St Vincent's Flexiclinic wins NSW Health Award

13 May 2022

Congratulations to the St Vincent's Stay'n Deadly & Stay'n In team, who recently won the 2021 NSW Health Excellence in Aboriginal Healthcare Award. The NSW Health Awards recognise innovative and sustainable health programs that deliver outcomes that matter to patients and invests in the wellness of the NSW community.

The Stay'n Deadly & Stay'n In project is focussed on reducing the incomplete treatment rates of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander patients in the Emergency Department. Also known as the Flexi-clinic, the service means that very soon after arrival, patients who identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander are seen by a staff specialist, or ‘flexi-doctor’, significantly reducing waiting, testing and diagnosis times. At the same time, one of the Aboriginal Health team members will be on hand to support the patient throughout their treatment and follow-up care. The service being flexible by name and by nature, allows patients to come back to Emergency at another time to complete their treatment without delay, should their condition be stable enough to do so.

Prior to the commencement of the Flexi-clinic, St Vincent’s Emergency had one of the highest rates of incomplete treatment for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients across NSW - approximately four times higher than the standard set by Ministry of Health. Post implementation, St Vincent's now reports the lowest rate of incomplete treatment amongst our First Nations patients.

However it is not the KPI's that drive our team. "We had an ethical imperative to do this" said Prof Paul Preisz, Director of Emergency. "The biggest measure of success we have here is that we've changed the culture of this place. We don't think of Flexi-clinic as a project anymore because it has become our normal process. It's a permanent change in how we work, and the results are consistently good".

Congratulations to the whole team!

To watch Pauline Deweerd, Executive Director of Aboriginal Health accept this prestigious award on behalf of the St Vincent's team, please watch the video below.

Winners: NSW Health Excellence in Aboriginal Healthcare Award