

• The co-location of the Mercy Hospital for Women with Austin Health may

influence our catchment population through the provision of new services attracting new consumers to our hospital. A review of Women’s Health Services, including the potential further development of gynaecology services will be undertaken early in the life of the plan.

5 Department of Human Services Burden of Disease 1996 – Local Government Areas and Regions of Victoria 6 Department of Human Services, Policy and Strategic Projects Division, 2004

Your partner in health Other areas identified in the Metropolitan Health Strategy for service review and planning over the life of this Strategic Plan include Mental Health Services, Ambulatory Care and Care for Older Persons.

SECTION THREE

ACHIEVING OUR VISION

This section provides a more detailed look at the key elements that will assist Austin Health to meet our Vision, Strategic Priorities and Goals. These enablers of change are critical to the ongoing development of Austin Health and the services we provide to our community and are aligned with those outlined in the Metropolitan Health Strategy.

Your partner in health 7. Service Quality and Safety

Providing safe, quality care for our consumers is one of our goals under Strategic Priority One – Delivering the right services well. Whilst we always strive to provide the safest, high quality care possible, we continuously look for opportunities to improve our care and meet best practice. In 2004, Austin Health was successful in achieving the maximum four-year accreditation from the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards. This outstanding outcome reflects the high quality of our care and services as well as our strong culture of continuous improvement. The Organisation Wide Survey report noted that:

“There is a strong culture of safety and quality. Extensive evidence of improvements to care and services was noted and is supported by the quality improvement program, the strategic and business planning processes, risk management plans and the clinical governance programs.”

We will work together over the next four years to maintain our accreditation status and to continue improving the quality of our services. Risk Management In the area of safety and quality, Austin Health has developed a comprehensive program in clinical risk management over the past few years through the Clinical Governance Program. Over the next four years, we will build on our achievements and focus on improving the safety of the care our patients receive through:

• roll out of an organisation wide risk management strategy and framework to support and expand the clinical risk focus to ensure that all of our systems are subjected to the same high level of risk assessment and management; and

• further education and training for staff, participation in the National Medication Safety Collaborative and an ongoing focus on pressure ulcer and falls prevention.

Hospital Demand Management The Hospital Demand Management program has been an important feature of our quality and safety program over the past four years and will be maintained as such in the future. The program aims to maximise access to elective and emergency services and plays a critical role in assisting with patient flow through the hospital, especially in times of peak demand such as winter. The program has successfully contributed to a reduction in instances of hospital bypass and the number of patients who wait more than 12 hours in our emergency department for a hospital bed. This program will be integrated into our normal operational procedures and will be strengthened with the addition of new programs to improve service quality including:

• The Patient Flow Collaborative is a statewide program aimed at supporting staff to identify and eliminate delays in the patient journey through the hospital;

• The Austin Service Improvement Support Team is a new team that aims to support staff to improve access to care, remove waits and delays for patients, ensure that the right person sees the right doctors at the right time in the right place with the right resources and build capacity for doing other improvement and innovation work at Austin Health.

Your partner in health 8. Stakeholder Relationships

The importance of working collaboratively with our consumers, our community, governments and other health care providers is reflected in Strategic Priority Two – Working through partnership and participation. Over the next four years we will strive to further develop our relationships with community and primary care health service providers through existing and new mechanisms. Our patients and their families are the most important stakeholder for Austin Health and we are committed to genuine community participation in the delivery of the health care provided across all services. There is much evidence that suggests that community participation can improve the planning and delivery of health services leading to increases in the quality, safety and accessibility of health care systems. Our Consumer Participation Plan will deliver improved consumer input into our services. We have a range of established mechanisms for seeking input from and consulting with our key stakeholders. These include:

• The Primary Care and Population Health Advisory Committee and the Community Advisory Committee both have wide community and provider representation and will continue to provide the links between our Board and Executive team and our key stakeholders. Both of these committees report to the Board of Directors and will be used as the vehicles for seeking input to help us plan and deliver better services;

• The Banyule Nillumbik Primary Care Alliance of which Austin Health is a member and which covers our primary catchment area.

• The annual distribution of our Quality of Care Report to over 170,000 households in our local catchment will continue. The community feedback received from its distribution in November of each year provides us with important opinions from our population about the information that they like to receive and hear about our health service; and

• The Hospital Primary Care Liaison Unit and the General Practitioner Liaison Officer, have developed effective linkages between the acute and primary care sectors and will continue to do so in the next four years.

