Opportunities to improve continuity in medicines management for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people accessing care in South Australian hospitals: Coverage, quality, monitoring and accountability

This paper proposes that hospital admissions, which are traditionally considered high risk transitions, can be opportunities to strengthen continuity in medicines management (CMM) for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients and across the healthcare system. There are four key areas of focus in this paper including CMM coverage, CMM quality, health system monitoring of CMM, and health system accountability for CMM to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities. These areas for improvement are justified by the National Agreement on Closing the Gap (The National Agreement), the Guiding Principles to Achieving continuity in medication management, and Continuity in Medication Management: A Handbook for South Australian Hospitals. Other public health services may be able to leverage the National Agreement in similar applications to improve health system performance for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.