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HealthPathways is an online decision support portal, primarily aimed at General Practitioners (GPs), that provides easy to access and up to date clinical, referral and resource pathways. It is free to access, with the intent of providing the right care, at the right place, at the right time. This case study focuses on the experience and learnings of a HealthPathways program in metropolitan Sydney during the COVID-19 pandemic. It reviews the team's program management responses and looks at key factors that have facilitated the spread and scale of HealthPathways.

Available data and experiences of two HealthPathways program managers were used to recount events and aspects influencing spread and scale.

The key factors for successful spread and scale are a coordinated response, the maturity of the HealthPathways program, having a single source of truth, high level governance, leadership, collaboration, flexible funding and ability to make local changes where required.

There are limited published articles on HealthPathways. The focus of spread and scale of HealthPathways during COVID-19 is unique.

This paper aims to identify health-care entitlements that exist for asylum seekers with chronic non-communicable disease (CNCD) that promote their health and self-care, and to explore health policies, initiatives and programmes with the potential to foster self-care in this populace.

Narrative review of literature conducted by searching EMBASE, CINAHL, WEB OF SCIENCE and PSYCINFO databases for articles published from 2010 to 2021. Included articles focussed on policies, programmes or initiatives with the potential to promote health in adult asylum seekers residing in high-income countries. Studies inclusive of other migrant groups such as undocumented migrants and those with mental health conditions were excluded. Eleven studies fitting the inclusion criteria were assessed against the study objectives.

Free access to health-care services and pharmaceutical products, free access to food banks and supermarket model food banks, English and cooking lessons, community integration training sessions and culturally competent health-care workers were found to promote health and self-care. There is little research on self-care and health promotion in adult asylum seekers with CNCD. CNCDs represent high burden of disease in asylum seekers but have a low priority in reported research.

This narrative review is the first to explicitly focus on asylum seekers in high-income countries with CNCD, excluding mental health conditions, and to explore initiatives, programmes and policies that enhance health promotion to facilitate self-care in this populace.

Guided by the salutogenic model of health and well-being, this study aims to use empirical measures of sense of coherence (SOC) and generalized resistance resources (GRRs) to gain a better understanding of the facilitators of successful transition and integration of refugees to Canada and relate these findings to current program development and delivery for the settlement of refugees.

Survey research and structural equation modeling.

The authors found that newcomers with a stronger SOC were more likely to report successful integration outcomes. GRRs were found to have both direct and indirect effects on the positive settlement of refugees, with the SOC acting as a strong mediator of indirect effects.

Owing in part, to the disruption caused by the global pandemic, the authors’ data collection period was protracted and the final sample size of 263 is smaller than the authors would have preferred. Another limitation of this study has to do with its cross-sectional design, which limits the articulation of cause-and-effect relationships among the variables.

In terms of program development and delivery for the settlement of refugees, the authors’ results provide further evidence that refugee participation in socially valued decision-making represents a key determinant of healthy resettlement.

Much research on refugee settlement originates within “a pathogenic paradigm” that focuses on the stressors and obstacles encountered by people who have been displaced. Taking its cue from Israeli health sociologist, Aaron Antonovsky’s salutogenic model of health and well-being, this study uses empirical measures of Antonovsky’s interrelated concepts of SOC and GRRs to gain a better understanding of the facilitators of successful transition and integration of refugees to a prairie province in Canada and relate these findings to current program development and delivery for the settlement of refugees.

There is a growing recognition of the urgency to enhance health outcomes for children and young people residing in out-of-home care (OOHC). Research underscores the need to establish effective pathways to quality health care for children and young people who have been exposed to trauma. Child protection (CP) practitioners should play a vital role in proactively improving health outcomes and navigating the intricacies of healthcare systems. Their involvement in initiating and collaborating on healthcare interventions is pivotal for the well-being of these vulnerable children and young people. However, challenges associated with poor health literacy and the complexities of healthcare systems hinder collaborative service delivery in the Australian context. This review explores how CP practitioners support the health care of children and young people in their care.

A scoping review followed Arksey and O’Malley’s framework, employing a narrative synthesis to assess the selected studies.

Health outcomes for children and young people in OOHC remain under-researched and potentially under-resourced within the realm of CP practice. There is room for enhanced practices and system integration in CP service delivery to better address health needs and prevent further health and well-being disparities.

Through this scoping review and involving industry experts in the discussion of findings, this study contributes valuable insights to the existing knowledge base regarding the active participation of CP practitioners in addressing the healthcare needs of vulnerable children.

A systematic investigation of postgraduate leadership programs for health and/or human services offered by Australian higher education institutions was undertaken.

Quantitative analysis identified the core characteristics of the programs. A thematic analysis of the course learning outcomes was conducted and six major themes of disciplinary leadership and management knowledge; research and analytical skills; professional practice; communication and collaboration; creativity and innovation; and system knowledge are shared in this study.

The authors conclude that Australian universities have taken an evidence-based approach to leadership education.

More work might need to be undertaken to ensure leadership theories are incorporated into learning outcomes.

Mobile health (mHealth) service is an Australian Government initiative aiming to improve the quality of health-care services. However, little is known about Australian health consumers’ willingness to adopt mHealth. The purpose of this paper is to study the usage behavior of mHealth service users in Australia. While various factors may impact users’ willingness to accept mHealth, this research investigates factors influencing the mHealth adoption decisions of the Australian health-care consumers, and the moderating impact of demographic factors on the usage behavior (UB) of mHealth services which has been rarely addressed in an Australian setting in the past.

