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ISSUE 5 • October 2014
The Decision Assist Project Update is a bimonthly summary of key news and
events from the Decision Assist program. Funded by the Australian Government,
Decision Assist aims to build capacity, linkages and access to palliative care and
advance care planning services for older Australians by providing support and
education to GPs and aged care providers.
• Palliative care phone
service now available
• FREE aged care
workshops
• Register for training
• Advance care
planning education
for GPs
Welcome
The Decision Assist program
continues to forge ahead, with the
phone advisory services now fully
operational, a range of workshops
being rolled out nationally and the
linkages projects soon to be unveiled.
Lots of good feedback is being
received about the range of support
and services provided, which is
particularly positive as the program
isn’t officially launched until later this
month.
Read on to find out more about ‘what’s
new’ and how you can get involved!
02
If you would like to attend the launch,
or obtain a launch information pack,
please email the Events team at
Palliative Care Australia:
Official launch event
An event to officially mark the launch
of Decision Assist is now being
planned in Canberra for 28 October
2014.
Leaders in politics, health and the
aged care sectors are being invited to
attend the event, which will showcase
all the Decision Assist projects and the
ways they are working to improve
access to quality advance care
planning and palliative care for older
Australians.
It will also be an important networking
opportunity for anyone interested in
advance care planning and palliative
care, and for those who want to find
out directly from the project leaders
about how Decision Assist can help
and support people working in the
industry.
“The launch will
showcase all the
Decision Assist
projects and how
they are working to
support people in
the industry”
October 2014
03
The online learning content covers the
theory of advance care planning and a
palliative approach to care. Separate
workshops will be held for residential
aged care staff and for Home Care
Packages staff working in the
community.
Those who complete the course will
be accredited with 13 hours of
Continuing Professional Development.
For more information about the
workshops, call the aged care training
line on (03) 9088 1252.
FREE aged care workshops
Good news for all aged care staff –
the Decision Assist workshops on
advance care planning and palliative
care are now being offered for free, so
people are encouraged to register
quickly for a workshop in their local
area to avoid disappointment.
The aged care workshops page on the
Decision Assist website –
www.decisionassist.org.au – features
all the information about when and
where they will be held in each state
and territory, with more than 350
planned at locations all around
Australia before the end of next year.
Participants will be required to
complete online learning modules and
attend two face to face workshops
held 2 months apart.
October 2014
04
People with palliative care needs
beyond those that can be provided by
generalist services deserve access to
appropriate expert level care. Advice
and support are not subject to
registration with a specialist service.
This phone service is available to all
GPs and aged care staff working in
residential or aged community care
services right around Australia.
To date, callers to the palliative care
service have inquired about
resources and services in their local
areas, medication advice and
symptom management. The service
also offers advice related to
psychosocial and bereavement
support, as well as information about
education and training resources.
Phone Decision Assist for advice
now!
We are pleased to announce that the
setup of the Decision Assist phone
advisory service project is now
complete, with both the palliative care
and the advance care planning advice
lines fully operational.
The specialist Palliative Care Phone
Advisory Service has been operating
since 1 September 2014, with St
Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne awarded
the tender following a national
invitation for expressions of interest.
The team at Decision Assist is pleased
to have St Vincent’s on board, since
they are a major provider of palliative
care to patients across Victoria and
regarded as a national leader in
palliative care research, education and
training.
The phone service is available 24
hours a day, 7 days a week by calling
1300 668 908.
Information and advice is provided by
palliative care registered nurses for
the cost of a local call, regardless of
where calls are made. Specialist
palliative care doctors are available for
consultation when required.
October 2014
05
Advance care planning advice is also
available on the same phone number
– 1300 668 908 – with experienced
health professionals taking calls from
8am until 8pm daily.
Registered nurses provide a range of
assistance, from how to initiate
advance care planning conversations,
setting up a case conference, where
to find appropriate advance care
planning documents for your state or
territory, how to implement advance
care planning into your facility,
information on health professional
education and training, and
information regarding the different
state and territories legislation.
The line has been operating since
July, with the number of calls steadily
increasing as the program gains
recognition across the aged care
sector.
Staff who have participated in the
Decision Assist Aged Care Training
Workshops have found it particularly
useful for follow up advice.
