About Us

Otway Health is located in the picturesque harbour town of Apollo Bay, some 190km south west of Melbourne. We are block funded as a Multi-purpose Service (MPS) providing a wide range of clinical and community services to the catchment area from Lavers Hill to Wye River.

The diversity of our region and the challenges presented with offering services to cater for the 3,500 residents in the area (swelling to around 20,000 during the summer months) means the flexibility offered by our service is well-suited to this region.

Our main challenge is our geographically isolated location. Apollo Bay is surrounded by the steep hills of the Otway Ranges and access to and from major towns is time consuming due to the steep terrain and winding road access. Travel times to Geelong are up to two hours in off peak times and are considerably longer during peak tourist times. Inland, the closest town is Colac, which is over an hours travel time, being 75 kilometres away. A lack of public transport, for all the communities in the southern part of the Colac Otway Shire, contributes to the geographic remoteness of the community.

Through our Board, Otway Health is accountable to the Commonwealth Government and the Victorian Government for the efficiency and integrity of operations and the quality of the services provided. Funding arrangements for Multi-Purpose Services (MPS) consist of Commonwealth and State Aged Care as well as Victorian Department of Health and Human Services funding. At a local level these funding arrangements facilitate a greater degree of flexibility to the MPS, allowing a range and type of appropriate services to be provided in response to the identified needs of our community.

Otway Health has a joint agreement with both the Commonwealth and Victorian Governments. We are accountable to the Commonwealth and Victorian Governments for the efficiency and integrity of our operations and the quality of the services we provide.

Responsible State Ministers

The Hon Jill Hennessy MLA
Minster for Health
Minister for Ambulance Services

The Hon Jenny Mikakos MLC
Minister for Families and Children

The Hon Martin Foley MLA
Minister for Housing, Disability and Ageing
Minister for Mental Health

The Hon Fiona Richardson MP
Minister for Women

The Hon Jenny Mikakos MLC
Minister for Youth Affairs
 

Responsible Commonwealth Ministers

The Hon Sussan Ley MP
Minister for Aged Care
Minister for Sport
Minister for Health

The Hon Fiona Nash
Minister for Rural Health

The Hon Christian Porter MP
Minister for Social Service