North Coast Aboriginal Corporation for Community Health

North Coast Aboriginal Corporation for Community Health (NCACCH) is funded by the Australian Government’s Department of Health (DoH), through the Grant Services Branch (GSB) as an Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service. NCACCH was incorporated in 1997 under the CASTI Act (2006). In 2011 NCACCH became an ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management Systems Accredited Organisation. NCACCH has developed and implemented a unique “Brokerage Model” for providing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members of the Sunshine Coast and Gympie regions with choice and access to a wide range of health care providers. This model provides most of the benefits of private health insurance without the ‘upfront’ and ‘gap’ payments and delivers equitable and efficient access to existing health care services. The Brokerage Model was developed to ensure that each NCACCH client would be assured of having individual choice to determine their own definition of cultural appropriateness of the services they choose to attend. This model, in partnership with the Sunshine Coast Hospital & Health Service (SCHHS) Queensland Health and the Primary Health Network (PHN) has influenced federal policy on health care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia. NCACCH has pioneered the collection of de-identified confidential health data to inform funding and planning to improve the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The collection of data clearly demonstrates the local health needs and which programs are most effective in addressing those needs.