Open Consultations
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Draft State Public Health Plan 2025-2030
You are invited to review and provide feedback on the draft State Public Health Plan 2025-2030 (the draft SPHP). On 4 June 2024, Stage 5 of the Public Health Act 2016 was implemented, requiring the Chief Health Officer to publish the SPHP by 4 June 2025. State and local...
Closes 21 February 2025
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Health (Public Buildings) Regulations consultation
You are invited to provide feedback on the Department of Health’s second (and most recent) consultation paper on regulatory reforms that manage the public health risks associated with public buildings in WA. (See related links below). The regulatory environment for public buildings...
Closes 18 April 2025
Closed Consultations
Draft Public Health Planning Guide for Local Governments
You are invited to review and provide feedback on the Draft Public Health Planning Guide for Local Government (Guide). Implementation of Section 45 of the Public Health Act 2016 commenced on 4 June...
Alcohol and Other Drug Withdrawal Management Policy - Review
The Alcohol and Other Drug Withdrawal Management Policy is a mandatory policy under the Mental Health Policy Framework pursuant to section 26(2)(a, c) of the Health Services Act 2016. The...
Draft Guiding Principles for Patient Reported Measures
WA Health is developing guiding principles for the selection, collection, use and reporting of Patient Reported Measures (PRMs) which includes both Patient Reported Experience Measures (PREMs) and...
2023-2024 Food Act 2008 and Public Health Act 2016 Reporting
Local Government enforcement agencies are required to report to the Department of Health on their performance of functions under the Food Act 2008 (Food Act) (as required by section 121) and the...
Clinical Trials Investigator Survey
Are you an individual with a role in conducting clinical trials research? Please complete this investigator survey. This survey will help us to gather your insights regarding clinical trials...
Clinical Trials Consumer Survey
Are you a Western Australian who has participated in, or is interested in joining (either for yourself or a person you care for) a clinical trial? Please complete this consumer survey. A...
We asked, you said, we did
Here are some of the issues we have consulted on and their outcomes See all outcomes
We asked
In October/November 2023, the WA Department of Health End of Life Care (EOLC) Program conducted a consultation to gain a better understanding of the current uptake of advance care planning (ACP) and use of ACP resources in WA. The survey sought feedback on the revised WA Advance Health Directive (AHD) and suite of ACP resources that were released on 4 August 2022.
You said
69 respondents completed the survey with 76% reporting they thought the resources were very effective/ effective. Reported levels of awareness and use of the key ACP resources (Advance Health Directive and accompanying Guide, Values and Preferences Form, Your Guide to ACP in WA: Workbook) was high. Qualitative feedback on the resources was largely positive indicating the information within the resources is clear and comprehensive with a broad range of diversity represented within the images. Areas of concern that were noted included the literacy level and length of some of the resources.
The most common ACP activity reported within the last 12 months was ACP conversations with family, carers or friends.
Health professionals reported they were moderately or very confident in supporting patients with ACP. However, there were a small number of respondents to this question so the results may not be indicative of true levels of confidence across the whole workforce.
We did
The findings informed the development of several actions that the EOLC Team is currently implementing alongside existing work plans and priorities. This includes exploring possibilities to simplify the range of ACP information, arranging targeted awareness around common misconceptions, coordinating general awareness raising of ACP and investigating further opportunities for health professional education.
We asked
The consultation was about proposed supply controls over nitrous oxide, with the aim of reducing supply patterns associated with increased health harm.
Nitrous oxide gas is used as a prescription medicine, as a food additive and in the automotive industry. It is also inhaled as a recreational substance. Changing patterns of recreational use have resulted in increasing health harm, including damage to the nervous system, behavioural changes and reduced ability to safely drive.
The consultation related to nitrous oxide when classified as a Schedule 6 poison. There will be no changes to the regulation of nitrous oxide as a prescription medicine.
The survey was set up so those supplying nitrous oxide, those using nitrous oxide in food and drink preparation and those using nitrous oxide as an inhalant were asked questions most relevant to them.
You said
A total of 260 submissions were received in response to the online survey. The majority (85%) of responses were from individuals with the remainder from organisations and businesses.
There was variation in responses between the self-identified groups of respondents. Generally, those indicating they used nitrous oxide for home cooking or recreational use and those who identified as a member of the public, were less supportive of any restrictions. Health professionals, organisations representing health professionals and government departments were most supportive of the introduction of additional regulatory controls over supply.
Businesses selling nitrous oxide were of the opinion that additional supply controls would have an economic impact on their businesses.
We did
Advice was also sought from an industry reference group, with representatives from the hospitality, wholesaling and retailing sectors. An expert working group convened by the Mental Health Commission also provided input.
Details of the final proposals are available in the Consultation Report February 2024.
The proposed new rules for purchasing nitrous oxide in Schedule 6 will mean:
- Businesses using nitrous oxide bulbs for food additive purposes will have ongoing access to these products. These businesses will need to provide their supplier with evidence of their food business registration or liquor licence.
- Other businesses or institutions will be able to seek approval from the Department of Health to purchase nitrous oxide bulbs.
- Individual members of the public will no longer be able to purchase nitrous oxide bulbs.
- Supply of food additive grade nitrous oxide in larger cylinders or cannisters will not be allowed.
- Anyone (aged 16 years or older) will be able to purchase nitrous oxide intended for automotive use, provided the product has added sulfur dioxide, to deter inhalation.
We asked
The consultation was about amendments to the Medicines and Poisons Regulations 2016 and the Schedule 8 Medicines Prescribing Code. A primary aim of the consultation was to seek feedback on proposals to reduce regulatory burden, particularly for prescribers.
The proposed changes follow implementation of ScriptCheckWA, Western Australia’s real-time prescription monitoring system. ScriptCheckWA provides clinicians with up-to-date information about all monitored medicines prescribed and dispensed for their patient within WA.
