We provide two complementary services to help families of children with chronic and complex health care needs across Queensland and northern New South Wales:

• Connected Care Program
• Nurse Navigators

The two programs are both coordinated from the Queensland Children’s Hospital. The teams work together to improve access to specialist paediatric services and support for children with complex and chronic health conditions and their families, regardless of where they live in Queensland. By improving communication and linkages between health care providers, the programs ensure a child’s care is managed seamlessly across acute, community and primary healthcare sectors.

We have regional care coordinators located in Bundaberg, Cairns, Gold Coast, Hervey Bay, Ipswich, Mackay, Mt Isa, Rockhampton, Sunshine Coast, Toowoomba and Townsville to help families across Queensland and northern New South Wales. There are an additional six care coordinators who work with families across the Greater Brisbane area.

Nurse Navigators, based at the Queensland Children’s Hospital, work with families and hospital doctors to identify and monitor the healthcare requirements of children with high needs, develop tailored care plans and facilitate timely access to appropriate services.

These specialist nurses support families in the areas of total parenteral nutrition (intravenous feeding), home ventilation (children dependent on respiratory support), and General Paediatrics and Transition (supporting patients and their families whose care is transferring to adult services or alternate health service providers within the community). A dedicated nurse navigator is also available to assist families from rural and remote areas of Queensland access health and support services in Brisbane.

Find out more about Nurse Navigators.