Disability Support Pension recipients
Introduction
‘More people are delaying mental health care due to cost.’
National Mental Health Commission 2025
While cost is a barrier for many Australians, it can have a much greater impact on people with disability who may rely on income support and face higher everyday living expenses. For some people with disability, the Disability Support Pension (DSP) is their primary source of income, and this can directly influence whether timely mental health care is affordable. The DSP is a means-tested income support payment for people aged 16 and over (but under the Age Pension age at claim) who have a reduced capacity to work because of disability.
The findings below show how these financial and structural barriers translate into patterns of mental health service use. They illustrate the extent to which DSP recipients rely on hospital‑based care, potentially because community‑based or preventative supports are unaffordable, unavailable, or difficult to access. Those who are able to access primary or community supports may also present to ED more if they are following a practitioner’s advice in acute and crisis situations.
Key findings
In 2022–23:
- around 1 in 25 (4%) DSP recipients had at least one mental health-related emergency department (ED) presentation compared with less than 1% of people with no government disability supports
- DSP recipients had a rate of ED presentations for mental health care 11.5 times as high as people with no government disability supports after adjusting for age
- the proportion of DSP recipients arriving at the ED by police or correctional services vehicle was almost twice as high as people with no government disability supports
- the proportion of DSP recipients who had at least one hospitalisation for mental health care was almost 9 times as high as people with no government disability supports
- DSP recipients had a rate of hospitalisations for mental health care 12.6 times as high as people with no government disability supports after adjusting for age
- around 2 in 3 (64%) mental health care hospitalisations for DSP recipients took place in specialist psychiatric units, compared with 2 in 5 (44%) for people with no government disability supports.
Did you know?
The costs of mental health services can vary enormously depending on someone’s location and the type of service they need (Health Direct 2025). A mental health treatment plan allows people to claim some of the cost of mental health care through Medicare. Once all sessions on the mental health treatment plan are used, people need to pay in full for any additional sessions themselves. The cost and complexity of the system can prevent people from accessing mental health support. People with disability may face greater barriers, particularly if their disability makes it harder to find information about the mental health support system or to find a suitable and affordable provider.
Emergency department care
In 2022–23, around 1 in 25 (4% or 28,100) DSP recipients had at least one mental health-related ED presentation, compared with less than 1% of people with no government disability supports.
‘People seek mental health-related services in EDs for a variety of reasons, often as an initial point of contact or for after-hours care, for crisis support or being unable to access support through other means.’
Peta Marks, mental health nurse
Recorded in Mental Health in Emergency Care (Marks 2022)
In 2022–23, the rate of ED presentations for mental health care was 11.5 times as high for DSP recipients compared with people with no government disability supports after adjusting for age; the unadjusted rate shown in Figure 1 was 10.7 times as high during this period.
Presentation rates have been relatively stable in recent years, although DSP recipients experienced a sharper reduction in 2021–22 than people with no disability supports, coinciding with the COVID‑19 pandemic.
‘For people who had contact with a GP for mental health issue or had a [mental health] plan, the GP will suggest going to ED if something happens. So people who are actively seeking support for mental health reasons might actually use ED more. It's not falling through the cracks, it's following your doctor's orders.’
Reflection from inclusive research member
Figure 1: Rate of ED presentations with a mental health diagnosis per 100,000 Disability Support Pension recipients compared with people with no government disability supports, 2018–19 to 2022–23
Line chart showing rate of ED presentations for mental health care.
| Financial.year.of.presentation | Disability support pension population | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| 2018–19 | 8,000 | 780 |
| 2019–20 | 8,300 | 790 |
| 2020–21 | 7,700 | 800 |
| 2021–22 | 7,200 | 730 |
| 2022–23 | 7,700 | 720 |
- Data for these measures were accessed from the National Health Data Hub (NHDH). Emergency department (ED) data are from the non-admitted patient emergency department care national minimum data set (NAPEDC NMDS), accessed via the NHDH. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub
- “People with government disability supports” includes people represented by the National Disability Data Asset disability flags. The flags do not represent all people with disability. The “people with no government disability supports” group includes people with disability who do not receive these supports, as well as people without disability. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub.
