GPs won over: Greater Wellington celebrates HIP and health coach rollout

“Our health coach is taking a group of ladies with weight and health issues to chair yoga and they’re loving it”

The imbedding of health improvement practitioners or other mental health workers in 26 general practices across the greater Wellington region was celebrated this week.

About 50 people from the greater Wellington (including Wairarapa) Access & Choice Wellbeing Support collaborative gathered in the Hutt to celebrate the rollout to date of its wellbeing programme.

The collaborative includes the region’s three DHBs, four PHOs and 15 NGO partners.

Through the programme, there are now health improvement practitioners (HIPs) in 14 general practices, health coaches in eight practices and community support workers in 26 practices across the region, including Wairarapa, with more to come.

The collaborative’s programme is funded as part of the $455 million over five years allocated in the 2019 Wellbeing Budget to develop new frontline mental health services nationwide in primary care.

The new HIP and health coach roles are loved by staff at Masterton Medical, says clinical director Tony Becker.

“The HIP and coach are being utilised in ways that I didn’t imagine,” says Dr Becker.

“Our coach is taking a group of ladies with weight and health issues to chair yoga and they’re loving it...lots of work outside the gambit of normal traditional medicine supporting people with weight issues, gambling issues.”

He says he loves being able to offer a “warm handover” of patients to the HIP or coach. The practice also has a community support worker but staff liaise more directly with the HIP and health coach.

The HIP and health coach are becoming indispensable to the Porirua Union and Community Health Services practice, says Porirua GP and RNZCGP clinical director Bryan Betty.

He says the ability to offer patients warm handovers within the practice are particularly appreciated. “[Patients] are coming to a place they trust and have a relationship with so they trust the staff within the practice so it makes that transition a lot easier.”

“For a lot of patients, particularly in our area, it’s very difficult to refer to a party where they don’t have a relationship or that continuity.”

Like Masterton, he says some of the work carried out by the HIP and health coach include lifestyle support with diet and exercise.

The practice was a pilot in 2019 and then one of 13 practices involved in the phase one rollout of the scheme that got under way early this year. Sixteen practices are involved in the second phase due to be finished by December.

GPs having the ability to phone the scheme’s psychiatrist for quick consultations is also a welcomed advance, says Dr Betty.

Collaborative chair Justine Thorpe says it looked at practice size and needs when allocating the first of the workers. The health ministry formula was for one full-time-equivalent staff member per 10,000 enrolled population.

“Those that didn’t get a health coach - some had existing services in the practice – such as whaiora, or very good relationships with local community agencies.”

She says the ministry has indicated further funding will be available for a phase three rollout to more practices and people from mid-2021.