The Hospital Admission Risk Program (HARP) is a major program in place at Austin Health. It is aimed at preventing avoidable admissions to hospital, provides alternative services for patients through the utilisation of community health services. We will continue to work collaboratively with community health providers and local government in this program to reduce admissions to hospital of older patients, patients with chronic diseases and complex needs. These groups and programs will continue to play an important role at Austin Health over the coming four years and we will strive to ensure that we maintain and grow our relationships. Austin Health has a long established relationship with the Department of Human Services, and as a major stakeholder, and we will continue to foster this relationship and work closely together. Austin Health will also focus strongly on the development of relationships with other acute sector health providers including Mercy Hospital for Women, Northern Hospital and Eastern Health as our closest neighbours.

Your partner in health 9. Research and Education

Research and education are a vital component of who we are at Austin Health and this is recognised in our Vision and Mission statements and in Strategic Priority Three – Leading in research and education. The provision of education and training for clinical staff is one of three goals identified under Strategic Priority Three. We provide teaching and training for 14 different clinical specialties for students from 9 Universities and Institutes of Technology. With an increased demand for health science graduates and increasing requirements for professional development and continuing education of our clinical staff, teaching and training is an important focus at Austin Health. A new $8 million clinical education precinct has been built as part of the hospital redevelopment and combines The University of Melbourne and Latrobe University clinical schools for both the Austin and Mercy Hospital for Women, a new Health Sciences library to cater to all students from both hospitals and consolidation of academics and educators into a purpose built precinct. Austin Health is renowned nationally and internationally for its breadth of research covering basic science, pre-clinical testing and clinical trials. The Austin Biomedical Alliance (ABmA), an alliance of Austin Health, The University of Melbourne and the seven independent research institutes situated across the Austin Research Precinct, was formed in 2000 and has been a valuable vehicle for driving collaborative research. The ABmA is identified in the Biotechnology Strategic Development Plan for Victoria 2004, as one of the four Victorian biomedical precincts in Victoria and we will look to build on this over the next four years. Two goals in Strategic Priority Three look towards enhancing our research reputation as well as strengthening the ABmA. One of the ways we will meet these goals is through the planned new integrated research building, see below. This purpose-built integrated research facility will promote innovative, collaborative biomedical research in a clinical environment with a capacity for basic research, drug discovery and clinical evaluation. It will attract and retain international leaders in biomedical research and enhance the development of national and international research and commercial partnerships. The major aim is to increase the translation of international quality basic and clinical research into improved health outcomes and increased focus on commercial outcomes.


10. Workforce and Human Resources

Our staff are our most valuable asset and a key enabler in all that we do. Austin Health currently employs 6,145 staff and their importance to the organisation is recognised in Strategic Priority Four – Investing in our staff. Over the coming four years Austin Health will address a number of key issues facing the organisation in relation to our workforce. The ageing population will result in a rise in the average age of our workforce. The graph below provides a snapshot of the current staff age distribution generally and by category.

Age Distribution by Profession

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

20-30 30-40 40-50 50-60 Over 60

Senior Medical

HealthProfessionalsNursing

Exec/Admin

An older workforce brings with it a number of considerations to ensure that they are able to continue to work safely and these will need to be addressed over the next four years. More particularly, an ageing workforce presents important issues of succession planning to ensure we have a sufficient number of well qualified and experienced clinicians to meet the ever increasing demand on our services. For example, it is anticipated that there are increased Occupational Health and Safety risks for older patient care workers in relation to manual handling. To address this we will work towards enhancing our No Lift program and forward plan for new equipment. The average age of our clinical staff will also increase and we will need to develop plans to assist them manage their patient load whilst ensuring we retain and transfer their experience, skills and knowledge to a new generation of clinicians.

Your partner in health Not only will we need to address an older workforce, but we will also need to consider strategies to address other broader changes in the nature of our workforce. Such changes encompass:

• changing work patterns that may include preferences for shorter working hours and flexible working arrangements,

• projected decreases in the number of new entrants into the workforce over the next twenty years, and

• an emerging shortage of clinicians and other health professionals across all disciplines

Therefore, a focus over the next four years will be to develop and implement an organisation wide succession planning program for key staff. Such a program will address a key risk to the organisation and ensure that all key positions in both the clinical and administrative areas have identified and trained staff to provide backup or act as replacements. In addition, a commitment to expand the number of child care places from 59 to 70 is further evidence of the importance we place on attracting and retaining staff.

