Primary Health Networks (PHNs) were established with the key objectives of:

• increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of health services for people, particularly those at risk of poor health outcomes
• improving coordination of health services and increasing access and quality support for people.

The South Eastern Melbourne PHN (SEMPHN) is one of six PHN’s in Victoria, and 31 PHN’s across Australia. The SEMPHN catchment encompasses an area comprising 1.6 million people and stretches from St Kilda to Sorrento and as far east as Bunyip, including the major population hubs of Monash, Dandenong, Moorabbin, Caulfield, Cranbourne, Frankston and Pakenham.

SEMPHN is dedicated to creating opportunities for people in South-East Melbourne to live their healthiest lives, and positively impacting health outcomes by:

• Evidence, planning, and influencing services to meet population health needs.
• Capacity building services to grow primary health and its workforce in our region.
• Commissioning services to translate national and state policy into local services and the regional health system.

The aged care system is complex, with some older Australians needing additional support to navigate and access the services they need. My Aged Care was introduced in 2013 is a single-entry point and centralised gateway to access aged care services, however many older Australians continued to fall between the gaps due to systemic barriers.

The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety (2018) inquiry identified the challenges in accessing the aged care system for some “hard to reach” groups within the community, and recommended the creation of a dedicated workforce to support older Australians needing support to navigate and access aged care. The care finder program was implemented nationally in January 2023, and forms part of a significant investment in aged care reform in response to the recommendations of the Royal Commission.

Care finder is a free service designed to help vulnerable and older people who have no one else to support them. The program assists individuals in navigating and accessing support services within their community. The program helps people understand available aged care services, arrange assessments, and find and choose the right services. They also assist individuals in accessing other community supports.

SEMPHN invites eligible organisations to submit tenders to deliver the care finder program. For the delivery of the care finder program, the SEMPHN catchment has been divided into three Local Government Area (LGA) clusters:

• Inner South LGA Cluster: Bayside, Port Phillip, Glen Eira, Stonnington and Kingston
• Outer South LGA Cluster: Greater Dandenong, Casey and Cardinia
• Peninsula LGA Cluster: Mornington Peninsula and Frankston

Each provider may apply for a maximum of two LGA clusters. Each provider can be awarded a maximum of two LGA clusters.

Detailed eligibility criteria is provided in the Part B Specifications.