Rethinking how we deliver our public services

20 April 2015

In a segment on ABC Radio’s Saturday Extra programme, the recently released Harper Review’s recommendations on competition were discussed with a focus on health and community services.

The programme hosted by Geraldine Doogue, interviewed Blake Wilson, Director and Deputy Chair of Canberra’s National Health Co-op as an example of a co-operative effectively delivering health services to communities in the region. The National Health Coop (NHC) was established in 2010 to provide affordable and accessible medical and health services to the community.  NHC is a not for profit organisation, any excess funds are returned directly to the practice in the form of additional services, resources and equipment to benefit the health and well-being of you, the member. The NHC operates in five locations and has over 20,000 members.

Su McCluskey, a Harper panel member, also speaks on the programme discussing how this business model can bring real benefits to communities and highlights how competition is really important for the provision of humans services into the future.