The newsletter of the Health Care Consumers’ Association Inc.
Volume 13 / Issue 13 / 25 July 2025

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Last week was NAIDOC week — a time for all of us to celebrate and honour the culture, strength and wisdom of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This year is the 50th anniversary of NAIDOC. This is a significant achievement and reminds us of the enduring connection to Country and community, and the knowledge that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island peoples continue to share.

During NAIDOC week the HCCA staff team and several members of the Executive Committee participated in Cultural Awareness Training, presented by Zane from Curijo. It was a full day to learn about Cultural Awareness, Cultural Safety, history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and Country, talk about racism and practical steps we can take to reconciliation. HCCA was also at the  NAIDOC Youth Expo at Boomanulla Oval in Narrabundah. The team had a great day - despite the wet and freezing conditions. We valued being part of the event.

HCCA's NAIDOC Week question: What does good healthcare look like to you?

It is becoming increasingly common for people to use an AI tool to record and provide summaries of meetings or events they are attending. This includes AI tools such as Read AI, Otter, ClickUp, Fathom, Express Transcribe, Evernote, OnBoard Minutes, and Fireflies.

There are some important factors people need to consider before they do this:

• All participants of the meeting or event need to know that an AI program is being used to record and transcribe and they must give express consent for this to happen. It is particularly important that the Chair knows this is happening and has given permission for the tool to be used.
• It may be a breach of confidentiality agreements for some committees.
• It may also be a breach of the law – in the ACT it is illegal under the Listening Devices Act (ACT 1992) to record a private meeting or conversation without the permission of all parties.
• It may make organisations unwilling to share sensitive/confidential information with consumers on committees and possibly less keen to include consumers at all.

HCCA has updated our Code of Conduct for members and consumer representatives to cover the use of AI tools. Please have a look at the updated version on HCCA’s website.

Darlene Cox
Executive Director

In this Issue

• Upcoming HCCA Events
• Infrastructure Update
• Policy and Research Update
• Health Literacy Update
• Chronic Conditions Network Update
• Consumer Involvement and Representative Opportunities
• Items of Interest

Upcoming HCCA Events

Thursday 7th August: 6:00pm - 7:30pm

ONLINE - Zoom

Join HCCA and a panel of consumer advocates for some pro-tips on how to advocate for yourself, and your loved ones, in a health care setting. Get the most out of your appointments and feel in control of your health care journey. 

In this webinar you will:

- Learn effective communications skills in health care

- Know your rights in health care

- Gain confidence in managing your own health journey. 

For more information on this or other free health seminars provided by the Health Care Consumers’ Association of the ACT contact: [email protected] or phone: 6230 7800.

Policy and Research Update

The Department of Health, Disability and Ageing is seeking your feedback on the draft National Health Genomics Policy Framework and Implementation Plan 2026 - 2030. Your input will help refine the draft Framework and Implementation Plan. The consumer survey closes on 25 July 2025.

You can find out more about the Policy Framework and Implementation Plan on the Department of Health Disability and Ageing Consultation website.

If you would prefer to provide your input via HCCA, please contact Jessica Lamb via email ([email protected]) or by phoning the HCCA office on 6230 7800.

The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (the Commission) works to improve safety and quality in health care nationally. It develops national standards for health care in collaboration with the health system and the community.

The Commission is now developing a third edition of the National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards.

These standards aim to provide a clear framework to ensure consistent, high-quality care across the health system. The third edition of the Standards will include the latest evidence-based practices and new approaches to clinical governance.

HCCA will be preparing a submission to the Commission providing our feedback and advice on how the Standards can best meet the evolving needs of consumers, health practitioners and health services.

We are keen to hear your views on the Standards and what you think may be needed to guide the delivery of safe and high quality health care into the future.

If you are interested in contributing to this submission, please contact Jessica Lamb via email ([email protected]) or by phoning the HCCA office on 6230 7800.

Have you used Telehealth services? Telehealth has enhanced consumer access to health care but the best and safest ways to use it are still being understood.

The Telehealth Sector Working Group, a national coalition of telehealth experts, clinicians, consumers, researchers, NGOs, and industry leaders, has developed a draft set of C.A.R.E Telehealth Principles to support Telehealth to be delivered safely, ethically, and effectively.

Your input to the development of the Principles will help shape a safe and effective telehealth system. If you would like to provide feedback, please contact Jessica Lamb via email ([email protected]) or by phoning the HCCA office on 6230 7800 to receive a copy of the Principles for review. The consultation closes on 23 July 2025.

