Canterbury’s First PHO is launched

Canterbury’s First Primary Health Organisation is launched

Canterbury’s first Primary Health Organisation (PHO) will be launched tomorrow (Tuesday, 1 July 2003). PHOs are the local provider organisations through which District Health Boards (DHBs) are implementing the Primary Health Care Strategy. To be known as the Canterbury Community Primary Health Organisation, it will be based in Christchurch and will be a combination of 14 existing health groups including:
- Family Planning Association
- Freedom Clinic Trust
- Hepatitis C Resource Centre Te Waipounamu
- New Zealand Aids Foundation
- New Zealand Prostitutes Collective
- PATHS
- Plunket Canterbury
- Rodger Wright Centre (DSIC Trust)
- Tangata Atumotu Trust
- Te Amorangi Richmond
- Te Rawhiti Family Health Centre
- Timeout Carers
- Union and Community Health Centre
- Youth Health Trust

Eve Nissan, the Project Co-ordinator for the Canterbury Community PHO said that these organisations had been “exploring ways of working together for the last two years” and saw this initiative as enabling them to be connected on a formal basis.

Utilising the Access formula, the Canterbury Community PHO will be able to maintain low fees, and the increased funding will enable more focus on diabetes management especially around encouraging patients to be tested, working with the Diabetes Centre and podiatry professionals, as well as raising community awareness about Diabetes. Promoting oral health will also be a priority.

The Canterbury Community PHO is a not-for-profit body, which has a strong belief in social justice, especially in the delivery of health care to those who need it most.

ENDS

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