Improving the quality of primary health care is essential for Closing the Gap in health and wellbeing disparities between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and other Australians. This is a final report of the CRE-IQI research findings and activities, with messages for action to improve primary health care delivery.

This paper compares and contrasts the concept of innovation platforms with other types of networks that can be used in efforts to strengthen primary healthcare systems, such as communities of practice, practice-based research networks and quality improvement collaboratives.

Background: There is growing recognition amongst health and medical research funders and researchers that translation of research into policy and practice needs to increase and that more transparency is needed on how impacts are realised. Several approaches are advocated for achieving this, including co-production of research or academic-practitioner research.

Abstract

Objective: To describe why, when and to whom general practitioners refer women with symptoms possibly attributable to cervical, endometrial or ovarian cancers, and to identify patient and GP factors that predict referral to either a gynaecologist or a gynaecological oncologist.