Identifying Narrandera's primary health care needs

The Murrumbidgee Medicare Local conducted another very successful Community Engagement Forum in Narrandera on Tuesday evening. This was the seventh such forum conducted. The 40 attendees, representing a broad range of stakeholders, worked in small groups to address three specific questions designed to gather input from members of the local community on local primary health care needs. 

Dr Tony Hobbs, Chair of the Murrumbidgee Medicare Local Board, chaired the evening gave a brief overview of the progress the Medicare Local has made since its establishment in late last year and expressed his appreciation to all those in attendance, including Mayor Jenny Clarke, Deputy Mayor Bob Manning, Murrumbidgee Local Health District Board Director Gayle Murphy, as well as representatives from many other organisation’s involved in providing or supporting Primary Health Services in Narrandera.  

Dr Hobbs said the valuable information gathered from the Narrandera forum, together with that gathered from the other community forums held across the Medicare Local area, will be used by the MML in preparing a comprehensive needs analysis which will inform and guide future primary health service planning.  

‘Community input is needed to ensure we identify gaps in primary health care services, improve coordination and integration of existing health services and undertake the health promotion and preventative health activities needed to improve the health and lifestyle choices of the local community’, Dr Hobbs said.

Chief Executive Officer, Nancye Piercy, said ‘the feedback provided by the attendees was extremely valuable and it was encouraging that those present indicated a willingness to continue to engage with the Murrumbidgee Medicare Local as it works towards achieving one of its main objectives of being responsive to, and meeting local needs with a well-integrated primary health care service.’