A local group has celebrated the culmination of four years of ‘hard work’ to enhance health services in and around Oxford.

The Oxford and Surrounding Areas Health Service Development Group (OSHSDG) has worked to implement 10 recommendations (collectively known as a model of care) to improve the health and wellbeing of the community.

Opening the final meeting in August, Chair Mike Patton offered congratulations to the group: “Well done for your hard work, persistence and perseverance over the past four years,” he said.

Since its inception in 2016 the OSHSDG has reached a number of milestones including additional support for people’s wellbeing and mental health through initiatives run in schools and through general practice and establishing a locally-based 24/7 observation service so people who need observation can be monitored close to home, at Oxford Hospital.

Another milestone has been addressing the impact on the community of having to travel back and forth for appointments. The group worked with technology teams at Canterbury DHB to create an electronic ‘flag’ on peoples’ medical records if they live rurally. This means that, where possible, rural people will be offered specialist appointments between 9.30am and 3.30pm, to accommodate travel time. It also means that if a patient is seeing more than one specialist, appointments will be made on the same day if possible, to avoid unnecessary travel.

The group has started a process to support people to have appointments with Christchurch-based specialists via telehealth (video call) from their homes, at Oxford Hospital or Oxford Health Centre. These sorts of appointments, which are offered when it’s clinically appropriate, value people’s time and reduce the need for travel to Christchurch. For some people, this can mean not missing a day’s work because they’re able to have their appointment “on the job.”

Another sees local district nurses, home care providers, allied health services and general practice staff working collectively as a virtual team on a restorative care model to strengthen a person’s recovery following a change in their health needs.

Carol Horgan, group facilitator, said: “I'd like to salute the many people who have really engaged in the process to make the best of health services on behalf of the community. Many of the recommendations are now being followed up by other parts of the health system, so I expect the Oxford and surrounding areas will see continuous small changes that will really make a difference.”

With the foundations laid, the group is now handing the reins over to two newly-established groups – the Oxford Health Provider Alliance and the Oxford Community Health Advisory Group that will work together to progress changes that will benefit the community, and make local health services more sustainable.

Pegasus Health is supporting these groups to formalise their roles and think about the value they can bring to the community, and how they can link back to the wider Canterbury health system.