2021/2022 Local Government Public Health Act 2016 Optional Reporting
Overview
2021/2022 Public Health Act 2016 Local Government Optional Reporting
The reporting requirements for local government under section 22 of the Public Health Act 2016 (PH Act) provide an opportunity for local government to work with the Department of Health (DOH) to capture a broad range of public health related actions, develop a valuable evidence base and assist with public health planning and resource allocation.
The existing mandatory reporting requirements for local government under the PH Act are currently minimal, as much of the public health regulatory responsibilities local governments have are related to the environmental health regulations which will be enacted at Stage 5 of implementation of the Public Health Act. When that happens, local government reporting of its functions under the Public Health Act will formally expand to capture a broader range of environmental health related actions. In the meantime, the Department of Health has developed an optional reporting form to capture local public health risks and management activity.
The DOH had previously requested assistance from local government to provide data using a similar optional reporting template. The data collected from 2019/2020 optional reporting has been analysed by the DOH and developed into 10 regional reports that align with the current health regions throughout WA. In addition to data collected from local government, additional information relevant to public health issues has been sourced from the DOH and other state government departments. The regional reports have now been published on the DOH website and local government practitioners are encouraged to download and review the appropriate regional report using the following link and selecting Public Health Act reports:
All responses from the 2021/2022 optional reporting template will be collated by the DOH and made available to local governments to assist with public health planning, to promote transparency and accountability across the local government sector and to enable comparison of activity with peers. Responses will also be used by the DOH to inform the Chief Health Officer on how public health risks were identified and managed for the period 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022.
The future mandatory reporting framework will also be guided by the feedback received from local government from the optional reporting initiative.
While not mandatory at this stage, I strongly encourage your local government to participate.
The Form is made up of questions which relate to the various aspects of environmental health as well as health related policies and strategies. Together, the questions build a comprehensive picture of how local governments are managing local public health risks.
To ensure consistency in reporting across Local Governments, unless stated otherwise, questions in this Form relate to activity over the previous financial year (2021/2022).
The Form has ‘save and return later’ functionality to support those who cannot complete the questions in a single sitting. The length of time the Form will take to complete with vary depending on how a Local Government records their activity.
Reporting will aim to close on 30 October 2022.
If you have any questions related to Local Government Public Health Act Form, please contact publichealthact@health.wa.gov.au
What happens next
Constructive feedback from local government is encouraged during the November-December feedback cycle with the aim to create a reporting structure of ongoing value to all those that have management responsibilities in the public health / environmental health disciplines.
Results will be reported back to local government for public health planning and internal performance monitoring. The data collected will be analysed and developed into 10 regional reports that align with the current health regions throughout WA. Final reports are to be published on the Department of Health website.
Audiences
- Local governments
Interests
- Population health