Availability of health services in local area
The availability of health services in a person's local area plays a key role in shaping how and when they access care. Greater access can support regular check-ups, early intervention, and continuity of care, while limited availability may lead to delayed treatment, reduced engagement with the health system, and poorer health outcomes.
In 2022–23, nearly all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (99% or an estimated 988,000 out of 994,000) had at least one type of health service in their local area (Figure 1). Around 90% (893,000) had a mainstream general practitioner (GP) in their local area, 76% (759,000) a hospital, 69% (683,000) an Aboriginal Medical Service or Community Clinic (AMS/CC) and 11% (111,000) a traditional healer.
Figure 1: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, type of health services available their local area, 2022–23
Bar chart shows that in 2022–23, less than 1% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people did not have a primary health care service in their local area.
| Health services available in local area | Number |
|---|---|
| AMS/CC | 683,000 |
| Mainstream GP | 893,100 |
| Hospital | 758,600 |
| Traditional healer | 111,200 |
| Other | 218,900 |
| None* | 5,700 |
| Health services available in local area | Per cent |
|---|---|
| AMS/CC | 68.7 |
| Mainstream GP | 89.9 |
| Hospital | 76.3 |
| Traditional healer | 11.2 |
| Other | 22.0 |
| None* | 0.6 |
* Estimate has a relative standard error between 25% and 50% and should be used with caution.
Notes:
- The list of available health services included Aboriginal Medical Service/Community Clinic (AMS/CC); hospital; doctor/GP (other than from Aboriginal Medical Service or hospital) (Mainstream GP); traditional healer; other; none. Respondents were asked to tick all that were available. The list for children aged 0–14 also included maternal and child health centre, chemist, and a relative or other community person.
- Respondents were not given specific definitions of the individual health service types and could define ‘local area’ however they saw fit. Services may also exist in someone’s local area that they are not aware of. As such, this variable should be considered a measure of perceived rather than actual availability.
- Data are population weighted estimates.
Source: AIHW analysis of 2022–23 NATSIHS using TableBuilder (ABS 2025).
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living in more remote areas, those who had lower incomes, and those who lived in more disadvantaged areas were more likely to report having an AMS/CC in their local area, while mainstream GPs were generally concentrated in more urban and more advantaged areas (Figure 2). This pattern is expected as AMS/CC services are targeted towards areas and populations of greater need.
The following data visualisation shows the distribution of the types of health services available in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ local area by remoteness, state/territory, household income quintile and SEIFA quintile.
Figure 2: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, type of health services available their local area, by selected categories and survey cycle
Figure 2: Bar chart shows that in 2022–23, 95% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Very remote areas had an AMS/CC in their local area, compared with 58% in Major cities.
Notes:
- Data are population weighted estimates.
- While non-overlapping confidence intervals (CIs) generally indicate statistical significance, overlapping CIs do not necessarily imply that a difference is not significant. See Technical notes for more information.
- The upper bounds for some CIs were truncated at 100%. For the untruncated bounds, see Data.
Source: AIHW analysis of 2012–13, 2018–19, and 2022–23 NATSIHS using TableBuilder (ABS 2013, 2019, 2025).
ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) (2013) National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey, 2012–13: TableBuilder [TableBuilder], ABS, Australian Government, accessed 3 February 2025.
—— (2019) National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey, 2018–19: TableBuilder [TableBuilder], ABS, Australian Government, accessed 3 February 2025.
—— (2025) National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey, 2022–23: TableBuilder [TableBuilder], ABS, Australian Government, accessed 11 April 2025.