APCC Program
The objective of the Australian Primary Care Collaboratives Program (APCC Program) was to encourage and support primary health care services throughout Australia deliver rapid, measurable, systematic and sustainable improvements in the care they provide to patients, through the sound understanding and effective application of quality improvement methods and skills.
Recognising the impact that the UK’s National Primary Care Collaborative had on chronic disease care the Australian Government funded the APCC Program in 2004 as a strategy to adapt and implement this work to address improvement in primary care in Australia. Over ten years the Department has invested $60 million in the APCC program. The APCC may be the only health program in Australia that has demonstrated funding accountability through the provision of regular, accurate and consistent national health outcome data over this period of time.
The APCC Program has worked with over 2,000 unique primary health care services to improve the care of hundreds of thousands of patients. These primary health care services are principally general practices but also include Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHO), community health services and allied health professionals. Through the APCC Program, IF has worked with 20% of Australian front-line General Practices and other health services. The APCC Program has also trained staff from all 61 Medicare Locals and over 80% of the former Divisions of General Practice to engage with their General Practices in improvement activities.
Beginning with a focus on three priority topic areas (Diabetes, Coronary Heart Disease, and Access and Care Redesign) in the first phase, the APCC Program expanded the number of topics covered since its inception to include Chronic Kidney Disease, Cardiovascular Disease, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Disease Prevention and Self-Management, Integration of Care, and Closing the Gap. In line with the Commonwealth Government’s significant investment in eHealth, the APCC Program has included a focus on supporting health services establish systems that use eHealth to support the management, including self-management, of patients with chronic diseases.
The APCC Program has developed considerable amount of resources over the 10 years and IF has maintained the APCC Program website for several years following the Commonwealth’s decision to cease funding. However, the APCC Program website has now been de-commissioned.
If you would like access to any of the APCC program materials please contact us.