Australia’s health system needs re-balancing: a report on the shortage of primary care services in rural and remote areas

Australia’s health system needs re-balancing: a report on the shortage of primary care services in rural and remote areas Report

  • Author(s): National Rural Health Alliance
  • Published: 2011

Abstract: This document has been prepared by the NRHA (the Alliance) to complement the AIHW report, Australian health expenditure by remoteness, which was commissioned by the Alliance and published by the AIHW in January 2011. The AIHW report relates to the 56 per cent of Australia‘s recurrent expenditure on health services (ie not including capital costs) that is currently capable of being allocated to the remoteness area of the patient. Results in the AIHW report have been age standardised so as to account for the differences in the age and sex profiles of people in the five geographic areas. Analysis of that 56 per cent shows that in 2006-07 the residents of rural, regional and remote areas experienced major deficits in per capita expenditure through Medicare, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) and admitted patient services in private hospitals. In this Alliance report we summarise the AIHW‘s findings, re-interpret some of its conclusions (particularly those relating to access to PBS and to aged care services), and make estimates of the geographical distribution of the 44 per cent of recurrent costs not included in the AIHW report. The conclusions the Alliance reaches are therefore based on both its own work and that published in the AIHW report. It is to be hoped that in the near future Australia‘s data collections and systems of analysis will permit the AIHW to publish comprehensive evidence on the total situation regarding the geographical distribution of health and aged care expenditures within Australia. Based on these findings, the NRHA concludes: 1. that Governments and their agencies should move to augment data collections on health services and costs to enable the complete picture of health and aged care provision in regional and remote Australia to be assessed; 2. that there is a very strong case for Federal and State governments to boost both proportionate and total expenditure on primary care, diagnostics, specialist care and access to PBS for residents of regional and remote areas5; 3. that such an increased focus on rural and remote heath would provide strong support for governments‘ progress towards national health goals.6 (The Government‘s COAG goals are very unlikely to be met without improvements in rural and remote areas, with the current status in those areas pulling down national figures. The stronger focus would require both better access in country areas to primary care as well as development of healthy economic, educational and physical environments.); 4. that the public hospital ‗overspend‘ on people from regional and remote areas be further investigated7; 5. that it is important to properly assess the magnitude of aged care under-servicing, especially taking into account the needs of Aboriginal peoples and the consequent need for regional and remote hospitals to fill the gap8; 6. that there should be further investigation of the means by which people from regional and remote areas can be given better access to same-day acute care services9; 7. that a better understanding of the geographic distribution of private hospitals be developed and how they can be made more accessible to residents of regional and remote areas; 8. that a more equitable distribution of all health professionals should be a key health policy objective of all governments; 9. that there should be a better understanding of the contribution of the health sector to the economic activity and sustainability of regional and remote communities; and 10. that, reflecting the importance of the broad determinants of health, a comprehensive analysis by region of government expenditures related to health would include expenditure on vital areas such as secondary and tertiary education, housing, employment support and infrastructure.

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Suggested Citation
National Rural Health Alliance, 2011, Australia’s health system needs re-balancing: a report on the shortage of primary care services in rural and remote areas, Report, viewed 09 February 2025, https://www.nintione.com.au/?p=3176.

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