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This report presents results from the twelfth year of BEACH program, a national study of general practice activity. From April 2009 to March 2010, 988 general practitioners recorded data about 98,800 GP-patient encounters involving the management of 155,373 problems. For an 'average' 100 encounters, GPs recorded 107 medications, 35 clinical treatments, 18 procedures, 9 referrals to specialists and 4 to allied health services, and ordered 45 pathology and 10 imaging tests.

ISSN 1442-3022; ISBN 978-1-74249-079-3; Cat. no. GEP 27; 216pp.; $28.00

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Publication table of contents

  • Preliminary material
    • Title and verso pages
    • Foreword
    • Contents
    • Acknowledgments
    • Abbreviations
    • Symbols
    • Summary   
  • Body section
    1. Introduction
      • 1.1 Background
      • 1.2 The BEACH program
      • 1.3 Issues when using BEACH data with other national data
      • 1.4 Access to BEACH data
    2. Methods
      • 2.1 Sampling methods
      • 2.2 Recruitment methods
      • 2.3 Data elements
      • 2.4 The BEACH relational database
      • 2.5 Supplementary Analysis of Nominated Data
      • 2.6 Statistical methods
      • 2.7 Classification of data
      • 2.8 Quality assurance
      • 2.9 Validity and reliability
      • 2.10 Extrapolated national estimates
    3. The sample
      • 3.1 Response rate
      • 3.2 Representativeness of the GP sample
      • 3.3 Weighting the data
      • 3.4 Representativeness of the final encounter sample
      • 3.5 The weighted data set
    4. The participating GPs
      • 4.1 Characteristics of the GP participants
      • 4.2 Computer use at GP practices
      • 4.3 Changes in characteristics of the GPs over the decade 2000–01 to 2009–10
    5. The encounters
      • 5.1 Content of the encounters
      • 5.2 Encounter type
      • 5.3 Consultation length
      • 5.4 Changes in the encounters over the decade 2000–01 to 2009–10
    6. The patients
      • 6.1 Age–sex distribution of patients at encounter
      • 6.2 Other patient characteristics
      • 6.3 Patient reasons for encounter
      • 6.4 Changes in patients and reasons for encounter over the past decade (2000–01 to 2009–10)
    7. Problems managed
      • 7.1 Number of problems managed at encounter
      • 7.2 Problems managed by ICPC-2 chapter
      • 7.3 Problems managed by ICPC-2 component
      • 7.4 Most frequently managed problems
      • 7.5 Most common new problems
      • 7.6 Most frequently managed chronic problems
      • 7.7 Work-related problems managed
      • 7.8 Management of back problems in 2009–10
      • 7.9 Changes in problems managed over the decade 2000–01 to 2009–10
    8. Overview of management
      • 8.1 Changes in management over the decade2000–01 to 2009–10
    9. Medications
      • 9.1 Source of medications
      • 9.2 Prescribed medications
      • 9.3 Medications supplied by GPs
      • 9.4 Medications advised for over-the-counter purchase
      • 9.5 Antibiotics prescribed or supplied in 2009–10
      • 9.6 Systemic antibiotic prescribing, 1998–99 to 2009–10
      • 9.7 Changes in medications over the decade2000–01 to 2009–10
    10. Other treatments
      • 10.1 Number of other treatments
      • 10.2 Clinical treatments
      • 10.3 Procedural treatments
      • 10.4 Changes in other treatments over the decade 2000–01 to 2009–10
    11. Referrals and admissions
      • 11.1 Number of referrals and admissions
      • 11.2 Most frequent referrals
      • 11.3 Problems most often referred
      • 11.4 Changes in referrals over the decade 2000–01 to 2009–10
    12. Investigations
      • 12.1 Number of investigations
      • 12.2 Pathology ordering
      • 12.3 Imaging ordering
      • 12.4 Other investigations
      • 12.5 Computerised tomography scans of the lumbar and lumbosacral spine (CT-LS)
      • 12.6 Changes in investigations over the decade 2000–01 to 2009–10
    13. Practice nurse activity
      • 13.1 Practice nurse Medicare claims and practice nurse activity
      • 13.2 Problems managed with practice nurse involvement
      • 13.3 Discussion
      • 13.4 Changes in practice nurse activity, 2005–06 to 2009–10
    14. Patient risk factors
      • 14.1 Body mass index
      • 14.2 Smoking (patients aged 18 years and over)
      • 14.3 Alcohol consumption (patients aged 18 years and over)
      • 14.4 Risk factor profile of adult patients
      • 14.5 Changes in patient risk factors over the decade 2000–01 to 2009–10
    15. SAND abstracts and research tools

End matter

  • References
  • Glossary
  • Appendices
  • List of tables
  • List of figures

 

Notes and corrections

The current version of the publication is presented above.

Previous versions of files that have been updated or corrected are presented below.

  1.   (15 December 2010) Appendix 3-5 added.

Recommended citation

Britt H, Miller GC, Charles J, Henderson J, Bayram C, Pan Y, Valenti L, Harrison C, O'Halloran J, Fahridin S 2010. General practice activity in Australia 2009-10. General practice series no. 27. Cat. no. GEP 27. Canberra: AIHW.