- Disability type cannot currently be identified using the NDDA disability flags used for this analysis.
- Observed patterns may partly reflect differences in the age, sex and disability-type composition of comparison groups.
- An ED presentation begins when a patient arrives at the ED and is registered or triaged. Only presentations to public hospital EDs are included.
- Mental health-related ED presentations are defined as presentations with a principal diagnosis of Mental and behavioural disorders. Presentations coded for self-harm or poisoning are not included.
- ED data and populations for Western Australia and the Northern Territory are excluded due to data availability.
- States and territories are primarily responsible for the quality of the data they provide. The AIHW validates data on receipt and queries potential errors with jurisdictions; corrections and resubmissions may occur. Unless stated otherwise, the AIHW does not adjust data for possible errors or missing values.
- Rates are expressed as events per 100,000 population. Crude rates are calculated using the sum of resident populations at 30 June of the previous financial year, estimated from NHDH data.
- Time series comparisons should be interpreted with caution. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was beyond the scope of this analysis, and trends may also be affected by the rollout of the NDIS, which may initially have included people with more severe mental health conditions.
- Disability Support Pension recipients who become eligible for the Age Pension at age 67 may transfer to that pension. Those who transfer are not included in this report.
Source:
AIHW NHDH 2018–23, analysis of NHDH
|
Data source overview
In 2022–23, the most common modes of arrival for mental health‑related ED presentations were ambulance, air ambulance or helicopter rescue. Around 3 in 5 (56%) DSP recipients arrived this way, which was similar to the proportion for people with no government disability supports (53%).
Arrival by police or correctional services vehicles was the least common mode. One in 10 (10%) DSP recipients arrived this way, which was 1.7 times as high as the proportion for people with no disability supports (6.1%).
‘People may arrive at the ED by police vehicle, not because they’re in custody but because police were the first responder when someone needs urgent mental health care, or the person is unable to provide consent to be transported by other means.’
Reflection from inclusive research team member
Figure 2: Arrival mode to the ED for mental health care for Disability Support Pension recipients compared with people with no government disability supports, 2022–23
Grouped bar chart showing proportion of ED presentations for mental health care with arrival by ambulance/air ambulance/helicopter rescue service, police/correctional vehicles and other.
| Arrival mode to ED | Disability support pension population | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| Ambulance, air ambulance or helicopter rescue service | 56% | 53% |
| Police/correctional services vehicle | 10% | 6.1% |
| Other | 33% | 41% |
- Data for these measures were accessed from the National Health Data Hub (NHDH). Emergency department (ED) data are from the non-admitted patient emergency department care national minimum data set (NAPEDC NMDS), accessed via the NHDH. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub
- “People with government disability supports” includes people represented by the National Disability Data Asset disability flags. The flags do not represent all people with disability. The “people with no government disability supports” group includes people with disability who do not receive these supports, as well as people without disability. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub.
- Disability type cannot currently be identified using the NDDA disability flags used for this analysis.
- Observed patterns may partly reflect differences in the age, sex and disability-type composition of comparison groups.
- An ED presentation begins when a patient arrives at the ED and is registered or triaged. Only presentations to public hospital EDs are included.
- Mental health-related ED presentations are defined as presentations with a principal diagnosis of Mental and behavioural disorders. Presentations coded for self-harm or poisoning are not included.
- ED data and populations for Western Australia and the Northern Territory are excluded due to data availability.
- States and territories are primarily responsible for the quality of the data they provide. The AIHW validates data on receipt and queries potential errors with jurisdictions; corrections and resubmissions may occur. Unless stated otherwise, the AIHW does not adjust data for possible errors or missing values.
- Rates are expressed as events per 100,000 population. Crude rates are calculated using the sum of resident populations at 30 June of the previous financial year, estimated from NHDH data.