All calls to the phone advisory
services are treated confidentially,
and comply with a strict privacy
policy that can be viewed on the
website www.decisionassist.org.au
Also visit the website for further
information about how the phone
advisory services can help you in
your role and your organisation, or
alternatively telephone 1300 668 908
now.
“Both the
advance care
planning and the
palliative care
phone lines are
now fully
operational”
October 2014
06
Linkages assessments
The assessment process for the
Linkages grant applications is now
underway, with the successful
applicants and their project details
expected to be announced later this
month.
More than 30 applications were
received nationally from a diverse
range of organisations with proposals
that aim to enhance linkages between
aged care and palliative care service
providers.
The grants of up to $80,000 each are
intended to support improvements in
palliative care for those aged over 65
years, or over 50 years for Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander people. The
Linkages project is a key component
of Decision Assist, because it provides
important opportunities to better link
and coordinate multidisciplinary care
and to support staff and carers in their
roles.
The linkages projects are expected
to produce a range of benefits,
including improved communication
between all involved in a person’s
care, better understanding of the
various roles of different service
providers to promote service
provision that is consistent with a
person’s specific wishes, and a
reduction in unnecessary hospital
admissions.
The aim is that the newly developed
linkages will create a more
supportive care environment to
ensure all health professionals and
care workers are well equipped to
deliver this service.
October 2014
07
GP workshops
The Decision Assist GP workshops for
improving end of life care are being
positively received around the country,
with recent workshops held for the
Australian and New Zealand Society
for Palliative Medicine (ANZSPM), the
Brisbane Palliative Care Medical
Interest Group, the Australian Practice
Nurses Association in Canberra and
the national RACGP conference -
GP14 - in Adelaide.
GPs and GP registrars can register
now for upcoming events, including
workshops planned for Rural Medicine
Australia 2014 in Sydney on
1 November, the Healthed Conference
in Adelaide on 1 November, the
General Practitioner Conference and
Exhibition in Melbourne from 14-16
November, and at Fifty Shades of
Pain – Queensland Pain and Palliative
Care conference in Brisbane from 3-5
December.
Full details are on the Decision Assist
website – www.decisionassist.org.au –
with links to registrations for each
event.
In September, a joint Decision Assist
workshop for GPs, including advance
care planning and palliative care, was
held at the Australian Medical
Educators Network (AMEN)
conference in Brisbane.
This workshop introduced the GP
component of Decision Assist to GP
medical educators from across
Australia.
This means that, potentially, all GP
registrars can receive training about
the advantages of Decision Assist,
both for GPs themselves and for their
provision of care for all older
Australians.
This would allow for 100% reach of
Decision Assist to the emerging GPs
of the future.
Advance care planning education for
GPs is currently being developed and
will be available in 2015.
“GPs can
register now for
upcoming
events”
October 2014
08
Website
New webpages are now available on
the Decision Assist website –
www.decisionassist.org.au – to help
health professionals support people
with specific advance care planning
and palliative care needs.
Located in the Resources Section of
the website, by clicking on the
‘Specific Needs’ hyperlink, a wealth of
information is available to guide
professionals assisting Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander people; culturally
and linguistically diverse (CALD)
communities; as well as people who
identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual,
transgender and intersex (GLBTI).
In addition, specific information is
provided to help staff dealing with
people who have dementia, those
living in rural and remote areas, and
those seeking guidance on spirituality
and faith.
It includes best practice advice for
providing appropriate care to these
groups, as well as policy and
management considerations and
reputable sources of information and
research outcomes for further learning
and support.
So, whether you are looking for
information on how cultural
differences may affect a person’s end
of life care wishes, how Decision
Assist can support ethnically diverse
communities, how to include
Australians of diverse sexual
orientation in the advance care
planning and palliative care
processes, tips on overcoming the
geographical challenges that Australia
poses, or caring for people of different
religions, then the Decision Assist
website can help you.
Many of the resources are posted
online so they are easy to view and
download.
Also, don’t forget to add the Decision
Assist website –
www.decisionassist.org.au - to your
favourites bar, so you can easily
access all the latest announcements
and developments associated with the
program at the click of a button.
October 2014
“Pull quote it abori delit re dellantio illorpo
reperunt laccull aboritatur the aute.
