Time between health checks
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Explore the data in the visualisations below.
Notes
- This section looks at the length of time between consecutive health checks for different groups of First Nations people. Specifically, the analyses relate to the length of time between a patient’s most recent health check in a given year and their previous most recent health check, if any, back to November 1999 (when First Nations health checks were first introduced for people aged 55 and over).
- Proportions in this section use the group of patients who had at least one health check in a given reference year (for example, 2021–22) as the denominator, and not the estimated First Nations population. Therefore, the proportions are specific to the health check patients assessed in the reference year, and do not reflect the time between health checks for the entire First Nations population.
- People without a previous health check on record (in other words, those with only one recorded MBS‑billed First Nations health check in the relevant period) are included in the reporting of proportions, but do not factor into the reporting of mean and median months between consecutive health checks.
Geographic information
This analysis is based on the postcode of the patient’s given mailing address. As a result, the data may not always reflect where the person actually lived – particularly for people who use PO boxes. This is likely to impact some areas more than others and will also have a generally greater impact on the accuracy of smaller geographic areas.
National data
Among health check patients in 2021–22:
- 41,000 people (20%) had their previous health check less than 12 months earlier.
- 37,000 people (18%) had their previous health check 12 to 14 months earlier.
- 33,200 (16%) had no previous health check on record and received their first health check in 2021–22.
- Note that this includes children under 5 years old, 47% (11,100) of whom had no prior health check (shown later on this page).
- On average, people with at least one health check in 2021–22 and at least one earlier health check on record had their 2 most recent health checks 24.3 months apart. The median time between health checks was 16.2 months, for comparison.
Among health check patients from 2016–17 to 2021–22:
- The largest percentage-point change was in the proportion of people who had no previous health check which fell from 25% in 2016–17 to 16% in 2021–22 (52,400 patients to 33,200 in respective years).
- The average length of time since the last health check increased, rising from 22.4 months in 2016–17 to 24.3 months in 2021–22. The median length of time also rose across the same period, increasing from 15.3 to 16.2 months.
By sex
Among health check patients in 2021–22:
- More males (18% or 16,800 patients) received their first health check in 2021–22 than females (15% or 16,400 patients).
- Females had slightly less time between their most recent health checks, on average, than males (23.8 months compared with 24.8 months, respectively).
Among health check patients from 2016–17 to 2021–22:
- The proportion of females receiving their first health check fell from 23% in 2016–17 to 15% in 2021–22. In comparison, 27% of males had their first health check in 2016–17, dropping to 18% in 2021–22.
- Males and females had the same increase in the average length of time between their most recent health checks, both increasing by about 2 months over the time series.
Figure 12: First Nations health check patients, by time between their 2 most recent health checks, by sex, 2016–17 to 2021–22
A set of interactive graphs over 3 tabs. Refer to tables HC12 and HC16 in data tables. A long description is available below.
A set of interactive graphs over 3 tabs. The first is a stacked bar graph showing the proportion of health check patients by sex, by time since previous health check, showing that more than half of those who got a health check in 2021–22 last got a health check less than 2 years ago. The second is a bar graph, showing average and median time since previous health check, by sex. The third is a line graph, showing the development in time since previous health check between 2016–17 and 2021–22, by sex. Notably, the proportion of people who had no previous health trended down between 2016–17 and 2021–22. Refer to tables HC12 and HC16 in data tables.
By age
Among health check patients in 2021–22:
- Young children (0–4 years) were the most distinct group, with almost half (47%) receiving their first health check in 2021–22 (11,100 patients). This is partly due to their age, with young infants not being old enough to have received a second health check.
- Among those aged 5 and over, as age increased the time between health checks decreased with exception for those aged 15–24 years.
- People aged 15–24 years had the longest period between health checks (28.2 months on average) and highest proportion of patients without a previous health check on record (14%).
Between 2016–17 and 2021–22:
- The proportion of patients who had not received a previous health check, fell from 25% in 2016–17 to 16% in 2021–22 (52,400 patients to 33,200 in respective years).
- The average time between the 2 most recent health checks increased slightly by 1.9 months, from 22.4 months in 2016–17 to 24.3 months in 2021–22.
- The proportion of people with less than 15 months since their previous health check rose over 3 years (from 36% in 2016–17 to 40% in 2019–20, respectively) and then fell in the following 2 years (from 40% in 2019–20 to 37% in 2021–22 in respective years).
Figure 13: First Nations health check patients, by time between their 2 most recent health checks, by age group, 2016–17 to 2021–22
A set of interactive graphs over 3 tabs. Refer to tables HC13 and HC16 in data tables. A long description is available below.
