Imagine how a change of outlook can change your outcome.
Join us, as we work to make Tasmania the healthiest island on the planet.
We’re focusing on generational change
At St Lukes, we want to help create a generation of Tasmanians free from vaping and smoking. That’s why we’ve made a submission to the Therapeutic Goods Administration and called on the government to implement changes that will result in improved health outcomes for the next generation of Tasmanians.
Vaping is rife among our children and young adults. All over the state, our youth are being lured by Big Tobacco to take up a habit which is likely to lead to addiction, chronic disease, and premature death, the same way cigarettes did for generations of Tasmanians who became addicted to tobacco smoking.
A survey of St Lukes members revealed high levels of concern about vaping and vaping products, with almost 90 percent of respondents stating they would support a vaping ban. It also found 95 per cent of members surveyed were concerned about vaping as a health issue, with almost 80 per cent stating they were “very concerned”.
Working closely with key stakeholders, St Lukes took these views straight to our government and elected representatives, who have pleasingly acted in the best-interest of our community. Tasmania now has some of the toughest laws in the country designed to curb the rising tide of youth vaping and safeguard the health of future generations.
While the Bill in isolation cannot address the entire problem of smoking and vaping in our community, it is a crucial piece of the puzzle. We will now turn our attention to working with government, healthcare providers and stakeholders to ensure there continues to be opportunities for those who do vape, to get the support they need to quit.
We’re helping more Tasmanians make sense of the complex health system.
Whether it’s preparing for hospital, understanding what to expect in hospital, or being ready for when you come home, we know a lot of people struggle to navigate the healthcare system. Our new service helps to demystify the state’s healthcare system, putting Tasmanians on the right track to better health and wellbeing. Health Navigators listen to your needs and work with you to provide the information and services to take the next steps on your health journey*. Health navigation is a free service and is offered to everyone, not only St Lukes members.
Find out more about this service.
*All information provided through health navigation is for information purposes only and is not a substitute for the advice of a qualified healthcare professional.
We understand that prevention is better than cure
We’re taking practical steps to promote early intervention and prevention of health issues that affect many Tasmanians.
For example, our pilot program in partnership with Kieser Australia – an allied network of exercise scientists, exercise physiologists and physiotherapists - is designed to help reduce pain for people living with hip or knee osteoarthritis.
We’ve also partnered with the Healthy Heart Network, and we have launched a pilot program to help prevent catastrophic cardiac events and reduce cardiac interventional services through early assessment via a virtual heart check.
We know that more needs to be done to improve the oral health of Tasmanians
Tasmania faces some of the nation’s biggest oral health challenges: with fewer dentists per capita than the mainland and fees for private dental often prohibitive, adult Tasmanians are missing the most teeth of any state and are waiting almost four years for non-urgent public dental care.
That’s why we’re working with oral health practitioners and the government to identify opportunities to impact meaningful change, by addressing information, affordability and access for all Tasmanians.
St Lukes Dental offer an innovative model of dental care, with practices now open in Launceston and Howrah. With a focus on preventative services, we’re also treating public patients under the state government’s emergency dental voucher system, as well as kids who are eligible under the federal Child Dental Benefits Scheme (CDBS).
We’ve also launched St Lukes Dental Network, where members with eligible extras cover pay no out-of-pocket costs for preventative procedures such as examinations, x-rays, scale and clean, and fissure sealing. Dentists statewide are signing up to the St Lukes Dental Network, calling it a gamechanger in improving the state’s lagging health outcomes.
We’re rolling our sleeves up and getting involved where a gap exists
We’re always on the lookout for where we can help improve health outcomes – filling gaps in areas where we see critical challenges not being met.
We’ve developed a chronic disease management program that works with our chronically unwell members to understand their health needs, educate them and assist them to achieve better health outcomes. We do this through monthly nursing in-home visits, with our member’s circle of care involved as much as they need.
At St Lukes, we offer a choice for post-natal care in Tasmania’s North and North-West. We are proud to provide our members a personalised private post-natal service. This service allows mothers and families the opportunity to rest and care for their baby while being supported by midwives and lactation consultants.
We’re present in the community
We continue to look for opportunities to be present in more Tasmanian communities, where you can drop into a customer care centre and talk to someone face-to-face, or pick up the phone and speak to a local. We’re proud to say that even our call centre is based right here, in Tasmania.
We’re also establishing St Lukes wellness hubs across the state, where members of the community can gain health knowledge through informative sessions and services, and get moving at one of our fun and welcoming exercise classes. With a focus on movement, nutrition and connection, we’ve been thrilled by the community’s response to this new model of customer care, welcoming thousands of people so far to events across our Hobart and Launceston wellness hubs. Next up, we have our sights set on the North-West – watch this space!
We're advocating for the best regional health systems
We believe every Tasmanian should have access to the right care in the right setting, no matter where they live.
In early 2024 when Calvary Healthcare reneged on its proposed co-located private hospital within the Launceston General Hospital (LGH) precinct, we called on the government to bring key stakeholders together, to explore and exhaust all avenues to deliver an integrated public-private health acute care model for the north of the state.
St Lukes has been a strong advocate for the project since 2018. We surveyed members and northern healthcare partners on their expectations of a holistic, collaborative public-private health system. Our member feedback helped guide the service planning.
We will continue to work across all sides of politics to ensure the co-location hospital is delivered. In the meantime, St Lukes plans to engage with Calvary to understand how they now intend to meet the needs of the northern Tasmanian community through their existing facilities. We remain open to collaborating to reach a positive outcome.
We focus on getting the basics of health insurance right
Our focus will always be health insurance that offers value. We know that being able to provide affordable health insurance is important for Tasmanians. We also know it’s important for our members to get the right level of cover at the right price.
It’s always been this way, since St Lukes started 70 years ago, right here in Tasmania.
We know we can’t do it alone
Our vision is to make Tasmania the healthiest island on the planet, but we know we can’t do it alone. We believe in the community’s collective capacity to collaborate, with a shared sense of purpose and pride. This is what allows us to do things differently to other states.
We’re joining forces with like-minded organisation to maximise our impact in the community. Our partnership with the Tasmania JackJumpers positions St Lukes as a key Community, Diversity and Inclusion Partner. This includes the podcast Vitamins, which explores themes of health, resilience, and overcoming adversity. We’ve also created sensory packs to help more people comfortably watch and enjoy home games.
We’ve also partnered with the Tasmania Symphony Orchestra, because we know music is so beneficial in the way it lifts our wellbeing and brings us together for moments of community connectedness. TSO’s lunchtime concert series has been a hit at our wellness hubs, and in 2025 we were thrilled to help bring Symphony on the Waterfront back to Devonport.