Summary
Introduction
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (First Nations) people have access to an annual health check specifically tailored to their needs, funded through Medicare. This health check aims to identify and treat common health conditions that disproportionately affect First Nations people, such as diabetes and heart disease, promoting early detection and intervention.
During the health check, a General Practitioner (GP) or a multidisciplinary team led by a GP will assess the individual's physical, psychological, and social wellbeing, providing necessary health-related information, advice and care. If required, the GP may also refer the person to other healthcare professionals, such as physiotherapists, podiatrists, or dietitians, for free follow-up care under a list of First Nations Medicare items.
This report, updated annually, presents the latest data and trends in the use of First Nations health checks and follow-up services, disaggregated by age, sex and geography. For the first time, it also presents exploratory analyses of patterns of health check and follow-up use across areas with different socioeconomic circumstances.
Note that many patient counts are presented as proportions of the First Nations population, based on the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ (ABS) 2016 Census-based Estimates and Projections, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, Reference period 2006 – 2031 (ABS 2019b). When the corresponding 2021 Census-based population series is available for future updates, proportions presented here may change considerably.
A summary of the key findings is listed below.
Health check uptake dropped for the third year in a row
24% of First Nations people (209,000 people) had a health check in 2021–22, compared with 27% in 2020–21 (237,000 people) and the peak uptake of 29% in 2018–19 (241,000 people). See National use of health checks.
Older age groups had the highest health check uptake
In 2021–22, First Nations people aged 65 and over had the highest uptake of health checks, at 36% of the population. The age group with the lowest uptake of health checks was 15–24-year-olds, at 19%. See National use of health checks.
More females than males had health checks
In 2021–22, First Nations females had higher uptake of health checks than males, overall (25% and 22%, respectively), and had substantially higher uptake than males among people aged 25–34. See National use of health checks.
Health check uptake differed vastly between areas
In 2021–22, the area with the highest uptake of health checks was Townsville (SA4), at 46% of the First Nations population. At the low end, less than 5% of the First Nations population had a health check in some areas, such as Sydney – Northern Beaches (SA4) and Melbourne – Outer East (SA4). See comparisons of health check use by states and territories, PHN regions, Remoteness Areas, GCCSAs, Indigenous Regions and SA4s.
Health check uptake fell further in more disadvantaged areas
The uptake of annual health checks fell from 35% to 23% between 2017–18 and 2021–22 in the most socioeconomically disadvantaged group of areas (SA3s). In comparison, the health check uptake in the most advantaged group of areas only fell from 15.7% to 14.5%. See Comparison of areas grouped by socioeconomic similarity.
Over half of the First Nations population had a health check in 5 years
Over the 5-year period from 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2022, about 560,000 First Nations people received at least one health check. This is equivalent to over half (63%) of the projected First Nations population at 30 June 2022. See Cumulative health checks.
People in more remote areas wait the longest between health checks
In 2021–22, the average First Nations health check patient living in Very remote areas had their previous health check 28 months earlier, compared with 23 months earlier among patients living in Major cities. See Time between health checks.
Follow-up services fell for the second year in a row
Fewer First Nations people received First Nations follow-up services in 2021–22 than in 2020–21 (143,000 people in 2021–22 compared with 155,000 people in 2020–21). See Numbers of follow-ups delivered.
Most follow-up services were delivered by an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioner or Practice Nurse
In 2021–22, the vast majority of First Nations follow-up services were delivered by an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioner or Practice Nurse on behalf of a GP (256,000 out of the total 314,000 services, or 82%), as opposed to an allied health professional, with referral from a GP (58,000 services). See Types of follow-up.
More older people and females received follow-up care after a health check
Among the patients who received a First Nations health check in 2020–21, 46% received a First Nations follow-up service in the 12 months following their health check (109,000 out of 237,000 patients). Patients aged 65–74 had the highest follow-up percentage, at 56%, and females had a higher follow-up percentage than males in every adult age group. See National use of follow-ups.
The proportion of health check patients who received a follow-up service plateaued
From 2018–19 to 2020–21, the proportion of First Nations health check patients who had a follow-up service in the 12 months following their health check remained between 47% and 46%. In earlier years, the follow-up percentage increased annually. See National use of follow-ups.
Data in this release
This report update includes the latest data and time-series outlined below in Table 1.
Changes in this edition:
- New exploratory analyses are presented for clusters of areas, grouped by socioeconomic similarity.
- Health check data for Primary Health Networks (PHNs) are newly disaggregated by age group.
- New Statistical Area Level 4 (SA4) data replaces Statistical Area Level 3 (SA3) data.
- New time-series data are added to all analyses.
- Patient counts are no longer disaggregated by telehealth status. A short analysis covers monthly health check services delivered via telehealth from 2020–2022.
- Temporary MBS items relating to services delivered in Residential Aged Care are removed from the analyses.
Chapter | Results |
|---|---|
Health checks | National uptake by age and sex, 2011–12 to 2021–22(1) State/territory and Primary Health Network (PHN) uptake by age, 2016–17 to 2021–22(1) Remoteness Area, Indigenous Region (IREG), Greater Capital City Statistical Area (GCCSA) and Statistical Area Level 4 (SA4) uptake, 2016–17 to 2021–22(1) Uptake by socioeconomic clusters, 2016–17 to 2021–22(1) Cumulative health checks, July 2012 to June 2022(1) Time between health checks by sex, by age, by state/territory, by Remoteness Area, 2016–17 to 2021–22 Telehealth services per month, January 2020 to December 2022 |
Follow-up services overview | Follow-up use by age and sex, 2011–12 to 2021–22 Follow-up use by practitioner type, 2016–17 to 2021–22 |
Health checks resulting in a follow-up | Follow-up percentages by age and sex, 2011–12 to 2020–21(2) State/territory, PHN, Remoteness Area, IREG, GCCSA and SA4 follow-up percentages, 2016–17 to 2020–21(2) Follow-up percentages by socioeconomic clusters, 2016–17 to 2020–21(2) Cumulative follow-ups, 2016–17 to 2020–21 |
Notes:
- Health check uptake shows patient numbers as a proportion of the First Nations population, based on the ABS’ Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population estimates and projections for the 2006–2031 reference period (2016-based).
- Follow-up percentages show the proportion of health check patients each year, who received a First Nations follow-up service within 12 months of their health check.
References
ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) (2019b) Estimates and projections, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, 2006 – 2031, ABS website, Australian Government, accessed 10 August 2023.