Programmed Shared Medical Appointments rolling out to more than 40 Medical Centres thanks to COORDINARE
ASLM are pleased to share that the long-awaited roll out campaign of Programmed Shared Medical Appointments (PSMAs) within the Southeast NSW Primary Health Network (PHN) footprint. Initially planned for 2021, the campaign was interrupted due to Covid-19 but is now underway.
COORDINARE is offering incentive packages to pilot PSMAs in medical centres within their region. These programs have been developed and successfully field-tested in a previous collaboration between ASLM and COORDINARE.
The programs include Waist Management for Men, Healthy Weight for Women, Smoking Cessation, Nicotine Resistance for Aboriginal Communities, Chronic Pain Self-Management, and Stress Anxiety and Depression Self-Management.
When implemented, PSMAs have been shown to make a positive impact on patients’ well-being. Staff have also enjoyed the way they have facilitated the development of more meaningful relationships with their patients while giving them the opportunity to fully utilise their knowledge and skills.
Published results of the weight management programs to be found at online here and for weight management and Aboriginal women here.
PSMA packages are specifically designed for GPs and Shared Medical Appointment (SMA) facilitators to deliver a program of knowledge, skill, and motivation to patients, both face-to-face and online, over a series of sessions using the SMA/Medical Yarn Up (MYU) process. Each package has a self-administered facilitator training module as well a patient program and resources streaming to any device.
The roll-out has begun with PSMA in Chronic Pain Self-Management to complement a PHN focus on supporting Chronic Pain management in primary care.
ASLM provides online training in Shared Medical Appointments. To find out more about this training and learn about Shared Medical Appointments, Medical Yarn Ups and Programmed Shared Medical Appointments, please follow the link below.
John Stevens
John Stevens is a health sociologist and Associate Professor (Adj) in the School of Health and Human Sciences at Southern Cross University (SCU). He is also a Registered Nurse and the director of a number of companies engaged in health education and research, working closely with Primary Health Networks. In the past John has been Head of the School of Nursing and Health Practices, the Director of Post Graduate studies (which included convening and teaching the first ever Master’s Award in Lifestyle Medicine) and Director of Professional Development and Enterprise, at SCU. John was a founding member of ASLM and has provided academic leadership to the movement. He is pioneering the use of Shared Medical Appointments as a procedure to help clinicians put evidence-based Lifestyle Medicine into practice. He has over 60 peer reviewed publications including books on dementia and obesity management and continues to explore the translation of science into meaningful and measurable health care.
