Primary health care

Across Australia, use of non-hospital Medicare-subsidised services, such as GP, allied health, specialist and diagnostic imaging, varies considerably depending on where a patient lives. This variation may reflect differences in patients’ health and health care preferences, population growth and accessibility of services (availability, costs and service options).

This report provides an assessment of state and territory performance against 4 of the 5 performance benchmarks outlined in the National Partnership on Essential Vaccines, for the assessment period 1 April 2017 to 31 March 2018. The fifth benchmark was not assessed in this period. The report shows that 6 jurisdictions met all 4 benchmarks, with one benchmark being either partly met or not met in each of the other 2 jurisdictions.

Some presentations to hospital emergency departments that are for lower urgency care may be avoidable through provision of other appropriate health services in the community. Although the use of emergency departments for this type of care has fallen nationally, there is marked variation across areas. For example, rates in regional Primary Health Network (PHN) areas were almost twice as high (159 per 1,000 people) as in metropolitan PHN areas (92 per 1,000 people).

This is the tenth national report on organisations funded by the Australian Government to provide health services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. In 2017–18, nearly 200 organisations provided a range of primary health services to around 483,000 clients, 81% of whom were Indigenous. Around 3.6 million episodes of care were provided, nearly 3.1 million of these (85%) by Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services.

This is the first Tableau report using data from the national Key Performance Indicators (nKPIs) data collection. Information is presented for the reporting periods June 2017, December 2017 and June 2018 across 24 indicators, focusing on maternal and child health, preventative health, and chronic disease management. More than 270,000 Indigenous regular clients attended organisations that reported nKPI data in June 2018.

This report provides information on 22 conditions for which hospitalisation may have been prevented by timely and appropriate provision of primary or community-based health care by Primary Health Network (PHN) and Statistical Area Level 3 (SA3). These include chronic, acute and vaccine-preventable conditions. Rates for two age groups (for people aged under 65 years, and 65 years and over) are also included.

This report examined the health services used by more than 37,300 people with coronary heart disease (CHD) who were discharged from a public hospital in New South Wales or Victoria between April 2012 and June 2013. The report analysed linked de-identified hospitalisation data to Medicare Benefits Schedule data and National Death Index data.

The report shows that the vast majority of CHD patients visited their General Practitioner (GP) within 30 days of being discharged from hospital and that they had, on average, 1 or 2 visits per month during a two year follow-up timeframe. Timely and regular contact with a GP were associated with lower risk of having an emergency re-admission to hospital for cardiovascular disease.

This fifth national report on the national Key Performance Indicators (nKPIs) data collection is based on data from 231 primary health care organisations that receive funding from the Australian Government Department of Health to provide services primarily to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Information is presented for December 2017, for 24 ‘process-of-care’ and ‘health outcome’ indicators, focusing on maternal and child health, preventative health, and chronic disease management. The report shows improvements for the majority of indicators between June and December 2017.

Four key maternal and child health indicators have been updated in this release — smoking during pregnancy, child and infant mortality, low birthweight babies, and antenatal visits in the first trimester of pregnancy. Indicators are reported nationally, by Primary Health Network (PHN) areas and by smaller local areas.

This report was first published on the MyHealthyCommunities website.

Australian adults report their experiences on more than 20 aspects of health and care in the latest web update. Information from 2014–2015 to 2016–2017 is presented by Primary Health Network areas across Australia, covering topics including self-reported health status, use of health services and cost barriers to accessing services.

This report was first published on the MyHealthyCommunities website.

New data in this web update provides local-level information for 15 measures of health care use across Australia for 2016−17. Results are presented for the 31 Primary Health Network (PHN) areas and smaller local areas called Statistical Areas Level 3 (SA3).

This report was first published on the MyHealthyCommunities website.

This MyHospitals web update includes new data on the average length of stay in hospital for selected conditions and procedures, in around 590 Australian public hospitals in 2014–15, 2015–16 and 2016–17.

This report presents findings on four indicators measuring the health of babies and their mothers: infant and young child deaths, the rate of low birthweight babies, mothers smoking during pregnancy, and antenatal care visits during the first trimester of pregnancy.  

The report shows that despite generally positive results across these indicators nationally, these positive trends are not seen equally across Australia’s 31 Primary Health Network (PHN) areas. 

This report was first published on the MyHealthyCommunities website.

Among Australians 45 and over who visited a GP in the past year, those living in rural and remote areas were less likely than others to have a usual GP or place of care. Not having facilities nearby was a barrier to seeing a specialist and having a medical test.

Immunisation is important in protecting children from harmful infectious diseases. This web update presents 2016–17 immunisation rates for all children and Aboriginal and Torrest Strait Islander children aged 1, 2 and 5. Rates are presented for the 31 Primary Health Network (PHN) areas, more than 300 smaller local areas and around 1,600 postcodes across Australia.

This report was first published on the MyHealthyCommunities website.

Immunisation against the human papillomavirus (HPV) can prevent cervical and other cancers, and other HPV-related diseases. The National HPV Vaccination Program has been immunising adolescent girls since 2007 and was extended to boys in 2013.

This release shows HPV Immunisation rates in 2015-16. Rates are reported separately for girls and boys aged 15.  Data is reported at a national level and by PHN and SA4.

This report was first published on the former MyHealthyCommunities website.

This release provides information from 2014–15 on a selection of health risk factors including risky alcohol consumption, insufficient physical activity and high blood pressure. Information is presented by Primary Health Network (PHN) areas across Australia.

Supplementary data tables and interactive data visualisations were updated in June 2018 to include age-standardised rates for comparative purposes.

This report was first published on the MyHealthyCommunities website.