- Time series comparisons should be interpreted with caution. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was beyond the scope of this analysis, and trends may also be affected by the rollout of the NDIS, which may initially have included people with more severe mental health conditions.
- Disability Support Pension recipients who become eligible for the Age Pension at age 67 may transfer to that pension. Those who transfer are not included in this report.
Arriving at the ED by police or correctional vehicle does not mean a person had done anything wrong. It may reflect the support available at the time, including which service was able to help the person get to hospital.
‘Other’ includes walking, private transport, public transport, community transport and taxi.
Source:
AIHW NHDH 2018–23, analysis of NHDH
|
Data source overview
An ED presentation begins when a patient is registered or triaged. Triage is the process where a health professional assigns one of 5 urgency categories (or 'triage categories') based on a person’s medical care needs.
In 2022–23, around 1 in 5 (22%) mental health-related ED presentations for DSP participants were triaged as resuscitation or emergency, the two most urgent categories. This was similar for people with no government disability supports (21%).
Figure 3: Triage category at presentation to the ED for mental health care for Disability Support Pension recipients compared with people with no government disability supports, 2022–23
Grouped bar chart showing proportion of patients assigned each triage category when presenting to the ED for mental health care
| Triage category | Disability support pension population | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| Resuscitation | 1.2% | 1.8% |
| Emergency | 21% | 19% |
| Urgent | 52% | 52% |
| Semi-urgent | 21% | 24% |
| Non-urgent | 3.9% | 2.9% |
- Data for these measures were accessed from the National Health Data Hub (NHDH). Emergency department (ED) data are from the non-admitted patient emergency department care national minimum data set (NAPEDC NMDS), accessed via the NHDH. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub
- “People with government disability supports” includes people represented by the National Disability Data Asset disability flags. The flags do not represent all people with disability. The “people with no government disability supports” group includes people with disability who do not receive these supports, as well as people without disability. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub.
- Disability type cannot currently be identified using the NDDA disability flags used for this analysis.
- Observed patterns may partly reflect differences in the age, sex and disability-type composition of comparison groups.
- An ED presentation begins when a patient arrives at the ED and is registered or triaged. Only presentations to public hospital EDs are included.
- Mental health-related ED presentations are defined as presentations with a principal diagnosis of Mental and behavioural disorders. Presentations coded for self-harm or poisoning are not included.
- ED data and populations for Western Australia and the Northern Territory are excluded due to data availability.
- States and territories are primarily responsible for the quality of the data they provide. The AIHW validates data on receipt and queries potential errors with jurisdictions; corrections and resubmissions may occur. Unless stated otherwise, the AIHW does not adjust data for possible errors or missing values.
- Rates are expressed as events per 100,000 population. Crude rates are calculated using the sum of resident populations at 30 June of the previous financial year, estimated from NHDH data.
- Time series comparisons should be interpreted with caution. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was beyond the scope of this analysis, and trends may also be affected by the rollout of the NDIS, which may initially have included people with more severe mental health conditions.
- Disability Support Pension recipients who become eligible for the Age Pension at age 67 may transfer to that pension. Those who transfer are not included in this report.
Refer to Glossary for definition of triage categories
Source:
AIHW NHDH 2018–23, analysis of NHDH
|
Data source overview
The episode end status describes the outcome of a patient’s ED presentation, including whether they were subsequently admitted or referred to another hospital.
For DSP recipients in 2022–23:
- around 2 in 5 (41%) mental health presentations at the ED resulted in hospital admission for further care
- around 1 in 2 (47%) mental health presentations were completed without admission or referral to another hospital.
These proportions were similar for people with no government disability supports (38% admitted; 54% completed without admission or referral to another hospital).
