General Practitioners

The Commonwealth Carelink Program was developed as a component of the
wider Enhanced Primary Care (EPC) package, and will support the introduction
of other EPC incentives that encourage general practitioners to participate in care
planning, case conferencing and voluntary health assessment for individuals aged
75 years and over, and for indigenous people aged 55 years and over.

Commonwealth Carelink Centres will endeavour to function as guides to the labyrinth
of community care services in each region through the establishment of single regional
shop fronts and a national 1800 number. The EPC Package includes: ¨

A series of new items on the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) to support
preventative health care and enhance health care management through better
coordination of care for patients. The items cover:

1. Health assessments for people 75 years and over (55 years for Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islanders)

2. The development and review of care plans by a GP for people with chronic
conditions and multi-disciplinary care needs and

3. GP's involvement in case conferencing with other providers. ¨ Further coordinated
care trials to build on the lessons learned from the first round of trials about whether
better health and well-being outcomes can be achieved for people with complex care
needs by allowing greater flexibility in the use of existing funds to support care planning
and coordinated provision of services. Further information about the various elements
of the Enhanced Primary Care Package can be accessed at
www.health.gov.au/hsdd/primcare/enhancpr/enhancpr.htm