Partnership with NZ Red Cross to benefit Cantabrians
Pegasus Health and New Zealand Red Cross have joined forces to link vulnerable people impacted by the Canterbury earthquakes with a General Practice.
In January 2016, New Zealand Red Cross provided funding to Pegasus Health to increase the number of Partnership Community Workers (PCWs) in greater Christchurch. The funding covers two fulltime PCWs, who started in May 2016 and are based at the Linwood Avenue Community Corner Trust – one of the 14 agencies who partner with Pegasus to deliver the PCW service.
The PCWs’ role is to respond to the health needs of people who are low income; Maori; Pacific; refugees; and migrants.
One of the two new PCWs works with people who are not enrolled with a General Practice and have been going to hospital or the 24 Hour Surgery to see a doctor. The other role responds to those affected by domestic violence, homelessness and any other issues that create barriers to accessing health care.
Red Cross also provided funding to extend the hours of an existing Pegasus Health PCW, based at Te Ora Hou. The increase in hours, over 12 months, will enable the PCW to work with vulnerable youth in alternative education and two Maori immersion schools, all of whom have been affected by the Canterbury earthquakes.
Melissa McCreanor, Pegasus Health’s Community Liaison Access Manager, says the PCWs aim to empower people to take responsibility for managing their own health.
“The Red Cross funding has given us this exciting opportunity to look at how our PCW service is working and to target those with unmet health needs who aren’t linked with primary health,” Melissa says. “The funding has meant we can look at doing things in new ways.”
One of those ways is through a voucher system, which Melissa says aims to address some of the barriers to accessing health services in Christchurch.
The vouchers – for healthcare, prescriptions and public transport – were launched in March 2016 and can only be accessed through the PCWs. They are for people who have earthquake-related physical or mental health issues, or are a result of the stressors of living in a post-quake environment.
Melissa says Pegasus Health began exploring a voucher system after the Canterbury District Health Board introduced a health enrolment voucher in 2015.
“We believed a similar system would assist in breaking down some of the barriers to accessing health services. Our aim was to create sustainable change, not dependency,” Melissa says.
The prescription vouchers cover the cost of obtaining prescription medication, while the healthcare vouchers can be used for enrolment and a person’s first GP visit, transferring between Pegasus Health practices, an extended consultation, and accessing the 24 Hour Surgery. The Metro Bus vouchers assist people to get to their appointments at a medical practice, hospital or other health-related service.
Pegasus Health is working with Very Low Cost Access (VLCA) medical practices to provide the healthcare vouchers. One of the six VLCA practices in Christchurch trialled the vouchers in February 2016, during which a PCW assisted six people to enrol with a medical practice and transferred another to enrol with a VLCA practice. Most recipients did not have a regular GP.
A CLIENT STORY
PCW Vivienne Jackson shares her story about how the prescription voucher has assisted one of her clients.
“When my client first called me she was apprehensive about the PCW service because she had always been reluctant to ask for help. Her depression and other health issues had worsened since the Canterbury earthquakes, leading to her needing more medication.
“She had recently gone to her local pharmacy to fill a prescription and had not been able to afford all the items prescribed to her. The pharmacy had given her my contact details because they had heard about the Pegasus Health prescription voucher.
“After I met with the client, she was able to use the voucher to pick up all her prescription items. I assisted her to apply for a disability allowance through Work and Income New Zealand and to set up an automatic payment to the pharmacy to ensure that she could have ongoing access to her prescribed medication.”