National Disability Insurance Scheme participants receiving the Disability Support Pension
Introduction
'It would probably take me being detained to present back at the hospital.’
National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) participant
Lived experience of a person with psychosocial disability seeking mental health support in hospital (McIntyre et al. 2023)
'Even on the [Disability Support Pension (DSP)] I can't afford to care for my mental health to even try to get into the workforce, I cannot begin to imagine trying to survive on JobSeeker and re-enter the workforce.'
DSP recipient
From a Senate Inquiry submission by People with Disability Australia (2023)
Receiving the DSP does not automatically guarantee eligibility for the NDIS, as the two programs have different purposes and criteria. The DSP provides income support for people who are unable to work (or be re‑skilled to work) for 15 hours or more per week, while the NDIS funds ‘reasonable and necessary’ supports for daily life. People can receive the DSP even if they are not eligible for the NDIS.
The results in this section focus on NDIS participants who also receive the DSP. In 2022, around 2 in 3 (67%) NDIS participants were also receiving the DSP, representing 259, 060 people with disability (NDIS 2022). These individuals typically have very limited capacity to pay for supports with out‑of‑pocket expenses, given the DSP for a single person is set at $1,200.90 per fortnight (as of March 2026). The cost of treatment and gaps in community‑based services can contribute to delayed care and escalating mental health needs for NDIS participants receiving the DSP. This group includes people with psychosocial disability as their primary disability, as well as people who have both a primary disability (for example, physical disability) and a mental health condition requiring support. These supports may fall outside their NDIS supports.
This report includes data starting from 2018–19. Trends are therefore likely to be impacted by the rollout of the NDIS, which may have initially brought those with the most severe mental health conditions into the scheme.
Key findings
In 2022–23:
- around 1 in 20 (6%) NDIS participants receiving the DSP had at least one mental health-related emergency department (ED) presentation compared with less than 1% of people with no government disability supports
- NDIS participants receiving the DSP had a rate of ED presentations for mental health care 16.0 times as high as people with no government disability supports after adjusting for age
- the proportion of NDIS participants receiving the DSP arriving at the ED by police or correctional services vehicle was almost twice as high people with no government disability supports
- the proportion of NDIS participants receiving the DSP who had at least one hospitalisation for mental health care was around 13 times as high as people with no government disability supports
- NDIS participants receiving the DSP had a rate of hospitalisations for mental health care 19.9 times as high as people with no government disability supports after adjusting for age
- around 2 in 3 (66%) mental health care hospitalisations for NDIS participants receiving the DSP took place in specialist psychiatric units, compared with 2 in 5 (44%) for people with no government disability supports.
Emergency department care
In 2022–23, around 1 in 20 (6% or 11,600) NDIS participants receiving the DSP 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 16.0 times as high for NDIS participants receiving the DSP compared with people with no government disability supports after adjusting for age; the unadjusted rate shown in Figure 1 was 17.7 times as high during this period.
Presentation rates have been relatively stable in recent years, although NDIS participants receiving the DSP 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 team member
Figure 1: Rate of ED presentations with a mental health diagnosis per 100,000 NDIS participants who receive the Disability Support Pension 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 | People who are both NDIS participants and DSP recipient | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| 2018–19 | 11,000 | 780 |
| 2019–20 | 12,000 | 790 |
| 2020–21 | 13,000 | 800 |
| 2021–22 | 12,000 | 730 |
| 2022–23 | 13,000 | 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 (57%) NDIS participants on DSP 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%) NDIS participants 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 NDIS participants who receive the Disability Support Pension 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 | People who are both NDIS participants and DSP recipient | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| Ambulance, air ambulance or helicopter rescue service | 57% | 53% |
| Police/correctional services vehicle | 10% | 6.1% |
| Other | 32% | 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 NDIS participants receiving the DSP 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 NDIS participants who receive the Disability Support Pension 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 | People who are both NDIS participants and DSP recipient | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| Resuscitation | 1.1% | 1.8% |
| Emergency | 21% | 19% |
| Urgent | 53% | 52% |
| Semi-urgent | 21% | 24% |
| Non-urgent | 3.6% | 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 NDIS participants receiving the DSP in 2022–23:
- around 2 in 5 (38%) mental health presentations at the ED resulted in hospital admission for further care
- around 1 in 2 (49%) 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 NDIS participants who receive the Disability Support Pension 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 | People who are both NDIS participants and DSP recipient | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| Hospitalised at completion of ED presentation | 38% | 38% |
| ED presentation completed without hospitalisation or referral | 49% | 54% |
| Referred to another hospital at completion of ED presentation | 5.3% | 3.3% |
| Did not wait to be seen by health care professional | 0.85% | 0.59% |
| Left at own risk after being seen by a health care professional, but before treatment or care was finished | 4.4% | 3.1% |
| Registered, advised of another health service, left ED without being attended by health care professional | 1.5% | 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 10,760 NDIS participants receiving the DSP were admitted to public hospitals for mental health care, accounting for 25,860 hospitalisations. People could be admitted more than once. The number of NDIS participants receiving the DSP admitted to hospital for mental health care more than doubled between 2018–19 and 2022–23 (from 4,520 to 10,760).
