REFUGEE and asylum seeker health in the western suburbs is set to improve following state government funding for a new treatment system.
Victorian Health Minister David Davis said ISIS Primary Care and Western Region Health Centre (WRHC) would share in $463,161 in the first year of funding for refugee nursing and allied health services.
The funding is part of a statewide, four-year $22.2 million package, which includes a $4 million triage and orientation system that will provide health assessments and immediate referral for necessary treatment for refugees and asylum seekers.
Mr Davis said more than 11,000 refugees and asylum seekers had settled in Victoria in the past 12 months – more than double the year before. “Commonwealth support needs to increase to ensure assistance is available for everyone who settles here, no matter how they arrived.”
WRHC CEO Lyn Morgain said refugee health nurses and community mental health workers assessed the physical and mental health needs of refugees and asylum seekers.
They provided support to access health services including dental, counselling and physiotherapy.
“Any additional resources are welcome due to the increase in refugees and asylum seekers in the west,” Ms Morgain said.
WRHC is yet to confirm exactly how the funding will be allocated.
The initiative follows the launch earlier this year of the refugee health program by West Footscray-based Macedon Ranges and North Western Melbourne Medicare Local, providing more than 100 local general practitioners with training to tackle specific medical issues faced by newly arrived refugees and asylum seekers.
