We deliver our Remote Wound Program focusing on acute wounds to reduce preventable hospitalisations and costly medical evacuations of First Nations people living in remote communities.

The Remote Wound Program (RWP) delivers hands-on, face to face, practical wound care training, in remote settings, targeting acute wounds. The training directly addresses the wound burden by building local capability, enabling wounds to be treated early and safely in community.

Delivering training in community maximises participation and minimises service disruption. The RWP also strengthens the long-term workforce by embedding wound care education into Aboriginal Health Practitioner training, particularly through the Batchelor Institute of Tertiary Education.

• The RWP harnesses the philanthropic spirit of Volunteer Specialist Plastic Surgeons.
• The workshop training and education is grounded in surgical principles, adapted to local remote conditions and lived experience.
• Our practical small group training workshops in wound excision, debridement and suturing, are led by volunteer Specialist Plastic Surgeons.
• Our innovation is to deliver a program whereby volunteer Specialist Plastic Surgeons travel to remote settings to provide hands-on practical training on wound assessment and management in remote settings to  remote Medical Practitioners, Remote Area Nurses and Aboriginal Health Practitioners.
• This is an Australia-first and at its heart is the opportunity for knowledge exchange
  between Specialist Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons and remote health workers.

An initial grant from the Australian Government, Department of Health, for the FY 2018-2022, enabled us to deliver training workshops in remote areas of the Top End.

The Department of Health commissioned Social Compass to undertake an independent evaluation of the Remote Wound Program which rated the Program very successful across appropriateness, effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability.

Since 2022, we have sustained the Remote Wound Program in the Top End NT and extended its reach to FNQ and the Kimberley.

We rely on volunteer Specialist Plastic Surgeons and volunteer support staff, in-kind partner support, as well as the vision and generosity of corporations and philanthropic foundations.

Progress:

• Delivered 50 face-to-face workshops
• Trained over 1,000 remote health workers
• Developed a purpose-built, online, interactive eLearning Platform to house our various wound management and assessment modules and resources
• Built measurable workforce capability across the Top End of the NT and Far North Queensland (FNQ)
• Reduced unnecessary evacuations and hospital admissions through improved early wound management
• Advocated for the development of a wound database in remote communities to better track the impact wounds have on the health system

Alignment with Closing the Gap

The Remote Wound Program is a place-based training program which focuses on the assessment and management of acute wounds, including practical suturing techniques, enabling remote health workers to provide those health services, with confidence, in their local community.

The Remote Wound Program supports Closing the Gap priorities by:

• Strengthening First Nations health workforce
• Educating remote health practitioners
• Supporting community-controlled health delivery
• Improving health outcomes in remote Australia
• Reducing preventable hospitalisations

Our 2026-2027 Budget Submission response outlines impactful, cost-effective budget measures.