Potentially preventable hospitalisations
Reducing the rates of potentially preventable hospitalisations (PPHs) due to dental conditions is one of the Key Performance Indicators of the National Oral Health Plan 2015–2024 (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing 2015). Hospital separation rates for PPHs provide important information about the extent to which timely and adequate non-hospital dental care has been provided. The rate of PPHs for dental conditions is influenced by several factors including:
- adequacy of preventive and primary care services
- prevalence of severe dental disease in the community
- availability and accessibility of appropriate community and hospital-based services (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing 2015).
In Australia, the age-standardised rate per 1,000 population of potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions has fluctuated over the decade from 2013–14 to 2023–24, ranging from 2.8 to 3.4 per 1,000 population.
- In 2023–24, about 88,600 hospitalisations for dental conditions could potentially have been prevented with earlier treatment.
Explore the number or rate of potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions across Australia between 2013–14 and 2023–24 using the Hospitalisations interactive 4 below.
Hospitalisations interactive 4: Potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditionsª, states and territories
Column chart showing potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions by jurisdiction. In 2023–24 there were 88,600 such admissions.
Downloadable data tables are available on Data. See Data tables: Hospitalisations.
In 2023–24, the rate of potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions (per 1,000 population) was higher for Indigenous Australians (5.6 per 1,000 population) than for Other Australians (3.3 per 1,000 population).
- In 2023–24, the rate of potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions was highest in those aged 5–9 years (12.1 per 1,000 population).
- In 2023–24, the rate of potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions generally increased as remoteness increased, ranging from 3.2 per 1,000 population in Major cities to 5.1 per 1,000 population in Very remote areas.
Explore the number or rate of potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions by selected characteristics using the Hospitalisations interactive 5 below.
Hospitalisations interactive 5: Potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditionsª, by selected characteristics, Australia
Column chart showing potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions by characteristic. In 2023–24 the rate was 3.3 per 1,000 population.
Downloadable data tables are available on Data. See Data tables: Hospitalisations.
The rate of potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions has fluctuated over time, from a low of 2.6 separations per 1,000 population in 2019–20, a year affected by restrictions to health services as a result of COVID-19, to a high of 3.4 separations per 1,000 population in 2023–24.
In 2023–24, the rate of potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions was 3.4 separations per 1,000 population, an increase from 3.1 separations per 1,000 population in 2021–22.
Between 2016–17 and 2023–24, the rate of potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions was consistently higher for:
- females than males
- Indigenous Australians than Other Australians
- those living in Very remote areas than those living in Major cities.
Explore the trend of potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions using the Hospitalisations interactive 6 below.
Hospitalisations interactive 6: Number and age-standardised rate of hospital separations for potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditionsª, by sex, remoteness, indigenous status
Line graph showing rate of potentially preventable hospitalisations by sex, remoteness and Indigenous status. Lowest 2.6 per 1,000 in 2019–20, highest 3.4 in 2023–24.
Downloadable data tables are available on Data. See Data tables: Hospitalisations.
The AIHW produces a separate report presenting Potentially preventable hospitalisations in Australia by small geographic areas which includes high level data for potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions by Statistical Area Level 3 and Primary Health Network.
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