Figure 4: End status of presentations to the ED for mental health care for Disability Support Pension recipients compared with people with no government disability supports, 2022–23
Grouped bar chart showing proportion of patients with each end status at the conclusion of an ED presentation for mental health care.
| End status of ED presentation | Disability support pension population | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| Hospitalised at completion of ED presentation | 41% | 38% |
| ED presentation completed without hospitalisation or referral | 47% | 54% |
| Referred to another hospital at completion of ED presentation | 5.5% | 3.3% |
| Did not wait to be seen by health care professional | 0.81% | 0.59% |
| Left at own risk after being seen by a health care professional, but before treatment or care was finished | 4.5% | 3.1% |
| Registered, advised of another health service, left ED without being seen by health care professional, | 1.3% | 0.93% |
| Died in emergency department | 0.019% |
- Data for these measures were accessed from the National Health Data Hub (NHDH). Emergency department (ED) data are from the non-admitted patient emergency department care national minimum data set (NAPEDC NMDS), accessed via the NHDH. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub
- “People with government disability supports” includes people represented by the National Disability Data Asset disability flags. The flags do not represent all people with disability. The “people with no government disability supports” group includes people with disability who do not receive these supports, as well as people without disability. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub.
- Disability type cannot currently be identified using the NDDA disability flags used for this analysis.
- Observed patterns may partly reflect differences in the age, sex and disability-type composition of comparison groups.
- An ED presentation begins when a patient arrives at the ED and is registered or triaged. Only presentations to public hospital EDs are included.
- Mental health-related ED presentations are defined as presentations with a principal diagnosis of Mental and behavioural disorders. Presentations coded for self-harm or poisoning are not included.
- ED data and populations for Western Australia and the Northern Territory are excluded due to data availability.
- States and territories are primarily responsible for the quality of the data they provide. The AIHW validates data on receipt and queries potential errors with jurisdictions; corrections and resubmissions may occur. Unless stated otherwise, the AIHW does not adjust data for possible errors or missing values.
- Rates are expressed as events per 100,000 population. Crude rates are calculated using the sum of resident populations at 30 June of the previous financial year, estimated from NHDH data.
- Time series comparisons should be interpreted with caution. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was beyond the scope of this analysis, and trends may also be affected by the rollout of the NDIS, which may initially have included people with more severe mental health conditions.
- Disability Support Pension recipients who become eligible for the Age Pension at age 67 may transfer to that pension. Those who transfer are not included in this report.
Source:
AIHW NHDH 2018–23, analysis of NHDH
|
Data source overview
Hospitalisations
In 2022–23, around 26,200 DSP recipients were admitted to public hospitals for mental health care, accounting for 56,310 hospitalisations. People could be admitted more than once. These numbers have remained relatively steady in recent years, with a slight decrease in 2021–22, coinciding with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Figure 5: Number of Disability Support Pension recipients who were hospitalised for mental health care, 2018–19 to 2022–23
Line chart showing number of people who were hospitalised for mental health care.
| Financial.year.of.admission | Number of admitted mental health patients |
|---|---|
| 2018–19 | 26850 |
| 2019–20 | 26650 |
| 2020–21 | 26200 |
| 2021–22 | 24640 |
| 2022–23 | 26200 |
- Data for these measures were accessed from the National Health Data Hub (NHDH). Admitted patient care data was sourced from the National Hospital Morbidity Database (NHMD) accessed via the NHDH. The NHMD contains the Admitted Patient Care National Minimum Data Set. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub
- “People with government disability supports” includes people represented by the National Disability Data Asset disability flags. The flags do not represent all people with disability. The “people with no government disability supports” group includes people with disability who do not receive these supports, as well as people without disability. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub.
- Disability type cannot currently be identified using the NDDA disability flags used for this analysis.
- Observed patterns may partly reflect differences in the age, sex and disability-type composition of comparison groups.
- Admitted patients are people who undergo a formal admission process in a public hospital to receive treatment and/or care.
- A hospitalisation is mental health-related if: it had a mental health-related principal diagnosis which, for admitted patient care, is defined as a principal diagnosis that is either a diagnosis that falls within the section on Mental and behavioural disorders (Chapter 5) in the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 12th revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM) classification (codes F00–F99) or a number of other selected diagnoses (refer to the Classification Codes section for the full list of applicable diagnoses codes and exclusions), or it included any specialised psychiatric care.