— the Policy and Research team
(Jess, Stephen, and Shivana)

Health Literacy Update

We know language is important in health care. Plain, everyday language is important to ensure we understand what is happening in our bodies and our options for treatment. But language can also continue biases that have existed for as long as medicine itself. This article talks about how the term ‘hysterectomy’, which means ‘removal of the uterus’ – is not only unhelpful jargon, but also continues to link the uterus to the sexist and disproven mental illness ‘hysteria’.

The Therapeutic Goods Administration is consulting about possible changes to regulation of 3 sunscreen ingredients. They have found possible risks from these ingredients if they are used a lot over a long period of time. The TGA says that the risk from these ingredients is still much lower than the risks from sun exposure.

Rain, hail or shine, the HCCA team showed up for the Next Generation NAIDOC Week event with a stall full of health resources and an activity where consumers answered the question, “What does good healthcare look like to you?”. Many responses shared included acceptance, friendly service with staff who listen and affordable healthcare. Kids shared that they appreciated people washing their hands, having their parents with them at appointments and having people looked after.   

Even with the cold and wet weather, the turnout was amazing. The team had conversations with around 70 people, listened to the issues that matter most to them, and shared this important celebration.

Av at NAIDOC Week Stall

Have questions about antidepressant medicines? One of our resources Antidepressant medicines – What do you need to know? is available on HCCA’s Quality Use of Medicines (QUM) Hub. It answers frequently asked questions you may have about taking antidepressant medicines, including:

• What antidepressant medicines are and how they work
• Possible side effects
• What to consider when starting or stopping them

You can also visit the Antidepressants in Older People topic page to explore other helpful resources. Keep an eye out for more resources on Antidepressants in Older People coming soon!

— the Health Literacy team
(C and Ivapene)

Chronic Conditions Network Update

Michelle took an opportunity to team up with our Health Literacy team member C, to work with the CHS School Youth Health Nurse (SYHN) team to assist with the development and review of health modules for Year 10 students in public schools.

We are helping the wonderful SYHN team with four modules:

• The Healthcare System
• Health Services in the ACT
• Technology in Healthcare
• Your Rights in Healthcare

So hopefully there will be many skilled up 16 year olds from Term 3 onward!

— Michelle
(Chronic Conditions Network Coordinator)

Consumer Involvement and Representative Opportunities

Please visit Consumer Opportunities on the HCCA website to learn more about, and nominate for, any of the following opportunities.

New! Closing date: 15th August 2025 

When: 4th Wednesday of the month, 1-3pm (Usually one hour, online)

Commitment: This committee has a monthly meeting. Most of the work for this review panel is in reviewing and commenting on documents, outside of the meeting. 

About: The Policy Review Panel reviews final drafts of policies, procedures and guidelines from any area of Canberra Health Services. Documents may provide guidance to staff on sensitive or higher-risk topics and procedures. Each reviewer is assigned 2-3 documents to review, with the consumer representatives able to choose what they consider most important to review. 

Who: This would suit a consumer who enjoys reviewing documents and providing feedback and comments. Panel members do not need to have expertise in the subject matter of the documents, but are there to check that they provide clear, applicable guidance for any staff using them, including people who may be new to their roles. The review panel would like to have multiple consumer representatives sitting on the panel and providing feedback. 

To learn more or to nominate for the opportunity, please visit the Consumer Opportunities page on our website. 

Items of Interest

Advocacy for Inclusion is launching a new Welcoming Community Program, which is a free peer-led initiative designed for older people with disability.

Participants will meet in small group Learning Circles to explore topics of interest chosen by the group. These may include:

• Becoming a self-advocate
• Finding inclusive and accessible opportunities
• Accessing health care or employment
• Building confidence in family and service relationships
• Exploring a new hobby or interest
• Becoming a peer supporter or community leader

Who can join?

Anyone who identifies as having a disability is welcome to apply. Its strongly encouraged for those who are:

• Over 45 years of age
• Not currently on the NDIS (or face difficulty accessing support)
• Socially isolated

Program details

• The first Learning Circle will kick off August 2025
• Includes one monthly Learning Circle (2 hours), plus a shorter check-in session two weeks later
• The program runs over six months
• Sessions will run both in-person and online (based in the ACT)

If this program sounds like something you are interested in, complete the expression of interest form here. If you have any questions, contact Advocacy for Inclusion on [email protected] or (02) 6257 4005.

**FREE interpreter services available over the phone via the Australian Government’s Translation and Interpreting Service (TIS) on 131 450**

© 2025 Health Care Consumers' Association Inc, All rights reserved. Edited by Kate Gorman.

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02 6230 7800

Consumer Bites is the newsletter of the Health Care Consumers' Association. Consumer Bites provides a small snippet of health related articles our members might find interesting to consider and analyse. The HCCA does not endorse any opinions or the claims contained within the articles.

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