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Saturday, 4 October 2014 00:06 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Here is just one example of how a non-profit organisation is already at work pending the elections in New South Wales in March 2015 when the voters will go to the polls to decide who will govern their state for the next four years. The Cancer Council NSW is ready with their demands as to what they expect the next government to do.
Titled ‘Vision for Change’, the Council has prepared a document outlining the opportunities for those coming to power to reduce the number of people who hear the words ‘you’ve got cancer’. Accepting that NSW has achieved a lot in cancer control over the past few decades, the Council reminds that there is more to be done.
“We face a future where more people in NSW will be getting cancer, and living longer with it. Decisions need to be made now to ensure that people with cancer and their families get quality cancer care wherever they live,” the Council stresses.
It has been estimated that about 61,000 Australian lives have been saved by improvements in cancer prevention, screening and treatment over the past 20 years. The Cancer Council believes that continued advances in these areas can help se that this number increases.
The Council has chosen a few areas where they feel action now will see an immediate improvement and will continue to impact in the future. “The actions are achievable and within the power of the State. A government that takes these actions will demonstrate its commitment to reducing the impact of the burden of cancer,” it says.
Tobacco retail reform is on top of the list. The Council recommends the introduction of targeted reforms to support people trying to quit smoking and reduce the likelihood of young people taking up smoking. It points out that the reforms should take into consideration the harms caused to public health and the impact of the retail availability on smoking and include controls on the number, type, distribution and location of retail outlets selling tobacco. The Council suggests a positive licensing scheme as one way of managing the retailing of tobacco.
The Council also highlights the need for the NSW Government to show leadership in Aboriginal cancer control. The developing of an Aboriginal health workforce plan specifically for cancer services has been suggested. In short, the Council is asking that the Aboriginal workforce in cancer services be increased.
Another area covered is the elimination of a co-payment for chemotherapy medicines. Pointing out that this payment adds to the financial and emotional burden of cancer, the Council recommends that the funding and administrative arrangements be restructured so that no public patient be charged for injectable and infusible chemotherapy when they attend a NSW public hospital.
Referring to coordinated cancer care, the Council states that the patient journey for people diagnosed with cancer, their carers and families is often complex. It sees the need to develop key performance indicators for coordinated cancer care and the regular public reporting on achievements in each Local Health District.
The Council also stresses the need for more palliative care services particularly in the rural or remote areas. The need to fund specialist palliative care services and more nurses, as well as a rigorous evaluation of the Palliative Care Homer Support Program has been highlighted.
In an overview of cancer, the Council records that every year 13,000 people die of cancer in NSW accounting for 25% of all deaths, and for people between the ages of 35 and 84 cancer is the leading cause of death. Every year there is an estimate increase of approximately 1,000 new cancer cases, resulting in a rise from more 35,000 cases in 2006 to 51,000 by 2012, an increase of 41%.
The problems and challenges of the identified issues have been discussed at length in the document. Concluding the objective the Council states: “Our vision is that cancer will be beaten and that those currently living with the disease will have access to patient-centred services when they need them, wherever they are in NSW.”