- Data and populations for Western Australia and the Northern Territory are excluded due to data availability.
- States and territories are primarily responsible for the quality of the data they provide. The AIHW validates data on receipt and queries potential errors with jurisdictions; corrections and resubmissions may occur. Unless stated otherwise, the AIHW does not adjust data for possible errors or missing values.
- Rates are expressed as events per 100,000 population. Crude rates are calculated using the sum of resident populations at 30 June of the previous financial year, estimated from NHDH data.
- Time series comparisons should be interpreted with caution. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was beyond the scope of this analysis, and trends may also be affected by the rollout of the NDIS, which may initially have included people with more severe mental health conditions.
- Disability Support Pension recipients who become eligible for the Age Pension at age 67 may transfer to that pension. Those who transfer are not included in this report.
Source:
AIHW NHDH 2018–23, analysis of NHDH
|
Data source overview
Figure 6: Number of hospitalisations for mental health care for Disability Support Pension recipients, 2018–19 to 2022–23
Line chart showing number of hospitalisations for mental health care.
| Financial.year.of.admission | Number of mental health episodes |
|---|---|
| 2018–19 | 58770 |
| 2019–20 | 58630 |
| 2020–21 | 56190 |
| 2021–22 | 52910 |
| 2022–23 | 56310 |
- Data for these measures were accessed from the National Health Data Hub (NHDH). Admitted patient care data was sourced from the National Hospital Morbidity Database (NHMD) accessed via the NHDH. The NHMD contains the Admitted Patient Care National Minimum Data Set. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub
- “People with government disability supports” includes people represented by the National Disability Data Asset disability flags. The flags do not represent all people with disability. The “people with no government disability supports” group includes people with disability who do not receive these supports, as well as people without disability. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub.
- Disability type cannot currently be identified using the NDDA disability flags used for this analysis.
- Observed patterns may partly reflect differences in the age, sex and disability-type composition of comparison groups.
- Admitted patients are people who undergo a formal admission process in a public hospital to receive treatment and/or care.
- A hospitalisation is mental health-related if: it had a mental health-related principal diagnosis which, for admitted patient care, is defined as a principal diagnosis that is either a diagnosis that falls within the section on Mental and behavioural disorders (Chapter 5) in the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 12th revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM) classification (codes F00–F99) or a number of other selected diagnoses (refer to the Classification Codes section for the full list of applicable diagnoses codes and exclusions), or it included any specialised psychiatric care.
- Data and populations for Western Australia and the Northern Territory are excluded due to data availability.
- States and territories are primarily responsible for the quality of the data they provide. The AIHW validates data on receipt and queries potential errors with jurisdictions; corrections and resubmissions may occur. Unless stated otherwise, the AIHW does not adjust data for possible errors or missing values.
- Rates are expressed as events per 100,000 population. Crude rates are calculated using the sum of resident populations at 30 June of the previous financial year, estimated from NHDH data.
- Time series comparisons should be interpreted with caution. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was beyond the scope of this analysis, and trends may also be affected by the rollout of the NDIS, which may initially have included people with more severe mental health conditions.
- Disability Support Pension recipients who become eligible for the Age Pension at age 67 may transfer to that pension. Those who transfer are not included in this report.
Source:
AIHW NHDH 2018–23, analysis of NHDH
|
Data source overview
In 2022–23, the proportion of DSP recipients who had at least one hospitalisation for mental health care was 8.8 times as high as the proportion for people with no government disability supports (3.7% compared with 0.42%).
Among those admitted at least once, DSP recipients had an average of 2.1 mental health care hospitalisations during the year, which was 1.3 times as high as the average for people with no disability supports (1.6 hospitalisations). These patterns were consistent over recent years.
