Health service attendance patterns in an urban Aboriginal health service

Karen M Flegg · Christine B. Phillips · Peter G Sharp · Meetali Kanagasundaram · Raymond W Lovett · Marjan Kljakovic

12 citations0/0 files storedThe Medical Journal of Australia

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Indigenous Health, Education, and Rights Primary Care and Health Outcomes Indigenous Health and Education

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: To describe the health service attendance patterns of urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Aboriginal) Australians and make comparisons with those of the general Australian population. DESIGN AND SETTING: General practitioner-completed survey of all attendances over two separate 2-week periods in 2006 at an urban Aboriginal health service in Canberra, which provides services for about 3500 patients per annum. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Standardised attendance ratios (SARs) for a range of health problems, using patients attending Australian general practice for the same reasons as the reference population. RESULTS: Patients attending the Aboriginal health service were significantly younger than the Australian general practice patient reference population. The most common conditions managed were psychological, encompassing substance misuse; psychological problems accounted for 24% of all attendances. Patients attending the Aboriginal health service had higher rates of attendance for psychological conditions (SAR, 2.14; 95% CI, 2.01-2.28), endocrine conditions (SAR, 2.44; 95% CI, 2.29-2.60) and neurological conditions (SAR, 2.90; 95% CI, 2.71-3.09), as well as for circulatory, digestive and male and female genital conditions, than the reference population. Patients attending the Aboriginal health service had significantly lower attendance rates than the Australian population for respiratory illnesses, and conditions related to eyes or ears. CONCLUSIONS: At this urban Aboriginal health service, attendance patterns reflected complex health care needs that are different from those expected of a population of this age. Urban Aboriginal health service attendance appears to reflect significant ill health among the patients, aligning more with Aboriginal health statistics nationally rather than health statistics for urban non-Aboriginal Australians.

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1999The health and welfare of Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples 1999 2002Researching Aboriginal health: experience from a study of urban young people's health and well-being 2007The development and validation of the Indigenous Risk Impact Screen (IRIS): a 13‐item screening instrument for alcohol and drug and mental health risk 2006Characteristics and outcome of type 2 diabetes in urban Aboriginal people: the Fremantle Diabetes Study 2006Consultations in general practice and at an Aboriginal community controlled health service: do they differ?

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