Your partner in health 11. Capital Development

Capital Development and Master planning of the three campuses are an important goal under Strategic Priority Five – Building a strong, sustainable future. The first stage of the new $400 million ARM Redevelopment Project will be opened in mid 2005, which will see the relocation of the Wards, Emergency Department and Intensive Care Unit, together with the relocation of the Mercy Hospital for Women from East Melbourne. The redevelopment has dominated our thinking and the local skyline over the past four years, however it is only one component of our capital development program. The redevelopment of our Mental Health Services is well underway with Stage 1, a 30 bed acute facility, set to commence in late 2005. Stage 2 of this project, a 25 bed Secure Extended Care Facility, has not yet been funded however planning for the consolidation of Mental Health services, except Veteran’s Mental Health, to the Austin Hospital will continue over the next four years. A new $3 million Health and Rehabilitation Centre, funded by the Commonwealth Government through their Pathways to Home program will be built at the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital in 2005-2006 to replace our existing Community Rehabilitation Centre. Other major components of our capital development program include:

The Olivia Newton John Cancer Centre: • A fundraising program to raise $50 million for the new Cancer Centre was

launched in 2003 and will continue over the life of this plan. The Centre will consolidate all cancer services into a single building, will see the co-location of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research and the establishment of a Wellness Centre.

Austin Biomedical Alliance Integrated Research and Bioresources facility: • The new research facilities will eventually see researchers from across all Austin

Health facilities co-locate to a single integrated building. The new building and Bioresources facility will be the core of the Austin Health Research precinct as identified in the Biotechnology Strategic Development Plan for Victoria 2004, and will enhance our reputation as a leading tertiary teaching and research institution. The total project is around $75 million, with a $25 million Stage 1 that will see a new Bioresources facility and the first part of the Research Building. The Victorian Government has made available $15 million in matched funding for Teaching, Training and Research under the redevelopment program.

Central Production Kitchen and End User Facility at Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital: • The proposed new facility, which is to be part of the overall Metropolitan Food

Services Plan, is currently funded to the detailed designed level but is still awaiting funding for construction. The current cost of this project is estimated at $13,854,000.

Your partner in health Other projects in this capital development program that are currently subject to funding bids with Government include:

• Replacement of the cyclotron; • Refurbishment of the remaining eight existing Operating Theatres and the

Ambulatory Care / Allied Health Level (noting that funding from the ARM Project falls short of delivering this outcome);

• Conversion of the existing Ward areas in the Harold Stokes Building to Clinical Support and Administration;

• Consolidation of the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital on to the southern part of the site and refurbishment of remaining buildings; and

• Relocation of the Victorian Respiratory Support Service to a community location. Longer-term capital development plans include:

• Finalising and implementing a consolidated master plan for both the Northern and Southern sectors of the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital site:

• Redevelopment of the northern part of the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital site for community use including Aged Care facilities and a Veteran’s precinct

• Master planning for the Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre • The demolition of surplus building stock on the Austin Hospital site • Replacement of the computerised tomography simulator and linear accelerators

Your partner in health 12. Information Technology

Information Technology is recognised as an essential component in the delivery of safe, quality care to patients and is a goal identified under Strategic Priority Six – Advancing leadership and innovation. Austin Health has developed an Information Technology Strategic Plan 2004-2008, which outlines over 40 important initiatives to be undertaken over the coming four years to ensure that Austin Health continues to be able to provide the best services for our patients. The projects included in the plan are based on the organisation strategic priorities identified in this report but also align well with strategic goals identified in the Department of Human Services HealthSmart IT Strategy for Victoria (December 2003). Key areas of work include:

• the ongoing development of a complete electronic medical record that captures the patient’s medical, social and family history, test results, procedures, complications, allergies and clinical protocols followed during treatment;

• improved communication with other healthcare providers, particularly in the community;

• the provision of sustainable information technology training and support for staff; • new rostering, human resources and payroll systems as an integrated set; and • redesign of the Austin Health Internet site

Our new hospital tower will see Austin Health lead the way with a range of new information and communication systems that will all contribute towards Strategic Priority Six, including: an advanced new switchboard across the three Austin Health campuses, utilisation of wireless mobile technology for our clinical staff to record patient information and to support clinical systems and practice, new staff identification linked to hospital access and car parking linked to payroll systems. In November 2003, Austin Health successfully replaced the Patient Administration System with MedTrak. We will build on this system over the coming four years to:

• provide digital medical imaging; • further develop and roll out the production of automatic, electronic discharge

summaries; • enable electronic orders of pathology and radiology; • enable electronic prescribing and drug administration; and • develop and implement an allied health component

The development of clinical information and decision support systems to support clinicians in their practice is an important component of our Information Technology program. Austin Health will continue to lead in the development of the electronic health record and to be a key contributor to research in relation to clinical decision support, common clinical terminologies and information technology change management.

strategic plan 2005-2008 - austin hospital, melbourne health... · the strategic plan 2005-2008 was...

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