CareSearch updates

Palliative Care Connect has launched in South Australia, funded by both the Commonwealth and SA State Governments. This initiative will improve access to palliative care and bereavement support services statewide and facilitate smoother transitions between care types.

The service began with the introduction of Palliative Care Navigators, connecting patients with local community support. It is now joined by a user-friendly website, developed in partnership with Flinders University through the leadership of Professor Jennifer Tieman, CareSearch Director. On the site, users can find information on palliative care and bereavement, access a directory of services by location, and use a self-assessment tool to pinpoint needed support.

CareSearch has joined the LinkedIn community. Follow us and stay up to date with the latest palliative care and end-of-life care information, evidence and tools. Follow us on LinkedIn

The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC) has released the second edition of its National Consensus Statement on the essential elements for safe and high-quality end-of-life care. This edition extends beyond acute care to include care provided in the community and within residential aged care facilities. It also highlights the importance of effective multidisciplinary care, communication, and systems at the interfaces between community and acute settings. This timely update complements the forthcoming strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards which will now address palliative care quality in this setting.
 
CareSearch can support health professionals to enact the Consensus Statement principles and core elements through its resources and clinical evidence pages in the Health Professionals Hub. Visit the Health Professionals Hub

Madeleine Juhrmann, a Flinders University alumnus, is delighted to be returning to the university as a Research Fellow with CareSearch, commencing her role on the 8th of January 2024. She has just submitted her PhD through the University of Sydney. Madeleine has worked as a Policy Officer for HammondCare, completed a Masters of Public Health and trained as a paramedic. Read Madeleine Juhrmann's bio

We’re excited to announce the CareSearchgp App will be released in late January 2024. The app has been designed with the help of experienced GPs and includes interactive features to support delivery of care to patients. The app offers the latest guidance on terminal prescribing alongside evidence-based information on a wide range of important topics. Sign up to be notified when the CareSearchgp App becomes available in the new year. Sign up to be notified

CareSearch has established a new National Advisory Group to lead it through the next three years of the project. This group comprises individuals with a wide range of knowledge and experience across palliative care, aged care, primary health, digital health, evidence and its translation, diversity, and consumer experience. The input and direction it will provide to the project will ensure that what we produce will have broad and national relevance while being current and inclusive of all population groups and regions. Joining Professor Jennifer Tieman (CareSearch Director/Chief Investigator and Chair) and Dr Raechel Damarell (Senior Research Fellow) on the group for 2023-2026 are:

• Mr Daniel Coase, Senior Policy Advisor, Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia
• Dr Annie Dullow, Consumers and carers representative
• Dr Elizabeth Hawkins, Director of Medical Services, Atherton Hospital  
• Professor Tammy Hoffmann, Professor of Clinical Epidemiology, Institute for Evidence-Based Healthcare, Bond University
• Dr Lisa Kruesi, Digital Health Research Fellow, Monash University and Deputy Chair, Therapeutic Guidelines
• Professor Virginia Lewis, Research Chair in Community Health, Australian Institute for Primary Care and Ageing, La Trobe University
• Ms Fiona Onslow-Agnew, Chief Executive, May Shaw Health and Aged Care for Living
• Professor Leeroy William, Clinical Director Supportive and Palliative Care, Eastern Health
• Professor Trish Williams, Cisco Chair and Professor of Digital Health Systems, Flinders University

We thank the outgoing Advisory Group for its invaluable contribution to the CareSearch project across 2020-2023.