Community health

The Australian Community Health Program (which came into effect in 1973) is an innovative program to make sure that all Australians have access to basic health services.

An important feature of this program are community health centres - such as ISCHS - that are generally responsible for the health of people in a given area.

Community health services provide a range of health services to Victorian communities particularly for groups of people who have poor health status including:

• people on low incomes (over 80% of clients are on Health Care Cards)
• people suffering chronic and complex conditions
• people of Aboriginal or Torres strait Islander background

(Community Health services - creating a healthier Victoria, DHS 2004)

Community health services follow a Social Model of Health and the principles of Primary Health Care as outlined by the World Health Organisation (WHO Declaration of Alma Ata 1978). These principles include:

• community participation
• prevention of disease (and injury)
• offering services within local communities.

(Baum, F. 2002 The New Public Health 2nd Edition)