What do we know about patient experiences in Australia

Use of health services  Seen a general practitioner (GP) or specialist in last 12 months (86%); people with one or more selected chronic conditions (93%), people with none (79%); disability or restrictive long-term health condition (94%), no disability (83%); with a non-school qualification (90%), no non-school qualification (82%)  Needed to see a GP in last 12 months but had not gone to one on at least one occasion (13%); most common reasons for not going too busy (33%), decided to not seek care (28%)  Living in remote area usually saw GP part of an Aboriginal Medical Service (68%), in non-remote areas (29%)  Seen a dentist or dental professional in last 12 months (44%); children (57%), adults (36%); with a non-school qualification (41%), none (34%)  Admitted to hospital in last 12 months (17%); one or more selected chronic conditions (24%), none (11%); disability or restrictive long-term health condition (27%), no disability (13%)

Source: https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-peoples/national-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-health-survey/latest-release Accessed 13th August 2021

Patient Experience Survey, is a topic on the Multipurpose Household Survey (MPHS) conducted throughout Australia from July 2019 to June 2020. Survey collected information from people about their experiences with selected aspects of the health system in the 12 months before their interview, including access and barriers to a range of health care services. Respondents were asked about their experiences with medical professionals, the frequency of their visits, waiting times, and barriers to accessing care, as well as their self-assessed health status, long term health conditions and private insurance. Data was also collected on aspects of communication between patients and health professionals. Response rate for the 2019-20 survey was 76.4%.

Potential impacts of COVID-19 The 2019-20 Patient Experience Survey did not explicitly ask about the impacts of COVID-19. However, it is possible that COVID-19 may have contributed to an increase in the proportion of people who delayed or did not use health services when needed compared to 2018-19: dental professionals (30.4% vs 28.2%); GPs (25.7% vs 22.8%); medical specialists (19.9% vs 17.4%)

Health service use in 2019-20

 saw a GP (83.2%)  had a pathology test (58.1%)  saw a dental professional (49.5%)  had an imaging test (38.3%)  saw a medical specialist (36.0%)  visited a hospital (ED) (14.4%)  were admitted to hospital (12.5%)  saw a GP for urgent medical care (8.3%)  saw an after hours GP (7.1%) Females were more likely than males to:

 see a GP (87.7% vs 78.6%)  have a pathology test (64.9% vs 51.2%)  see a dental professional (52.9% vs 46.0%)  have an imaging test (44.0% vs 32.5%)  see a medical specialist (39.0% vs 33.0%)  visit a hospital ED (15.3% vs 13.4%)  be admitted to hospital (14.1% vs 10.7%)  see a GP for urgent medical care (9.2% vs 7.3%)  see an after hours GP (8.2% vs 6.0%) Living in outer regional, remote or very remote areas more positive experiences with hospital ED doctors and specialists than major cities: always listened to carefully (75.0% vs 68.0%), always shown respect (79.4% vs 73.2%), always had enough time spent with them (73.5% vs 65.6%)

People aged 85 years and over were more likely than those aged 15-24 years to:

 see a GP (98.3% vs 70.9%)  have a pathology test (80.1% vs 33.9%)  see a medical specialist (58.9% vs 20.3%)  have an imaging test (51.9% vs 26.0%)  be admitted to hospital (27.5% vs 6.8%)  visit a hospital ED (24.3% vs 14.6%)  see a GP for urgent medical care (10.6% vs 7.1%) People with a long-term health condition were more likely than those without a long-term health condition to:

 see a GP (94.5% vs 71.5%)  have a pathology test (75.3% vs 40.3%)  see a medical specialist (53.0% vs 18.4%)  see a dental professional (52.4% vs 46.5%)  have an imaging test (51.5% vs 24.6%)  visit a hospital ED (19.5% vs 9.1%)  be admitted to hospital (18.4% vs 6.3%)  see a GP for urgent medical care (12.2% vs 4.3%)  see an after hours GP (9.0% vs 5.1%)

Waiting times  Waiting longer than they felt acceptable for a medical specialist appointment (22.7%), waiting for a GP appointment (18.7%)  People living in areas of most socio-economic disadvantage waiting longer than they felt acceptable for an appointment than those living in areas of least disadvantage; medical specialist appointment (26.3% vs 20.6%), GP appointment (22.2% vs 15.2%)

Barriers to health service use Cost reason for delaying or not using a health service when needed: dental professionals (18.7%), medical specialists (8.0%), GPs (3.7%)

People with a long-term health condition were more likely to delay or not use the following health services when needed due to cost than those without a long-term health condition: dental professionals (22.0%), medical specialists (8.9%), GPs (4.4%)

People with a long-term health condition were also more likely to delay getting or go without prescription medication when needed due to cost than those without a long-term health condition (8.0% vs 3.8%)

Coordination of care  Three or more health professionals for the same condition (16.6%), Of these people; at least one health professional helped coordinate their care (71.9%), issues caused by a lack of communication between health professionals (14.3%)  GPs were most likely to help coordinate their care (57.4%)  Long-term health condition were more likely than those without a long-term health condition to; see three or more health professionals (26.8% vs 6.1%), receive coordination of care (74.3% vs 60.8%), report issues caused by a lack of communication between health professionals (15.0% vs 10.3%)

Health professionals who always listened carefully:

 dental professionals (86.0%)  medical specialists (80.6%)  hospital nurses (78.6%)  hospital doctors and specialists (76.0%)  GPs (75.5%)  hospital ED nurses (75.0%)  hospital ED doctors and specialists (69.4%) Health professionals who always showed respect:

 dental professionals (89.2%)  medical specialists (83.8%)  GPs (82.0%)  hospital nurses (80.9%)  hospital doctors and specialists (79.6%)  hospital ED nurses (77.5%)  hospital ED doctors and specialists (74.2%) Health professionals who always spent enough time with people:

 dental professionals (89.0%)  medical specialists (80.4%)  hospital nurses (76.3%)  GPs (76.2%)  hospital doctors and specialists (74.5%)  hospital ED nurses (71.7%)  hospital ED doctors and specialists (67.1%)

Other health professionals Saw at least one type of other health professional (excluding GPs, dental professionals or medical specialists) (63.9%) Other health professionals; Radiographers or Sonographers (38.3%), Chemists or Pharmacists for advice only (19.7%), Physiotherapists or Hydro therapists (17.7%). Of those who saw at least one type of other health professional; had a long-term health condition (79.5%), without a long-term health condition (47.7%)

Source: https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/health-services/patient-experiences-australia-summary-findings/2019-20 Accessed 13th August 2021