Decision Assist is a $15 million project funded by the Australian Government as part of
the Living Longer Living Better aged care reform package. Decision Assist aims to build
capacity, linkages and access to palliative care and advance care planning services for
older Australians by providing support and education to GPs and aged care providers. It is
being implemented by a consortium of leading national health, aged care, and academic
organisations including Austin Health, Palliative Care Australia, Flinders University, the
University of Queensland, Queensland University of Technology, the Australian and New
Zealand Society of Palliative Medicine, Leading Age Services Australia (LASA), and Aged
and Community Services Australia (ACSA).
Information contained in this publication may be reproduced in health and aged care
publications, with the permission of the Decision Assist Project team.
conference for General Practice in
Adelaide.
For further information about participation
in these workshops, contact Dr Karen
Cooper at ANZSPM via email.
Associate Professor Jennifer Tieman will
also give a presentation on Decision
Assist at the ACSA National Conference in
Adelaide on 8 and 9 September 2014.
Conferences and Events
Decision Assist palliative care workshops
will be conducted at the following upcoming
conferences.
• 2-5 September at the ANZSPM
Conference on the Gold Coast
• 12-14 September the GPCE Conference
in Brisbane
• 9-11 October at GP14 – The RACGP
08
For further information, please contact Rachel Hawes:
p (02) 6163 8404
www.decisionassist.org.au
Click to subscribe or unsubscribe to Decision Assist Project News.
09
older Australians, and not the
residents or clients living in the
community, A/Prof Tieman explained
that the benefits will ultimately flow to
older Australians.
By improving staff confidence,
competence and access to
knowledge, the quality of care
provided will improve.
Aged care staff were encouraged to
get involved with the program by
telling work colleagues about it, by
signing up for a newsletter, visiting the
website, attending a workshop, or
calling the phone line when they need
advice.
Help spread the word
The Decision Assist communications
team has been busy producing a
range of communications materials to
help spread the word about the range
of Decision Assist projects and these
are now hot off the press!
PDFs are posted on the website if you
would like to download copies, or
alternatively contact the
communications team by emailing
Also, look out for Decision Assist
advertisements in Australian Ageing
Agenda, Aged Care Insite, Fusion
Magazine and at the LASA National
Congress from 20-22 October.
October 2014
Conferences and events
In September 2014, A/Prof Jennifer
Tieman spoke at the ACSA
conference in Adelaide. Her
presentation was titled ‘Decision
Assist: What’s in it for aged care
providers, staff and residents/clients
on the ground?’
The presentation featured an
overview of the program and the
expertise behind it, and detailed its
potential benefits in the community.
Although the focus of Decision Assist
is to help those providing care to
If you are attending the Congress,
remember to come and say ‘hello’ to
our staff; they will be stationed in the
LASA Lounge during the event to
answer all your Decision Assist
questions.
Project Update December 2014
The next edition of the Decision Assist Project Update will be issued in December 2014.
Contributions and updates are most welcome. Please contact the program
communications officer, Rachel Hawes, by emailing [email protected] or by
telephoning 02 6163 8404.
Decision Assist is a multifaceted program funded by the Australian Government, which aims to build
capacity, linkages and access to palliative care and advance care planning services for older Australians,
by providing support and education to general practitioners and aged care staff. It is being implemented
by a consortium of leading national health, aged care, and academic organisations including Austin
Health, the Australian and New Zealand Society of Palliative Medicine (ANZSPM), Flinders University,
Palliative Care Australia (PCA), Queensland University of Technology (QUT), the University of
Queensland (UQ), Leading Age Services Australia (LASA), and Aged and Community Services Australia
(ACSA).
Information contained in this publication may be reproduced in health and aged care publications,
with the permission of the Decision Assist program team.
Contact Rachel Hawes
p (02) 6163 8404
www.decisionassist.org.au
• The General Practitioner
Conference and Exhibition on 14
November in Melbourne
• Fifty Shades of Pain – Queensland
Pain and Palliative Care
conference on 3-5 December in
Brisbane.
Conferences and events (cont.)
Look out for Decision Assist at the
following upcoming industry events:
• The LASA National Congress from
20-22 October in Adelaide
• Rural Medicine Australia 2014 on
1 November in Sydney
• The Healthed Conference on
1 November in Adelaide
10 October 2014