Chronic Disease Self Management

Chronic disease self management is a key action area for ACT Health, defined as ‘the active participation by people in their own health care’.

Self management involves ensuring the person is the focal point of their care, working in partnership with them and acknowledging the important role that families and carers can play in disease management. Self management leads to improved quality of life as well as reducing the incidence of exacerbation and progression of chronic diseases.

Self Management Principles

Embedding the principles of self management into ACT Health means that you as a patient can be supported to:

Understand the nature of your condition including risk factors and co-morbidities;
Have knowledge of your treatment options and be able to make informed choices regarding treatments;
Actively participate in decision making with health professionals, family and carers, and other supports in terms of continuing care;
Follow a treatment or care plan that has been negotiated and agreed with your health care providers, family and carers, and other agencies including non-government and consumer organisations;
Monitor signs and symptoms of change in your health condition and have an action plan to respond to identified changes;
Manage the impact of the condition on your physical, emotional and social life and have better mental health and wellbeing as a result;
Adopt a lifestyle that reduces risk and promotes health through prevention and early intervention;
Have confidence in your ability to use support services and make decisions regarding your health and quality of life.

Services Available to Support Self Management

If you feel as though you need help in any of these areas of self management, ACT Health currently delivers a chronic disease self-management education program, Self-Management of Chronic Conditions, through Community Health here .

The Chronic Disease Management Unit offers a Telephone Coaching to ACT Residents with Heart Failure, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, Coronary Artery Disease and Diabetes Type 2 to improve their ability to self manage their condition view here .

. For people with other chronic conditions, or those that would like to develop some healthy lifestyle habits, ACT Health Promotion Branch offers a telephone coaching service ‘Get Healthy’