Digitising Social Care Project

Project Introduction

The World Health Organization defines health as "Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." However, current approaches to digital health in Australia take a narrow view of health, excluding many social care services, such as disability and community support services. This narrow focus risks creating a two-tiered system, where innovations, efficiencies and experiences are developed in the health system, while other services are left behind, and have greater trouble integrating with clinical health services. The health and social care system share similar challenges relating to the siloed and fragmented nature of care, which could be improved through the adoption of information technology. In addition, the adoption of information technology could support the collection of quality data to assist in planning, policy and evaluation. This is especially pertinent with the huge amounts of data collected in the NDIS, and the recent announcement of a National Disability Data Asset.

This project aims to describe the current information technology readiness of the social care sector, including the current state of information continuity between this sector and the health system. The initial project will focus specifically on psycho-social disability services in Australia. We will explore the adoption and use of information systems, data collection and quality, informatics, and workforce readiness. Further, working with the social care sector, an alternative vision for digital health that is inclusive of these sectors will be designed to support policy, advocacy and planning.

Research Team

• Timothy Kariotis

• Associate Professor Shanton Chang

• Dr Megan Prictor

• Associate Professor Kathleen Gray

For more information, contact Tim at timothy.kariotis (at) unimelb.edu.au

This project is supported by seed funding from the Melbourne Disability Institute.