2011 wac final report - woundsaustralia.com.au · 1 Wound Awareness Campaign 2011 ‐ Final Report...
Transcript of 2011 wac final report - woundsaustralia.com.au · 1 Wound Awareness Campaign 2011 ‐ Final Report...
1
Wound Awareness Campaign 2011 ‐ Final Report
Background
In 2011 the Australian Wound Management Association implemented a wound awareness campaign
aimed at achieving the following objectives
1. Increase awareness of government authorities, general public, health professionals and AWMA members about;
a. The incidence of patients suffering from a chronic venous leg ulcer in Australian Society
b. The challenges this patient cohort suffer when attempting to access relevant health care services
c. The limited subsidies available and the resulting financial burden of this condition on the patient
d. The type and location of specialist wound care services
2. Develop a range of resources that can be accessed by health professionals and patients suffering from a chronic venous leg ulcer that detail the management of common symptoms and the location of specialised services.
Riding on the limited success of the previous two years the association continued with the ‘elephant
in the room’ theme but built on National exposure and member participation. A multi – pronged
approach was designed to increase wound awareness within the general public and galvanize our
membership with the ultimate goal of securing government subsidy of compression therapy for
patients suffering from venous leg ulceration. The initial campaign strategy consisted of the
following activities
2
“The strain of veins” Members of AWMA will be asked to send a copy (via email or fax) of the Politicians fact sheet
to their local member. The sheet will highlight the additional web based resources available.
The activity will be scheduled quarterly, beginning in March 2011, with revision being made to
the fact sheet for each posting.
“Balloons for wounds” At a date nominated in March 2011 AWMA members will march on their respective
parliament houses equipped with a number of balloons representing the incidence on venous
leg ulcers in the community. The balloon will be released at an agreed time signifying the
number of people requiring assistance in the community. The services of a media company
will be secured to ensure relevant popular press agencies are informed of this activity.
“12 weeks for venous leaks” An A3 poster detailing key management strategies for healing venous leg ulcers in 12 weeks
will be circulated to the GP divisions in each state and territory. The poster will also highlight
additional web based resources for the health care practitioner. Corporate sponsorship is
currently being sought for this activity. The planned release date is July 2011.
“Release of the AWMA and NZWMA venous leg ulcer guidelines” The guidelines have been developed in conjunction with the National Health and Medical
Research Council. A two day conference is scheduled for October 2011 in Canberra to
promote the guidelines. It is planned to have the Federal Minster of Health officially launch
the guidelines. The conference will be sponsored by relevant companies and will attract
interest from the popular press.
3
The campaign was funded by a grant for the Wound Innovation CRC, Corporate donations and in‐
kind support from the AWMA members.
Outcomes
Ballons4Wounds
The campaign began in March 2011 with the Balloons4Wounds events. This was a national media
event that illustrated the passion health professionals feel about the financial inequity patients
experience with regard to purchase of compression products. Whilst the intent was for members in
each State and Territory to gather on the steps of their local Parliament this was only achieved in
three of the states. State government restrictions on parliament step protests, environmental
concerns and availability of members to be available on a week day were major barriers for some
AWMA groups. The remaining state and territories were however able to conduct events, including a
balloon release, in other public venues including major health care agencies and public recreation
reserves. A press release was sent to all Australian major media outlets via the media company
commissioned for the project.
In addition the “Elephant in the Room” website was revised to include additional written and video
case studies plus a suite of resources that members could access to assist in their campaigning. As a
result of this activity members of AWMA were interviewed on ABC radio, 3AW radio and regional
television (Gold Coast). Some illustrative photographs are attached.
The strain of veins
An electronic selection of information illustrating how patients are affected by leg ulcers and the
cost of wound management products was developed by AWMA members. A copy of an e‐blast sent
by some members to their local federal members is attached. The number of members participating
in this activity was tracked via a count of emails copied to the project assistant. The numbers of
4
copies received were small (less than 100 emails). Anecdotal evidence suggested that members
found the additional steps of identifying their local member and sending the email meant that it was
not sent. Following discussions with the national committee it was felt that a better outcome could
be achieved by adopting a post card strategy where members were provided with a post card
addressed to the Prime Minister and were required to add a stamp and post. This was initiated in
October 2011 and although definitive data is not available anecdotal evidence suggests that this
approach had a higher success rate. As a result of this activity AWMA has been invited to meet with
the State Member of Health (Tasmania) and the Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Indigenous
Health and Regional Health Services in early 2012.
