Country PatHS expands to support more regional patients

• Country Patient Health Support to expand to all seven WA regions following successful rollouts in Kimberley, Pilbara, Goldfields, and Mid West
• Almost 1,000 at-risk country patients supported to date
• Expansion means more access to comprehensive journey and care co-ordination when travelling to Perth for specialist healthcare

The Cook Labor Government is expanding Country Patient Health Support (Country PatHS), a comprehensive journey and care co-ordination service that supports at-risk patients travelling to Perth for specialist healthcare.

From next month, the service will become available across all seven regions in a phased approach, having supported almost 1,000 patients since commencing in 2023.

Already available in the Kimberley, Pilbara, Goldfields, and Mid West, the expansion will see the service come online in the Great Southern, followed by the South West, and the Wheatbelt, where it is expected to help reduce and prevent rough sleeping during medical treatment.

Country PatHS works closely with metropolitan and regional healthcare providers, Aboriginal organisations, accommodation, and homelessness services to provide patient-centred, holistic and culturally safe wraparound support when patients travel to access healthcare.

Comments attributed to Health Minister Meredith Hammat:

"Country PatHS has successfully supported patients from regional and remote areas with complex health conditions to access metropolitan healthcare.

"The service works with healthcare providers to provide comprehensive journey co-ordination including assistance with accommodation and transport.

"We have a big health system and navigating it can be tricky at times; Country PatHS aims to ease that burden for some of our most in-need patients.

"Almost 1,000 people have already been supported by the service and I am proud we are now able to build on that success and expand to the Wheatbelt, South West, and Great Southern."