Public Statement Regarding Dialysis Transport for Aboriginal Community Members in South Australia
Wednesday, October 24 2018
The Adelaide PHN wishes to make the following facts available to our community following inaccurate reporting by the ABC:
- No services or transport services (commissioned by Adelaide PHN with Commonwealth funds) have had funding cuts or had funding withdrawn
- Sonder is the commissioned service provider for the Integrated Team Care (Closing the Gap program) in the Northern, Western and Southern regions of Adelaide
- Not a single Aboriginal person, in need of urgent transport assistance, has ever been refused a short term service by Sonder
- The transportation of acute patients for services such as Dialysis are the responsibility of SA Health and the relevant Dialysis Unit
- SA Health has always had a Patient Transport Policy (which applies to Dialysis services) providing for transportation if patients fit the eligibility criteria – people should approach their SA Health Dialysis Unit Manager for assistance with this
- Integrated Team Care (CTG) provides for Care Coordination and Outreach Worker services for Aboriginal people with chronic complex conditions who have a Shared Care Plan from their general practitioner
- The guidelines for this program specify that services and funding for specific items, such as equipment and transportation can only be utilised if they are not available through another source
- The person featured in the article is not an ITC client and has not requested nor had transportation to the Dialysis unit through Sonder
- It would be reasonable to assume that in the circumstances this person would certainly be eligible for SA Health funded transportation for her Dialysis treatment