What did we achieve ?
133 clients supported – 54 from MerriKids – 79 from NDIS Allied Health
redistributed our toys , books and resources
– within Merri Health , to local kindergartens and childcare centres and equipment libraries , and to MerriKids families in need
Challenges
due to ongoing challenges in the NDIS pricing structure , we made the difficult decision to stop delivering NDIS Services in January 2023
What ’ s next ?
continuing to support children aged birth to six with a developmental delay or disability and their families in the Ovens Murray region as the Early Childhood Partner for Early Childhood Early Intervention services
Better outcomes through prevention
Our Supported Residential Services ( SRS ) Support Program assists people living in pension-level SRSs in the Northern Metropolitan Region to manage their health and wellbeing , connect with their community , and engage with meaningful and enjoyable activities .
The program supports residents who are frail or have a disability and need support in everyday life .
Our focus this year was on preventive healthcare through educating residents about dental hygiene , healthy eating and completing skin checks .
Skin cancer was of particular concern at one location , as residents were not receiving skin checks from their GP .
What did we achieve ?
successfully completed checks at Lalor Skin Cancer Clinic and achieved excellent preventive health outcomes for over 50 % of the consumers who attended .
Of the 25 residents from one SRS location who agreed to a full skin check :
– 10 had excisions
– 1 was diagnosed with skin cancer
– 1 had a melanoma – 2 were caught just in time
216 residents of all 7 SRS locations were provided with dental care kits and access to dental hygiene education sessions in partnership with cohealth
20 residents attended workshops on healthy eating and diabetes
residents in 2 SRS locations were given a healthy-swap key chain to support healthy food choices when eating fast food
Where can we improve ?
partnering with our allied health services to foster educational opportunities will help us to better support residents ’ ongoing health needs
What ’ s next ?
monitoring all SRS locations to ensure that dental products are available to residents or to encourage residents to purchase them
partnering with the Living Well , Ageing Well program to deliver workshops on Food and Mood at each SRS
liaising with GPs and skin cancer clinics to ensure residents ’ skin cancer checks are completed
Merri Health Annual Report 2023 51