Proportion admitted (%) | Proportion admitted (%) | Average number of hospitalisations | Average number of hospitalisations | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | DSP | No disability supports | DSP | No disability supports |
2018–19 | 3.8 | 0.45 | 2.2 | 1.6 |
2019–20 | 3.9 | 0.46 | 2.2 | 1.6 |
2020–21 | 3.8 | 0.47 | 2.1 | 1.6 |
2021–22 | 3.5 | 0.43 | 2.1 | 1.6 |
2022–23 | 3.7 | 0.42 | 2.1 | 1.6 |
Notes
- Proportion admitted refers to the percentage of population who had a mental health care hospitalisation.
- Average number is reported for admitted patients who had at least one mental health care hospitalisation.
In 2022–23, the rate of hospitalisations for mental health care was 12.6 times as high for DSP recipients compared with people with no government disability supports after adjusting for age; the unadjusted rate shown in Figure 7 was 12.1 times as high during this period.
Figure 7: Rate of hospitalisations for mental health care for Disability Support Pension recipients compared with people with no government disability supports, 2018–19 to 2022–23
Line chart showing rate of hospitalisations for mental health care
| Financial.year.of.admission | Disability support pension population | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| 2018–19 | 8,400 | 730 |
| 2019–20 | 8,500 | 730 |
| 2020–21 | 8,100 | 730 |
| 2021–22 | 7,600 | 670 |
| 2022–23 | 8,000 | 660 |
- Data for these measures were accessed from the National Health Data Hub (NHDH). Admitted patient care data was sourced from the National Hospital Morbidity Database (NHMD) accessed via the NHDH. The NHMD contains the Admitted Patient Care National Minimum Data Set. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub
- “People with government disability supports” includes people represented by the National Disability Data Asset disability flags. The flags do not represent all people with disability. The “people with no government disability supports” group includes people with disability who do not receive these supports, as well as people without disability. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub.
- Disability type cannot currently be identified using the NDDA disability flags used for this analysis.
- Observed patterns may partly reflect differences in the age, sex and disability-type composition of comparison groups.
- Admitted patients are people who undergo a formal admission process in a public hospital to receive treatment and/or care.
- A hospitalisation is mental health-related if: it had a mental health-related principal diagnosis which, for admitted patient care, is defined as a principal diagnosis that is either a diagnosis that falls within the section on Mental and behavioural disorders (Chapter 5) in the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 12th revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM) classification (codes F00–F99) or a number of other selected diagnoses (refer to the Classification Codes section for the full list of applicable diagnoses codes and exclusions), or it included any specialised psychiatric care.
- Data and populations for Western Australia and the Northern Territory are excluded due to data availability.
- States and territories are primarily responsible for the quality of the data they provide. The AIHW validates data on receipt and queries potential errors with jurisdictions; corrections and resubmissions may occur. Unless stated otherwise, the AIHW does not adjust data for possible errors or missing values.
- Rates are expressed as events per 100,000 population. Crude rates are calculated using the sum of resident populations at 30 June of the previous financial year, estimated from NHDH data.
- Time series comparisons should be interpreted with caution. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was beyond the scope of this analysis, and trends may also be affected by the rollout of the NDIS, which may initially have included people with more severe mental health conditions.
- Disability Support Pension recipients who become eligible for the Age Pension at age 67 may transfer to that pension. Those who transfer are not included in this report.
Source:
AIHW NHDH 2018–23, analysis of NHDH
|
Data source overview
Mental health care hospitalisations may occur in a specialist psychiatric unit or in other hospital units.
Of the DSP recipients who were admitted to hospital for mental health care in 2022–23, around 3 in 5 (64%) mental health care hospitalisations occurred in specialist psychiatric units.
The proportion of hospitalisations for people with no government disability supports that took place in specialist psychiatric units was around 2 in 5 (44%).
