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ABSTRACT: Issue addressed
To determine if Australian policies support a primary health care system to identify family adversity and subsequently support these families.Methods
Two methodological approaches were used: (i) a scoping review of Australian federal and two states (Victoria and New South Wales) policies related to family adversity (e.g., childhood maltreatment or household dysfunction, such as parental mental illness); (ii) thirteen semi-structured interviews with Victorian Community Health Service (CHS) staff and government policy makers, recruited via snowball sampling to understand the context of policy making and service implementation. Data collected were subsequently discussed in relation to the Stages Model of policy analysis.Results
One hundred and eighty-eight policies referenced family adversity. Of these, 37 policies met all eligibility criteria including a focus on early intervention within primary care and were included in the review. Most policies were developed within health departments (78%) and included a wide range of adversities, with the majority based within maternal and child health and CHS platforms. Most policy development included consultation with stakeholders. Although most policies received some level of funding, few included funding details and only a third included evaluation.Conclusions
There are many policies related to family adversity in Australia, with most focused within existing primary care platforms. Given these policies, Australia should be well positioned to identify and respond to family adversity.So what
More work needs to be done to ensure policies are adequately implemented, evaluated and transparently and appropriately funded. The co-occurrence of adversity should focus policy action; and potentially lead to more effective and efficient outcomes.
SUBMITTER: Honisett S
PROVIDER: S-EPMC10947353 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

Honisett Suzy S Loftus Hayley H Liu HueiMing H Montgomery Alicia A De Souza Denise D Hall Teresa T Eastwood John J Hiscock Harriet H Goldfeld Sharon S
Health promotion journal of Australia : official journal of Australian Association of Health Promotion Professionals 20221212 1
<h4>Issue addressed</h4>To determine if Australian policies support a primary health care system to identify family adversity and subsequently support these families.<h4>Methods</h4>Two methodological approaches were used: (i) a scoping review of Australian federal and two states (Victoria and New South Wales) policies related to family adversity (e.g., childhood maltreatment or household dysfunction, such as parental mental illness); (ii) thirteen semi-structured interviews with Victorian Commu ...[more]