Statewide Health Service Plan for Genetic Health Queensland

1.About Genetic Health Queensland

In Queensland public clinical genetic services are provided by Genetic HealthQueensland (GHQ) which is situated within the Metro North Hospital and HealthService (HHS). GHQ provides Medicare eligible patients with access to clinical geneticservices which include diagnosis, risk assessment, counselling and education foraffected individuals and family members who may be at risk of having a genetic orinherited condition. Clinics are undertaken regularly inmetropolitan areas and less frequently in regional areas with outreach services inregional cities. There has been significant growth in recent years in the provision oftelehealth services across the state.

Services are provided by a team including clinical geneticists,genetic counsellors and support staff.

2.Purpose

To develop a statewide health service plan for Genetic Health Queensland to address the actions of the Genetic Health Queensland Report 2015 and support Genetic Health Queensland to respond to health service need within an evolving clinical policy environment.

3.Expected outcomes

It is expected that once the plan is implemented the expected outcomes include:

  • equitable access to services across Queensland
  • evidenced-based, best practice, safe and sustainable health services delivered by a highly skilled workforce
  • an integrated and coordinatedstatewide service model that is agile and can adapt to changing policy
  • collaboration between HHSs, other government areas, non-government organisations and private health service providers.

4.Project scope

4.1Project scope inclusions

The scope of this project include all services provided by Genetic Health Queensland for adults and children including:

  • diagnosis
  • prenatal, germline, genetic carrier and presymptomatic and predictive genetic testing
  • genetic counselling
  • educational services.

Also in scope is any genetic testing generated from other Queensland pubic hospital sources.

As genetic services are enabled by laboratory genetic services Pathology Queensland and other interstate and international services are in scope.

The National Health and Medical Research Council[1]defines genetics and genomics as:

  • Genetics: is the study of inheritance. It attempts to explain the similarities and differences between related individuals and the way that characteristics are passed on from one generation to the next. More recently the term has come to refer to the DNA sequence
  • Genomics: is the application of specific technologies to analyse information about the entire genome of an organism.

Genetics scrutinises the functioning / composition of a single gene whereas genomics addresses all genes and their inter-relationships.

4.2Project scope exclusions

Horizon scanning, research and linkages in genomics are excluded from this plan.

Screening services are not included in the scope of the project as these services are not provided by Genetic Health Queensland. The linkage between Genetic Health Queensland and screening services will be considered in the plan.

Detailed planning for private and or non-government services are also excluded. Genetic Health Queensland linkage with these services will be considered.

The project will not undertake:

  • development of specific tools, clinical pathways, models of care, standards, procedures or protocols
  • implementation planning.

4.3Dependencies

The following related processes have been identified:

  • University of Queensland Project
  • health sector led research.

5.Project development and timeframes

It is anticipated the Plan will be completed by late 2016. The project will be resourced from existing budgets and will be developed in partnership between Genetic Health Queensland, the Department of Health, MNHHS Health Service Strategy and Planning in collaboration with Hospital and Health Services and other key stakeholders.

6.Governance

A project steering committee has been established to provide strategic advice and direction to inform the development of the statewide health service plan for Genetic Health Service Queensland.

Membership includes:

For further information regarding this Plan please contact Health Strategy and Planning, Metro North Hospital and Health Service on:

Email:

Phone: 3647 9530

Metro North Hospital and Health Service – Health Service Strategy and Planning Unit

Statewide Health Service Plan for Genetic Health Queensland

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[1]NHMRC 2015.Principles for the translation of ‘omics’ – based tests from discovery to health care. Canberra: National Health and Medical Research Council.