Venous Leg ulcer guideline
On 8 August 2011 The Australian and New Zealand Clinical Practice Guideline for Prevention and
Management of Venous Ulcers developed by AWMA and the New Zealand Wound Care Society
(NZWCS) were endorsed by the National Health and Medical Research Council. The guideline
comprised of three documents; a full version and recommendations, an abridged version and a
laminated clinical decision algorithm. The guideline was launched at the Inaugural Pan Pacific Forum
in October 2011. At the same forum the draft Pan Pacific Pressure Injury Guidelines were also
launched for public consultation. The guidelines were provided to the 485 delegates and the
abridged version will be provided for all members of the two associations. PDF versions of the
guidelines have also been placed on the AWMA, NZWCS and NHMRC websites for access by health
practitioners and the general public. A patient version is planned for release in 2012.
12 weeks for a venous leak
Medical Media – a medical poster distribution company were commissioned to follow a staged
release of a series of focused messages throughout their GP surgeries. The intent was to provide a
poster highlighting the expected time frame for healing venous leg ulcers. The activity was funded by
additional revenue via sponsorship from commercial partners. A different message was developed
for each month. A copy of each is attached. Random phone calls to a small number of GP practices
5
(n=20) and anecdotal data collected by AWMA members indicated that the GP’s did receive the
posters and were aware of the campaign.
Evaluation of the campaign
The available resources limited any formal evaluation of the campaign but the following has been
drawn from the following evaluation strategies; anecdotal evidence, a survey of AWMA members,
random phone polling of GP practices and major media outlets.
Anecdotal discussion with various health professionals, members of the public and government
officials have highlighted that the awareness campaign has achieved ‘pockets’ of success. This is
further supported by the response of the print media to direct requests from AWMA members with
articles appearing in several States, with some penetration to a larger audience. Invitations to
discuss the issues with a small number of government members illustrates that the campaign has
had some penetration in that sector. Anecdotal comments from international and corporate
colleagues have indicated that AWMA is now being seen as a very active organisation. Some
examples; “This is the most active I have ever seen AWMA”, “I have been in wound care for 20 years
and this is the most political activity I have seen in that time”.
A reluctance of some members to participate in the awareness activities such as the e‐blast is of
concern. A survey conducted in late 2011 of AWMA members highlighted the following findings:
When asked if they were aware of the campaign 69.6% (n=32) stated that they were aware of
the campaign with 30.4 (n=14) stating that they were not.
When asked if they had participated in campaign activities 60.9% (n=28) indicated that they
had while 39.1(n= 18) indicated that they had not.
When asked if AWMA had provided sufficient information about the campaign 67.4 (n=31)
said yes and 32.6% said no.
6
When asked what activities they believed should be in the 2012 campaign, responses
highlighted support for a great public/media awareness. Suggested strategies included fund
raising events, presentations to politicians of case studies involving younger people and
community education sessions.
When the performance of the publicity firm commissioned for the campaign was evaluated it
became apparent that penetration of the campaign was limited. Discussions with AWMA members
and random phone calls to major media outlets indicated that little penetration into the popular
press had been achieved.
Whilst the public awareness achievements were modest the development of high quality resources
for health practitioners is a very valuable outcome. The provision of the venous leg ulcer guideline,
the success of the Pan Pacific Forum and the GP poster campaign have not only highlighted the
issues but provided a sound foundation on which to build the 2012 campaign.
Recommendations for 2012
It has become evident during the 2011 campaign that if subsidisation for compression therapy is to
be achieved an evidenced based campaign supported by awareness campaign is required.
Arguments provided to government must go beyond the emotional evidence of case studies and
start to aggregate findings from established data bases. Potential cost savings to the health budget
and improvements in community health must be the cornerstone of any further campaign.
Strategies that increase public awareness must continue in 2012. However activities should focus
more of professional style campaigns and rely less on AWMA members for implementation.
7
It is also clear that AWMA must improve internal communication systems to ensure that all
members are aware of the campaign and able to participate where possible.
We are grateful to the CRC for their financial support and hope this synergistic relationship can
continue to enhance the public profile of wound management with our shared ultimate goal of –
subsidy for compression.
Dr William Mc Guinness
Carol Baines RN
AWMA F.A.M.E Chair