Hurdles complicate Campaspe health

He was not surprised by the results, which showed the Campaspe community — in particular Rochester — had arthritis, heart disease, diabetes and mental health percentages which were almost double the national average

Dr Tse said the remote nature of the Campaspe community, along with its ageing population and lack of understanding in the technology space were contributing factors.

He works at the Kyabram and Rochester-Elmore health services, which share a similar increased numbers of chronic health conditions (in comparison to the national average).

Dr Tse has worked with the Campaspe health services since early 2019 and has 12 years in public health and health management.

He said understanding, and utilising, telehealth services was vital during a period of time when people were not prepared to “run the gauntlet’’ of entering the community.

“We’ve seen during the various COVID waves that patients have been presenting with more advanced conditions due to putting off appointments,” he said.

Dr Tse said it was not entirely the fault of the patient as, in several instances, health services been suspended or a directive was made to use telehealth for non-critical medical treatment.

“The health sector is seeing more and more late presentations. We are seeing late cancers which haven’t been diagnosed,” he said.

“This is particularly relevant for our region.”

Dr Tse said telehealth services could assist with the lack of specialist services offered in rural areas.

He said while gaining a GP appointment at Rochester and Elmore was still “reasonably easy’’, accessing specialist services was another story.

In Rochester there are four doctors, and another at Elmore, who are credentialed to provide services to hospital patients and aged-care residents..

“There is a lack of volunteer transport services and several other barriers for people to overcome,” Dr Tse said.

“Sometimes being able to obtain the necessary medical treatment is out of in people’s control.

“WIth an older population, the tyranny of distance and being a lower socio-economic area make access to services makes it difficult.

“Technology is often another barrier for older people.”

Transport problems have been addressed with the REDHS and Royal Flying Doctor Service partnership. It picks up from a 20km radius of REDHS and transports as far as Echuca, Shepparton and Bendigo for appointments.

Dr Tse said chronic health conditions had not suddenly increased in the Campaspe region, but instead were continuing to gradually rise.

“Chronic diseases are the top cause of disability and death in Australia. It has been slowly growing for a number of years,” he said.

“It is something that we really need to work on.”

He suggested people taking care of their own health was a major recommendation of all health services.

“All the literature indicated that is the best way to improve your health, along with taking good health advice,” he said.

“Agencies like REDHS are there to provide advice. We are doing it with you, not for you.

“People are encouraged to contact our health services to inquire about different services, such as exercise programs and health promotion advice.

“They might be surprised to know the range of services available to help them.”

Dr Tse said there were many services available to people to assist them in regaining, or maintaining, their health and wellbeing.

“They will be able to discover just how many of them can be delivered using telehealth technology,” he said.

Dr Tse said increased life expectancy meant the demand on health services had continued to grow, but a lack of personnel in rural regions made the range of services limited.

“There is always some scope to have more services, but all rural areas are having trouble recruiting and retain healthcare workers,” he said.

“And it has been worse because of COVID.

“There wouldn’t be a week when we don’t have an advert for people.”