title: A case study of enhanced clinical care enabled by Aboriginal health research: the Hearing, EAr health and Language Services (HEALS) project.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe and evaluate Hearing EAr health and Language Services (HEALS), a New South Wales (NSW) health initiative implemented in 2013 and 2014 as a model for enhanced clinical services arising from Aboriginal health research.
  
  
  METHODS
  A case-study involving a mixed-methods evaluation of the origins and outcomes of HEALS, a collaboration among five NSW Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services (ACCHS), the Sydney Children's Hospitals Network, NSW Health, the Aboriginal Health and Medical Research Council, and local service providers. Service delivery data was collected fortnightly; semi-structured interviews were conducted with healthcare providers and caregivers of children who participated in HEALS.
  
  
  RESULTS
  To circumvent health service barriers, HEALS used relationships established through the Study of Environment on Aboriginal Resilience and Child Health (SEARCH) to form a specialist healthcare network. HEALS employed dedicated staff and provided a Memorandum of Understanding (detailing mutual goals and responsibilities) for each ACCHS. Despite very tight timeframes, HEALS provided services for 653 Aboriginal children, including 5,822 speech-language pathology sessions and 219 Ear, Nose and Throat procedures. Four themes reflecting the perceived impact of HEALS were identified: valued clinical outcomes, raising community awareness, developing relationships/networks and augmented service delivery.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  HEALS delivered rapid and effective specialist healthcare services through an existing research collaboration with five ACCHS, cooperation from local health service providers, and effective community engagement. Implications for Public Health: HEALS serves as a framework for targeted, enhanced healthcare that benefits Aboriginal communities by encapsulating the 'no research without service' philosophy.
authors: School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, New South Wales.|Centre for Kidney Research, The Children's Hospital at Westmead, New South Wales.
authors: Christian
authors: C
authors: Young
authors: Discipline of Paediatrics and Child Health, The University of Sydney, New South Wales.
authors: Hasantha
authors: H
authors: Gunasekera
authors: Department of Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery, John Hunter Hospital, New South Wales.|Rural Clinical School, University of New South Wales.
authors: Kelvin
authors: K
authors: Kong
authors: Discipline of Speech Pathology, The University of Sydney, New South Wales.
authors: Alison
authors: A
authors: Purcell
authors: The Sax Institute, New South Wales.
authors: Sumithra
authors: S
authors: Muthayya
authors: Aboriginal Medical Service Western Sydney, New South Wales.
authors: Frank
authors: F
authors: Vincent
authors: Tharawal Aboriginal Corporation, New South Wales.
authors: Darryl
authors: D
authors: Wright
authors: Awabakal Newcastle Aboriginal Co-operative, New South Wales.
authors: Raylene
authors: R
authors: Gordon
authors: Riverina Medical and Dental Corporation, New South Wales.
authors: Jennifer
authors: J
authors: Bell
authors: Aboriginal Medical Service Western Sydney, New South Wales.
authors: Guy
authors: G
authors: Gillor
authors: Illawarra Aboriginal Medical Service, New South Wales.
authors: Julie
authors: J
authors: Booker
authors: The Sax Institute, New South Wales.
authors: Peter
authors: P
authors: Fernando
authors: The Sax Institute, New South Wales.
authors: Deanna
authors: D
authors: Kalucy
authors: The Sax Institute, New South Wales.|Poche Centre for Indigenous Health, Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, New South Wales.
authors: Simone
authors: S
authors: Sherriff
authors: School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, New South Wales.|Centre for Kidney Research, The Children's Hospital at Westmead, New South Wales.
authors: Allison
authors: A
authors: Tong
authors: Centre for Aboriginal Health, NSW Ministry of Health, New South Wales.
authors: Carmen
authors: C
authors: Parter
authors: Aboriginal Health and Medical Research Council, New South Wales.
authors: Sandra
authors: S
authors: Bailey
authors: The Sax Institute, New South Wales.
authors: Sally
authors: S
authors: Redman
authors: The Sax Institute, New South Wales.|National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, Research School of Population Health, Australian National University, Australian Capital Territory.
authors: Emily
authors: E
authors: Banks
authors: School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, New South Wales.|Centre for Kidney Research, The Children's Hospital at Westmead, New South Wales.
authors: Jonathan C
authors: JC
authors: Craig
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D006303:Health Services, Indigenous / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008875:Middle Aged; D009517:New South Wales; D019982:Organizational Case Studies; D015397:Program Evaluation; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012106:Research; D013066:Speech-Language Pathology
keywords: Indigenous; ear; nose and throat; service delivery; speech-language pathology