Health Justice Partnership - Excellence Symposium 2023

The East Metropolitan Health Service and Legal Aid WA - Health Justice Partnership (HJP) has broken new ground in the Western Australian public health system.
The HJP aims to support the most vulnerable in our community and was established because of the dedicated staff at Royal Perth Bentley Group (RPBG) and Legal Aid WA.
The HJP provides legal services to patients in need and is the first of its kind to operate in WA public hospitals.
Launched on 25 July 2023, its innovative model of service delivery connects legal assistance and health care for the betterment of patients.
Patients at Royal Perth Hospital (RPH) and Bentley Health Service (BHS) can now access timely, free legal support from onsite Legal Aid WA lawyers for a range of legal issues.
The RPBG Social Work staff can refer patients to a Legal Aid WA lawyer who attends each site once a week to operate a ‘legal clinic’.
Legal support is available across a range of issues that can affect people’s health including family violence, family law, fines, housing, child protection issues and credit and debt.
The HJP’s strength lies in its ability to provide legal assistance to vulnerable patients where they are most likely to seek help.
By working together, health and legal services can address the complex problems in people’s lives in ways they never could alone.