The survey was set up so respondents could choose to answer only those questions most relevant to them.
You said
A total of 39 submissions were received in response to the discussion paper. Eighteen were from organisations and 21 were from individuals.
Peak bodies representing prescribers, pharmacists and consumers responded. A significant number of respondents confined their feedback to either the section about regulation of stimulant medicines or the section about regulation of medicinal cannabis.
Most respondents supported a requirement for prescribers and pharmacists to register to access ScriptCheckWA. Opinion was divided about whether use of ScriptcheckWA, at the time of prescribing or dispensing, should be mandated.
There was general support for regulating the prescribing of stimulant medicines and medicinal cannabis in a similar manner to other Schedule 8 medicines. Detailed prescribing restrictions would be included in a ‘prescribing code’ rather than in the Regulations.
Over half the respondents supported the list of Schedule 4 medicine proposed to be classified as ‘monitored medicines’. Another 26% of respondents supported most of the medicines on the list being monitored through ScriptCheckWA.
We did
Following agreement by the Minister for Health, regulatory changes are being progressed. Details of the final proposals are available in the Consultation Report (April 2023).
Further targeted consultation will be undertaken during development of a new prescribing code to replace the current Schedule 8 Medicines Prescribing Code.
We asked
We asked the following questions of all survey respondents:
- What are your biggest current strategic challenges for safety and quality in WA Health?
- How can the DoH support your S&Q initiatives and priorities?
- How can the DoH improve collaboration to drive effective safety and quality in WA Health?
We also asked a series of specific questions depending on whether respondents worked in a Health Service Provider or the Department of Health.
You said
You said the key issues facing our safety and quality system include:
- The availability of high-quality, accessible safety and quality data, and a desire for more skills to use data effectively to support safety and quality initiatives;
- HSP and DOH awareness and ability to implement contemporary approaches to quality and quality improvement in healthcare;
- Resourcing to support a strong, positive patient safety culture, and to sustain positive safety culture long-term;
- Barriers to compliance with safety and quality measures and engagement between the Department and Health Service Providers to proactively resolve patient safety issues
We did
Your feedback contained a mix of concrete suggestions for safety and quality activities and initiatives, and ways of working towards these within the confines of our health system.
We have used your feedback to help shape detailed goal setting for the Patient Safety and Clinical Quality Directorate’s Strategy 2022-2025.
We will continue to refer to specific comments and feedback as we implement the Strategy.
We asked
The Office of Population Health Genomics asked stakeholders for their feedback on the draft WA Genomics Strategy and their views to inform the development of the strategy’s first implementation plan.
The strategy has one overarching vision – that all Western Australians benefit from the timely and appropriate translation of genomics, enabling precision medicine and precision public health.
You said
A total of 66 responses were received through Citizen Space and 2 written responses were received via email. The key themes that emerged from the responses are summarised below.
Vision:
- More than 20 respondents explicitly agreed with or made positive comments about the vision.
- More than 10 respondents commented on the term “maximise the transformative potential”, suggesting that it was either too ambiguous or not beneficial to include.
- Some respondents suggested that the vision needed to be more patient focussed.
Underlying principles:
- All comments received were positive and in support of the underlying principles.
- Some additional principles were suggested for inclusion – the most mentioned ones being innovation, privacy and confidentiality, accountability, integrity, and collaboration.
- A couple of respondents suggested that seven underlying principles was too many.
Enablers of success:
- The feedback received was overall supportive of the enablers of success.
- There were mixed responses around what “governance” should encompass, indicating that this word can take on different meanings for different stakeholder groups.
- Eight respondents commented on the critical need for reliable and ongoing funding, suggesting that this should be an enabler of success.
Priority areas, goals and initiatives:
- More than 20 respondents explicitly agreed with or made positive comments about the priority areas.
- More than 10 respondents suggested including more detail on the needs, preferences and roles of various stakeholder groups relevant to genomics, i.e. carers and guardians beyond immediate family members, peer support groups, regional and remote patients and staff, allied health professionals, not-for-profit organisations, and the private sector.
- Other factors important to multiple stakeholder groups were:
- Co-design and co-production with health consumers
- Secure and sustainable funding of the genomics workforce and services to ensure continuation and growth
- Improving the genomic literacy of health professionals and consumers
- Ethical use of genomic data
- Equity of access.
Stakeholders also provided valuable input to shape the content of the strategy’s implementation plan, particularly the key actions to complete in the first two years.
We did
In response to the feedback, the Office of Population Health Genomics:
- Amended the vision to be clearer.
- Consolidated the number of underlying principles from seven to four and incorporated the additional principles suggested by stakeholders in the process. The only exceptions were accountability and collaboration, as they were already included as enablers of success.
- Removed governance from the enablers of success to minimise confusion. Governance is instead covered in the conclusion section with additional details on what the strategy’s governance structure will look like for additional clarity.
- Amended the content of the strategic priorities to better reflect stakeholders’ values and views, including:
- Referring to a multi-professional genomics workforce and incorporating vignettes to acknowledge the diverse applications and many successes of genomics in WA.
- Emphasising the critical role of health consumers in the co-creation (i.e. co-design and co-production) of genomic healthcare services and policies.
- Elevating sustainable investment as an enabler of success to signify that this is critical to ensure the goals of all strategic priorities are met.
- Expanding on the importance of genomic and health literacy for both health professionals and consumers.
- Highlighting the need to protect privacy and trust with all community members.
- Considered stakeholder’s views in drafting the strategy’s first implementation plan (internal working document).
The final WA Genomics Strategy 2022-2032: Towards precision medicine and precision public health is now available to view here.
Any queries can be directed to genomics@health.wa.gov.au.