Primary Health Counselling Programme
'Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.' World Health Organisation
The West Coast PHO works with local General Practice Teams to improve health and wellbeing of Coasters. The Primary Health Counselling Program started as a pilot in 2006 and has proved to be very successful, with over 3000 Coasters being involved.
Experienced health professionals work from West Coast medical centres to ensure that people's emotional and mental health is addressed along with their physical health.
If people fulfil the criteria for this Program, they can receive several free (i.e. fully-funded) counselling sessions, plus a follow-up session after six-months.
Wherever possible, these counselling sessions are held in the medical centre where the person is enrolled. Counselling covers issues such as:
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relieving anxiety and depression
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managing stressful situations
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understanding change including loss and grief
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improving problem-solving and setting future directions
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increasing resilience and satisfaction with life
Please ask your doctor or nurse if you want to know more about this programme.