A set of interactive graphs over 3 tabs. The first is a stacked bar graph showing the proportion of health check patients by age group, by time since previous health check, showing that time since previous health check generally trended down as age increased, in 2021–22. The second is a bar graph, showing average and median time since previous health check, by age group. The average time since previous health check was longest for those aged 15–24 in 2021–22. The third is a line graph, showing the development in time since previous health check between 2016–17 and 2021–22, by age group. The average number of months since previous health check trended up for all age groups between 2019–20 and 2021–22. Refer to tables HC13 and HC16 in data tables.
Comparisons between areas
States and territories
Among health check patients in 2021–22:
- Victoria had the highest proportion of patients without a prior health check, at 25% (1,900 patients), as well as the longest average period between most recent health checks (27.2 months).
- The Northern Territory had the lowest proportion of patients without a prior health check, at 8% (1,700 patients), but also one of the longest periods between patients’ most recent health checks (an average of 26.0 months).
- Tasmania had had the shortest average length of time between most recent health checks (21.9 months).
Between 2016–17 and 2021–22:
- Tasmania had the largest percentage-point increase in the proportion of people with less than 15 months since their previous health check, rising from 30% in 2016–17 to 37% in 2021–22 (7,500 patients to 12,300 in respective years).
- The Australian Capital Territory had the largest percentage-point decrease in the proportion of people with less than 15 months since their previous health check, falling from 42% in 2016–17 to 26% in 2021–22 (4,500 patients to 3,000 in respective years).
- The drop was particularly sharp in 2021–22, falling from 33% in 2020–21 (4,200 patients).
- All states and territories experienced an overall decline in the proportion of patients without a prior health check – the largest percentage-point decrease being in Tasmania (from 39% or 7,500 patients in 2016–17 to 25% or 12,300 patients in 2021–22).
- Victoria had the largest percentage-point increase in the average time between patients’ most recent health checks, rising from 22.3 months in 2016–17 to 27.2 months in 2021–22.
Figure 14: First Nations health check patients, by time between their 2 most recent health checks, by state and territory, 2016–17 to 2021–22
A set of interactive graphs over 3 tabs. Refer to tables HC14 and HC16 in data tables. A long description is available below.
A set of interactive graphs over 3 tabs. The first is a stacked bar graph showing the proportion of health check patients by jurisdiction, by time since previous health check, showing that the Northern Territory had fewest patients with no previous health checks in 2021–22. The second is a bar graph, showing average and median time since previous health check, by jurisdiction. Time since previous health check on average was shortest in Tasmania in 2021–22. The third is a line graph, showing the development in time since previous health check between 2016–17 and 2021–22, by jurisdiction. Notably, the proportion of people who had no previous health check generally trended down between 2016–17 and 2021–22 across the jurisdictions. Refer to tables HC14 and HC16 in data tables.
Remoteness Areas
Among health check patients in 2021–22:
- A smaller proportion of patients from Very remote areas had a health check less than 15 months earlier (almost one-third or 31%) compared to other areas (ranging from 37% to 39%), but Very remote areas had one of the lowest proportions of people with no previous health check (10%).
- Time between health checks increased with increasing remoteness, and patients in Remote and Very remote areas had the longest average period between their most recent health checks (25.6 and 27.9 months, respectively).
Between 2016–17 and 2021–22:
- In all Remoteness Areas, the proportion of people without a previous health check decreased, with Very remote areas experiencing the largest percentage-point and relative decreases, falling from 21% in 2016–17 to 10% in 2021–22.
- Non-remote areas had the largest percentage-point increases to the average time between health checks, with Major cities rising from an average of 20.9 months in 2016–17 to 23.3 months in 2021–22.
Figure 15: First Nations health check patients, by time between their 2 most recent health checks, by Remoteness Area, 2016–17 to 2021–22
A set of interactive graphs over 3 tabs. Refer to tables HC15 and HC16 in data tables. A long description is available below.
A set of interactive graphs over 3 tabs. The first is a stacked bar graph showing the proportion of health check patients by Remoteness Area, by time since previous health check, showing that while Very Remote Australia has relatively few patients with no previous health checks, a relatively small number had their previous health check less than 15 months before. The second is a line graph, showing average and median time since previous health check, by Remoteness area. Average time since previous health check trended up with increasing remoteness in 2021–22. The third is a line graph, showing the development in time since previous health check between 2016–17 and 2021–22, by Remoteness Area. Notably, the proportion of people who had no previous health check trended down between 2016–17 and 2021–22 across all Remoteness Areas. Refer to tables HC15 and HC16 in data tables.