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In difficult times such as these, public policy plays a critical role in addressing the increasingly complex and interrelated issues we face today. But we need to make the development and implementation of good public policy more collaborative if we really want to create better, more sustainable outcomes.

Head to Health, the national mental health service navigation website has won a prestigious Good Design Award for Excellence in Design and Innovation at this year’s awards ceremony, with the judges recognising “Head to Health approaches an important service with respect and creativity. The personalised user experience demonstrates the comprehensive research behind the design.”   

Choosing an aged care home for yourself or a loved one is a big decision and knowing that they can provide a high quality of care is critical. So, the introduction of Star Ratings for residential aged care homes in late December 2022 has made it easier for older Australians and their families to choose an aged care home.

Liquid is proud to have assisted the Department of Health and Aged Care, and partners such as the University of Queensland, PwC and Accenture, to design, develop and deliver Star Ratings.   

What does it mean to design services in sensitive areas? Firstly, sensitive is a word that gets used in many contexts. I’m not talking about classified information or people who are easily offended. 

We all experience life differently—what makes something sensitive is whether it has the potential to impact your wellbeing. Approaching this work requires not only empathy, but a deep level of humility and appreciation of the precariousness of life. 

Talk about timing. Just as we were discussing whether 2020 had changed the digital divide at the Something Digital Festival, the 2020 Australian Digital Inclusion Index was published.

Many of the themes it raised were echoed by the panel's own observations. We all agreed that the pandemic had accelerated digital take-up. But access, affordability and skills are still sadly holding us back.

Why is it that some teams are more collaborative than others?

It’s not something in the water. There’s no training course that instantly made them all great collaborators. So what’s the secret? Nailing the four essentials that make the right culture for collaboration to bloom.