Abstract

Small relatively isolated rural communities in Australia have been provided with the opportunity to address the difficulties surrounding the provision of health services. The Multi Purpose Services (MPS) program was initiated in 1991 when it was identified that small rural communities have been disadvantaged by separated Commonwealth and state funding arrangements and the criteria for these arrangements where services were often unable to be sustained separately. The MPS program provided the opportunity for sustainability through flexibility and pooling of resources. The application of a primary health care framework would enable more community consultation and participation in reorientating rural health services. Upper Murray Health and Community Services (UMH&CS), a small rural health service in North East Victoria, embraced the concept and undertook a rigorous Evidence Based Needs Assessment to reorientate its health service. The needs assessment combined a sociodemographic, epidemiological and community consultative approach. Evidence of best practice was identified and the recommendations were used for ongoing service development. UMH&CS represents a highly integrated health service and as such a number of strategies are used to enable the continuum of care. These include point of contact advocacy, continuum and coordination of care and the use of a standardised multidisciplinary assessment and outcome based care plan. This paper expands on these processes and the opportunities the MPS has provided to address the health needs of small rural communities.