Figure 5: Number of NDIS participants who receive the Disability Support Pension 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 | 4520 |
| 2019–20 | 6580 |
| 2020–21 | 8220 |
| 2021–22 | 9300 |
| 2022–23 | 10760 |
- 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 NDIS participants who receive the Disability Support Pension, 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 | 10730 |
| 2019–20 | 16470 |
| 2020–21 | 20470 |
| 2021–22 | 22820 |
| 2022–23 | 25860 |
- 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 NDIS participants receiving the DSP who had at least one hospitalisation for mental health care was 13.1 times as high as the proportion for people with no government disability supports (5.5% compared with 0.42%).
Among those admitted at least once, NDIS participants receiving the DSP had an average of 2.4 mental health care hospitalisations during the year, which was 1.5 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 | NDIS and DSP | No disability supports | NDIS and DSP | No disability supports |
2018–19 | 4.5 | 0.45 | 2.4 | 1.6 |
2019–20 | 5.0 | 0.46 | 2.5 | 1.6 |
2020–21 | 5.3 | 0.47 | 2.5 | 1.6 |
2021–22 | 5.3 | 0.43 | 2.5 | 1.6 |
2022–23 | 5.5 | 0.42 | 2.4 | 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 19.9 times as high for NDIS participants receiving the DSP compared with people with no government disability supports after adjusting for age; the unadjusted rate shown in Figure 7 was 20.3 times as high during this period.
Figure 7: Rate of hospitalisations for mental health care for NDIS participants who receive the Disability Support Pension 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 | People who are both NDIS participants and DSP recipient | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| 2018–19 | 11,000 | 730 |
| 2019–20 | 12,000 | 730 |
| 2020–21 | 13,000 | 730 |
| 2021–22 | 13,000 | 670 |
| 2022–23 | 13,000 | 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 NDIS participants receiving the DSP who were admitted to hospital for mental health care in 2022–23, around 2 in 3 (66%) 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 NDIS participants who receive the Disability Support Pension 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 |
|---|---|
| People who are both NDIS participants and DSP recipient | 66% |
| 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 NDIS participants receiving the DSP who were admitted to hospital for mental health care in 2022–23, around 3 in 4 (77%) mental health care hospitalisations 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 NDIS participants who receive the Disability Support Pension 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 |
|---|---|
| People who are both NDIS participants and DSP recipient | 77% |
| 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 NDIS participants receiving the DSP who were admitted to hospital for mental health care in 2022–23:
- around 4 in 5 (79%) mental health care hospitalisations ended with discharge to the person’s usual residence
- around 1 in 5 (18%) mental health care hospitalisations resulted in further care, which may or may not have been provided 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 NDIS participants who receive the Disability Support Pension 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 | People who are both NDIS participants and DSP recipient | People with no government disability supports |
|---|---|---|
| Discharged to usual place of residence | 79% | 76% |
| Discharge/transfer to (an)other psychiatric hospital | 3.4% | 1.5% |
| Discharge/transfer to other care | 15% | 16% |
| Other | 2.8% | 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
|
Data source overview
National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) (2022) Employment outcomes for NDIS participants As at 31 December 2022, NDIS website, accessed 13 April 2026.
Marks P (2022) Mental health in emergency care, Elsevier Health Sciences, accessed 22 December 2025.
McIntyre H, Loughhead M, Hayes L, Allen C, Barton-Smith D, Bickley B, Vega L, Smith J, Wharton U and Procter N (2023) I have not come here because I have nothing better to do: The lived experience of presenting to the emergency department for people with a psychosocial disability and an NDIS plan—A qualitative study, International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, accessed 22 December 2025.
People With Disability Australia (PWDA) (2021) In Our Own Words: Submission To The Senate Community Affairs References Committee Inquiry, PWDA website, accessed 28 December 2025.