+ - The Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub

The Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub is dedicated to ensuring people experiencing disadvantage in Brisbane have access to quality physical, dental, mental health and holistic healthcare services irrespective of their ability to pay.

Delivering quality health services that are integrated with other social services is an important part of our hub's vision.

The Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub provides general practice (GP) services and wellness programs.

Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub reception. Photography: Katie Bennett.

+ - Our Purpose and Approach

The Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub’s mission is to improve access to healthcare for people experiencing difficulties in accessing mainstream healthcare services.

Our mission is informed by the social determinants of health and, as such, we are committed to overcoming health inequality.

To achieve this we aim to:

address the barriers that prevent people from accessing the basic health services they require to support a healthy life
provide high quality, personalised, integrated health services that reflect the needs of the whole person
prioritise the needs of people who experience difficulties in accessing mainstream healthcare services
work in collaboration with social and community service providers to ensure the social factors that contribute to negative health outcomes are identified, and where possible are managed or alleviated.

Why does Brisbane need an Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub?

Conventional models of healthcare practice currently deliver positive outcomes for most of the Brisbane population.

However, a growing body of evidence has highlighted that conventional mainstream primary health, dental and emergency services as they are currently delivered, do not work well for highly disadvantaged and marginalised populations.

This results in poor individual patient outcomes, poor health across already disadvantaged communities and a poor economic return on government spending despite the best intentions of everyone involved.

But there is a solution: a way to help give everyone a ‘fair go’ in the healthcare system, and break the cycle of health inequality: a holistic, integrated, inclusive health and wellness hub designed especially for this purpose.

This is a ‘first’ for Brisbane.

The Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub is committed to ensuring that every person, regardless of their circumstances, has access to quality physical, dental, mental health and holistic healthcare services irrespective of their ability to pay.

Our approach is underpinned by our values, which in partnership with evidence-based research, inform our practice.

People First
Health issues and challenges do not happen in isolation. We will always treat the person first as a whole person, with a lifetime of experiences, for whom a health challenge has arisen.

Overcoming Health Inequality
Ensure all people, regardless of life or economic circumstances, have access to affordable high quality healthcare which is their right as citizens.

Integration
We are committed to integration, to overcoming silos in healthcare and in community support. We work across disciplines and healthcare domains to provide people with what they need to get well.

Dignity, Respect and Compassion
All people accessing the service will be treated with dignity and respect. Judgement of individuals or the circumstances surrounding their health or social needs has no place in our service.

Inclusion and Diversity
We strive to be inclusive and to respect the diversity of the people who access our service.

Recovery and Trauma
We recognise that recovery from trauma and/or addiction is a highly personal and unique journey to each person, based on self-determination and self-management. Noting the critical role this plays in lifelong health outcomes, we are committed to working alongside people accessing our services at a pace of their choosing.

Quality and Excellence
We aspire to provide high quality healthcare services and strive to be leaders of excellence in the development and delivery of best practice primary healthcare for vulnerable populations.

Timeliness
We are committed to acting as quickly as possible to achieve good health outcomes for people, given the resources available and the need to prioritise. We will do all we can to ensure people receive timely healthcare services.

Innovative and Solution-Oriented
We are committed to the development and trialling of innovative ideas wherever appropriate. We will always seek solutions to issues as they arise, working with others, breaking down silos and boundaries that might otherwise impede innovation and solutions.

Collaboration
We seek collaborative partnerships with individuals and organisations who have, or will use our services, who will provide them, and those who support them. We work in the spirit of collaboration, respecting the valuable input of all as we strive to achieve our mission.

Commitment and Appreciation
We believe in what we do. We conduct our work with commitment. We appreciate the work of our staff and volunteers, our partners and the individuals who trust us to provide them with quality services.

+ - Our Leadership

The Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub operates under the auspice of a company limited by guarantee, Inclusive Health Partnerships Ltd.

The company was registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC) in September 2015. We are a Public Benevolent Institution (PBI) with Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status.

Company Directors are:

Alice I-Hsin Lu
Karyn Walsh
Michael Kelly
Wei-Cheng Lu.

An Inclusive Health Stakeholder Committee was established in late 2016 and consists of government and non-government organisations who support the hub. This committee meets quarterly.

+ - Our Partners

The initial opening of the Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub has only been made possible through innovative partnerships which have developed over a ten year period under the umbrella of Inclusive Health Partnerships.

The partners are:

These partners have operated Integrated Healthcare Services which deliver nurse-led programs, underpinned by a Clinical Governance Steering Committee.

The Hub
The Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub has been developed in collaboration with the partners but it is operated by a new not-for-profit company - Inclusive Health Partnerships Ltd, a social enterprise joint venture between Micah Projects and The Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation.

Micah Projects is a not-for-profit organisation committed to providing services and opportunities in the community to create justice and respond to injustice. Micah Projects services are wide ranging to reflect the diversity of challenges people face in Brisbane.
Tzu Chi Foundation is a UN acknowledged NGO with volunteers in 50 countries across 345 offices worldwide. Tzu Chi's mission focuses on providing materials aids to the needy and to promote love and humanity to both givers and recipients. The Foundation dedicates itself in the fields of charity, medical service, promotion of humanistic values, and education. For more information on Tzu Chi Foundation please visit our website.

Opening of the Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub, 25 February 2017. Photography: Craig Holmes.

The Brisbane North PHN assisted the development of the hub by funding the development of a business plan and stakeholder engagement strategy.

An initial capital investment of $800,000 in donations allowed for the required medical standard fit-out for the hub. We are now seeking partners to support the ongoing operational funding associated with operating the hub.

View the 2016 PwC Evaluation of the Inclusive Health and Wellness Hub model.

To find out more about becoming a partner please contact us.