Figure 8: Proportion of hospitalisations for mental health care that involved specialist psychiatric care for Disability Support Pension recipients compared with people with no government disability supports, 2022–23
Bar chart showing proportion of hospitalisations for mental health care that occurred in psychiatric units
| Cohort | Percentage of mental health episodes |
|---|---|
| Disability support pension population | 64% |
| People with no government disability supports | 44% |
- Data for these measures were accessed from the National Health Data Hub (NHDH). Admitted patient care data was sourced from the National Hospital Morbidity Database (NHMD) accessed via the NHDH. The NHMD contains the Admitted Patient Care National Minimum Data Set. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub
- “People with government disability supports” includes people represented by the National Disability Data Asset disability flags. The flags do not represent all people with disability. The “people with no government disability supports” group includes people with disability who do not receive these supports, as well as people without disability. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub.
- Disability type cannot currently be identified using the NDDA disability flags used for this analysis.
- Observed patterns may partly reflect differences in the age, sex and disability-type composition of comparison groups.
- Admitted patients are people who undergo a formal admission process in a public hospital to receive treatment and/or care.
- A hospitalisation is mental health-related if: it had a mental health-related principal diagnosis which, for admitted patient care, is defined as a principal diagnosis that is either a diagnosis that falls within the section on Mental and behavioural disorders (Chapter 5) in the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 12th revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM) classification (codes F00–F99) or a number of other selected diagnoses (refer to the Classification Codes section for the full list of applicable diagnoses codes and exclusions), or it included any specialised psychiatric care.
- Data and populations for Western Australia and the Northern Territory are excluded due to data availability.
- States and territories are primarily responsible for the quality of the data they provide. The AIHW validates data on receipt and queries potential errors with jurisdictions; corrections and resubmissions may occur. Unless stated otherwise, the AIHW does not adjust data for possible errors or missing values.
- Rates are expressed as events per 100,000 population. Crude rates are calculated using the sum of resident populations at 30 June of the previous financial year, estimated from NHDH data.
- Time series comparisons should be interpreted with caution. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was beyond the scope of this analysis, and trends may also be affected by the rollout of the NDIS, which may initially have included people with more severe mental health conditions.
- Disability Support Pension recipients who become eligible for the Age Pension at age 67 may transfer to that pension. Those who transfer are not included in this report.
Source:
AIHW NHDH 2018–23, analysis of NHDH
|
Data source overview
Of the DSP recipients who were admitted to hospital for mental health care in 2022–23, around 4 in 5 (80%) mental health care lasted for one or more nights. This was similar for people with no government disability supports (80%).
Figure 9: Proportion of hospitalisations for mental health care that were overnight for Disability Support Pension recipients compared with people with no government disability supports, 2022–23
Bar chart showing proportion of hospitalisations for mental health care that were overnight
| Cohort | Percentage of mental health episodes |
|---|---|
| Disability support pension population | 80% |
| People with no government disability supports | 80% |
- Data for these measures were accessed from the National Health Data Hub (NHDH). Admitted patient care data was sourced from the National Hospital Morbidity Database (NHMD) accessed via the NHDH. The NHMD contains the Admitted Patient Care National Minimum Data Set. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub
- “People with government disability supports” includes people represented by the National Disability Data Asset disability flags. The flags do not represent all people with disability. The “people with no government disability supports” group includes people with disability who do not receive these supports, as well as people without disability. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub.
- Disability type cannot currently be identified using the NDDA disability flags used for this analysis.
- Observed patterns may partly reflect differences in the age, sex and disability-type composition of comparison groups.
- Admitted patients are people who undergo a formal admission process in a public hospital to receive treatment and/or care.
- A hospitalisation is mental health-related if: it had a mental health-related principal diagnosis which, for admitted patient care, is defined as a principal diagnosis that is either a diagnosis that falls within the section on Mental and behavioural disorders (Chapter 5) in the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 12th revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM) classification (codes F00–F99) or a number of other selected diagnoses (refer to the Classification Codes section for the full list of applicable diagnoses codes and exclusions), or it included any specialised psychiatric care.
- Data and populations for Western Australia and the Northern Territory are excluded due to data availability.
- States and territories are primarily responsible for the quality of the data they provide. The AIHW validates data on receipt and queries potential errors with jurisdictions; corrections and resubmissions may occur. Unless stated otherwise, the AIHW does not adjust data for possible errors or missing values.
