Communication between stakeholders

Communication between stakeholders

To support good communication and practice, some documentation was revised during development of this guidance, in collaboration with service providers and funders. The documents relate to requests to funders, approvals, and reviews of services and products. The documents were designed for use within icare, but can be adapted for use in other systems if appropriate.

The documents relate to communication between funders, the multidisciplinary team (including the GP and case manager), and the person needing a prosthetic limb and their family. The documents are:

• a prosthetic request form to be completed by the prosthetic service provider • a prosthetic approval templates to be completed by the funder • a prosthetic review record to be completed by the prosthetist

(refer to Documentation related to requests and funding in Section 13). The revised documents include key information such as the prosthesis prescription, the person’s goal and the necessary steps to achieve that goal, training requirements, assessment findings, the prosthetic and componentry options trialled, and the warranty details. To optimise communication and transparency, copies of the completed documents should be sent by the author to the person needing the service and product, the funder, the case manager and GP, and any other relevant member of the multidisciplinary team (in line with the person’s written consent). The information in the documents is essential to the transparency of the process, enhances the person’s health literacy and empowers self-management of their health condition.

The revised documents are only one of a range of communication strategies that stakeholders can use to enhance communication. Other communication methods include email communication, assessment and progress reports, team meetings and case conferences (including the person), either face to face or using digital technology for telehealth (refer to Section 8.19 Access to services and telehealth).

Best practice note—13

Communication 1. Action is warranted by any of the multidisciplinary team, service provider or funder to minimise unnecessary delays in the provision of equipment, services and supports along the support pathway. 2. Copies of completed documents such as prosthetic requests, prosthetic reviews and funding approvals should be sent to the person needing the prosthetic limb or their family, the case manager and the GP at a minimum, as well as any other relevant multidisciplinary team member. Forwarding copies of the

Prosthetic Request Form to all parties should be the provider’s routine practice. 3. The information provided in the documents is essential to the person’s health literacy, and empowers and facilitates self-management of their health condition.

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