The theoretical framework is based on the technology acceptance model (TAM). Data were collected from residents of the Australian Capital Territory using a survey questionnaire and examined using partial least squares structural equation modeling.

The proposed mHealth usage model demonstrated a good fit and indicated that perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, social influence, service quality and government influence are critical issues shaping mHealth UB. The moderation analysis revealed that users’ demographics, namely, gender, age and education are instrumental in broadening the understanding of UB of mHealth service in Australia.

The findings will inform health-care service providers about the critical importance of the key factors driving the usage of mHealth services. Health-care providers and relevant authorities can develop targeted communication strategies that maximize the acceptance of mHealth services. Furthermore, deeper understanding of users’ demographic profiles would enable health-care service providers to promote their services to the right clients.

The above findings on the factors and user demographics informing the usage of mHealth services have unique practical, contextual and theoretical implications.

Service marketers are increasingly aware of inequalities triggered by service systems and the need to prioritize practical strategies for reducing inequalities. A priority area for the Australian Government is reducing university education inequities for Indigenous Australians. This paper aims to examine how Indigenous Australian university students build and leverage their capabilities and strengths, harnessing service providers’ efforts towards enhancing participation (and completion) in university education – an essential transformative outcome for reducing inequalities.

A three-stage qualitative research process explored student retention/completion and capability building among a sample of Indigenous Australian university students, typically under-represented in the higher education sector.

Applying a manual thematic analysis, the findings reveal Indigenous students’ value co-creating capabilities (summarized in three dimensions) harness multi-actor processes extending beyond the service provider. Five dimensions summarize the service provider’s transformative service activities that strengthen capabilities for Indigenous Australian university students. Networks of place (a structured Indigenous Centre); processes (university systems); and people (social support), including peer-to-peer networks, are important service assemblages.

The authors present implications for supporting Indigenous students in persisting with and completing higher education. More broadly, the authors provide recommendations for service marketers to resolve barriers to service equality and enhance strengths-based approaches to value co-creation.

Underpinned by a strengths-based approach, the authors contribute towards an agenda of sustainable transformative services. Although considerable research reviews the experiences of Indigenous students, little research has taken a transformative service research perspective. Addressing this, the authors propose a conceptual framework linking consumers’ agentic capabilities with transformative service mediator practices.

This chapter provides a brief overview of community sanctions in Australia and examines the extent to which McNeill’s analysis in Pervasive Punishment (2019) is applicable in the Australian context. Two key issues in the Australian context are, firstly, state and territory-level variations within a federal political structure, and secondly, disproportionate Indigenous imprisonment and community sanction rates and the generally destructive impact of the criminal legal system on Indigenous communities and peoples. The chapter argues that developing a better agonistic politics around community sanctions requires descending from the broad level of historical and sociological analysis to examine state and territory-level variations in judicial and correctional structures, histories and cultures. Further, that Australian community sanctions cannot be understood without a primary focus on the differences between Indigenous and non-Indigenous rates, experiences and meaning. The key to addressing the destructive impact of criminal legal processes and practices on Indigenous peoples lies in developing Indigenous governance, empowerment, self-determination, sovereignty and nation-building. Two recent developments promoting Indigenous governance are examined: the Uluru Statement from the Heart and Justice Reinvestment projects initiated by First Nations communities, highlighting the importance of activism, contest and struggle by community organisations.

Resilience is an increasingly important concept that contributes to sustainability and wellbeing of a community. Asset-based community development (ABCD) may offer promising approaches to boosting community resilience in Australia, especially within marginalised groups.

A scoping review was conducted to conceptualise existing literature on ABCD approaches to building resilience. Research databases were searched with relevant details.

Thirty-three sources were identified as meeting the inclusion criteria and were reviewed in terms of six themes: integration and identity, health, mental health, education, employment and community planning. Issues identified by the literature within these themes can be alleviated through asset-based approaches. Implications for planning of asset-based programs and policy change are discussed in light of the findings.

The results of this study provide several implications for practise, policy recommendations and future research into this area. Results suggest that increasing capacity around asset-based coping mechanisms, such as support networks through religious and cultural groups, would promote community development and foster resilience. Furthermore, policy on refugees in multiple areas, such as psychological service provision and employment, should be redesigned in a way that acknowledges their complex and diverse needs and facilitates their integration into the community. Though multiple ways to achieve this goal have been explored in literature, a sustained and broader approach is necessary to see widespread change. Further research and funding are required to explore and implement appropriate responses. Based on the findings and discussion above, the authors make the following policy recommendations. Service providers need to be aware of and incorporate culturally appropriate programs in the areas of mental health assessment and intervention, education and employment. The trauma-informed approach should be used when dealing with refugee groups and other groups who have faced hardships. Government policy should focus on improving community engagement to create and strengthen social networks, which are vital in boosting integration into the community and increasing health education and access to services. Government should focus on asset-based approaches in designing education and employment integration programs to promote social belonging and community engagement, and thus, community resilience, which will consequently have beneficial individual and group outcomes. The current governmental policy surrounding refugees should be overhauled with the goal of successful refugee integration in mind, such as incorporating the ability for refugees to access vital services such as employment and skills transferability programs. Due to current policy, these services are inaccessible to a large portion of refugees, hindering their integration. Government needs to create specific guidelines for the provision of psychological services to refugees to improve the quality of mental health services available to this group.

This paper comprises an original data analysis of the relevant existing literature by the project team. The process was rigorous, and no content of the analysis has been published previously except the material published by other authors. All previously published materials were duly acknowledged.