- Rates are expressed as events per 100,000 population. Crude rates are calculated using the sum of resident populations at 30 June of the previous financial year, estimated from NHDH data.
- Time series comparisons should be interpreted with caution. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was beyond the scope of this analysis, and trends may also be affected by the rollout of the NDIS, which may initially have included people with more severe mental health conditions.
- Disability Support Pension recipients who become eligible for the Age Pension at age 67 may transfer to that pension. Those who transfer are not included in this report.
Source:
AIHW NHDH 2018–23, analysis of NHDH
|
Data source overview
'Separation mode' describes how a hospitalisation ended.
Of the DSP recipients who were admitted to hospital for mental health care in 2022–23:
- around 4 in 5 (79%) hospitalisations ended with discharge to the person’s usual residence
- another 1 in 6 (18%) hospitalisations led to further care, which may or may not be in the same hospital.
These findings were similar for people with no government disability supports (76% discharged to usual residence; 18% further care).
Figure 10: Separation modes for hospitalisations for mental health care for Disability Support Pension recipients compared with people with no government disability supports, 2022–23
Grouped bar chart showing proportion of patients with each separation mode at the conclusion of hospitalisation for mental health care
| Separation mode | Disability support pension population | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| Discharged to usual place of residence | 79% | 76% |
| Discharge/transfer to (an)other psychiatric hospital | 3% | 1.5% |
| Discharge/transfer to other care | 15% | 16% |
| Other | 3.6% | 5.7% |
- Data for these measures were accessed from the National Health Data Hub (NHDH). Admitted patient care data was sourced from the National Hospital Morbidity Database (NHMD) accessed via the NHDH. The NHMD contains the Admitted Patient Care National Minimum Data Set. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub
- “People with government disability supports” includes people represented by the National Disability Data Asset disability flags. The flags do not represent all people with disability. The “people with no government disability supports” group includes people with disability who do not receive these supports, as well as people without disability. For more information, see Data source – National Health Data Hub.
- Disability type cannot currently be identified using the NDDA disability flags used for this analysis.
- Observed patterns may partly reflect differences in the age, sex and disability-type composition of comparison groups.
- Admitted patients are people who undergo a formal admission process in a public hospital to receive treatment and/or care.
- A hospitalisation is mental health-related if: it had a mental health-related principal diagnosis which, for admitted patient care, is defined as a principal diagnosis that is either a diagnosis that falls within the section on Mental and behavioural disorders (Chapter 5) in the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 12th revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM) classification (codes F00–F99) or a number of other selected diagnoses (refer to the Classification Codes section for the full list of applicable diagnoses codes and exclusions), or it included any specialised psychiatric care.
- Data and populations for Western Australia and the Northern Territory are excluded due to data availability.
- States and territories are primarily responsible for the quality of the data they provide. The AIHW validates data on receipt and queries potential errors with jurisdictions; corrections and resubmissions may occur. Unless stated otherwise, the AIHW does not adjust data for possible errors or missing values.
- Rates are expressed as events per 100,000 population. Crude rates are calculated using the sum of resident populations at 30 June of the previous financial year, estimated from NHDH data.
- Time series comparisons should be interpreted with caution. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was beyond the scope of this analysis, and trends may also be affected by the rollout of the NDIS, which may initially have included people with more severe mental health conditions.
- Disability Support Pension recipients who become eligible for the Age Pension at age 67 may transfer to that pension. Those who transfer are not included in this report.
'Other' includes people who left against medical advice or were discharged at own risk, were discharged during hospital leave, or died.
Source:
AIHW NHDH 2018–23, analysis of NHDH
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Data source overview
Health Direct (2025) Understanding the costs of mental health services, Health Direct website, accessed 17 February 2026.
Marks P (2022) Mental health in emergency care, Elsevier Health Sciences, accessed 22 December 2025.
National Mental Health Commission (NMHC) (2025) More people delaying mental health care due to cost: New report on Australia’s mental health system, NMHC website, accessed 28 December 2025.