The Australian Medical Association (AMA), Private Healthcare Australia (PHA) representing private health insurers, the Australian Private Hospitals Association (APHA), representing private hospitals with psychiatric beds (Hospitals), and the Australian Government are strongly committed to supporting a Private Mental Health Alliance (PMHA or Alliance) for the private mental health sector.
Established by the AMA in 1996, the PMHA is an unusual organisation in the Australian health environment that brings together providers, payers and consumers and carers on a regular and structured basis to work on difficult and complex issues related to funding, classification, quality of care, outcome measurement, and consumer and carer participation.
The level of trust and cooperation that has developed over time between the stakeholders has enabled the Alliance to establish a unique national Centralised Data Management Service (PMHA–CDMS) to improve the quality of information and enable benchmarking within the private hospital sector. Established under the auspice of the AMA in 2001, the PMHA’s CDMS has been working with private hospitals and health insurers to put in place efficient systems for the routine collection of outcomes data that enables the quality and efficiency of mental health service delivery to be evaluated and reported on every quarter.
To improve consumer and carer participation, the Alliance supported the formation of a Private Mental Health Consumer Carer Network (PMHCCN or Network) for Australia in 2002. The Network seeks to provide the private sector with the honest feedback it needs on service provision and funding. Stakeholders willingness to listen is highly valued by consumers and carers. The Network provides a valuable service to the whole sector and is able to advise on issues of national significance related to mental health.
The Alliance is chaired independently by Mr Phillip Plummer and currently includes representatives from:
- Australia Medical Association
- Australian Private Hospitals Association
- Private Healthcare Australia
- Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing
- Australian Government Department of Veterans' Affairs
- Private Mental Health Consumer Carer Network (Australia)