Supporting addiction services in the community

For many of our clients, coming here is their last resort. In other settings, they may experience judgement or be concerned about having police called, but here, they know they will be supported and helped.

TSA Access Health saw an extraordinary 17,912 clients in 2024–25. The services, which are free to consumers and can link them to mainstream services, include nurse practitioners, nurses, general practitioners (GPs), psychiatrists, podiatrists, physiotherapists, and psychologists, as well as drug and alcohol rehabilitation services. 

SEMPHN has been funding the TSA Access Health Nurse Practitioner Program since June 2023. The program enables the Nurse Practitioner to prescribe opioid replacement therapy for patients, as well as for a practice nurse to support the patients. 

Program Manager Brigid Buick, who has worked at TSA Access Health for 5 years, says the centre’s patient-centred and trauma-informed approach often leads to extraordinary outcomes. 

“For many of our clients, coming here is their last resort,” Brigid says. “In other settings, they may experience judgement or be concerned about having police called, but here, they know they will be supported and helped. Our centre is about building strong and trusting relationships, no matter how long it takes.

“It can sometimes take a year or two of clients coming here to shower and have a chat and a coffee before they are comfortable enough to see our nurses and have blood tests so we can establish if there are any medical concerns,” Brigid says. “If there is a problem, we can then recommend medications and ensure they see allied health providers they might need. These are things that just would not happen without our service.”

Between August 2024 and July 2025, there were more than 1000 visits to Nurse Practitioner Meg.

Brigid says the Nurse Practitioner’s clients have multiple complex unmet needs that often result in high-risk, challenging presentations. 

“Our GPs will often consult the nurse practitioner due to their extensive knowledge of specialised pharmacotherapy (the use of medication to assist in the treatment of opioid addiction) – it’s an excellent example of very effective collaborative care,” she says. 

Brigid tells the story of client ‘Angus’ as an example of those who desperately need the support of TSA Access Health. ‘Angus’ arrived at the centre in October 2024, seeking continuation of opioid pharmacotherapy after the closure of a centre in Frankston. He was one of 6 patients who presented to TSA Access Health on the same day for the same reason.

None of the clients had a referral or had called before their arrival. 

“It was a very stressful time for this cohort of patients,” Brigid says. “All 6 patients, including Angus, were seen by Nurse Practitioner Meg and had their treatment continued, while she maintained her usual workload. Angus asked to stay with TSA Access Health due to the warm and holistic response he received.”

SEMPHN Pharmacotherapy Network Officer Michelle Baxter says TSA Access Health enabled vulnerable community members to access health services to support better health outcomes. 

“With their specialist skills, nurse practitioners are critical to the pharmacotherapy prescribing system,” Michelle says. “They provide clinical care to patients with an opioid use disorder by collaborating with the GP team while caring for patients on medication-assisted treatment of opioid dependence. They support GPs and have a very significant role to play at TSA Access Health.”