Frustration mounts on e-health
THE national clinical lead advising on the e-health program has revealed frustration at not being able to access the system that he helped introduce.
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BEACH
The following articles have the tag BEACH
ML and uni join to create GP database
A MEDICARE Local and a university are partnering to create what will be one of the country’s biggest databases of general practice information.
Pneumococcal vaccinations in elderly lagging
FEWER elderly patients are being vaccinated against pneumococcal disease after changes in policy, new research suggests.
Renewed claims GPs are 'glorified' mental health care referrers
EXPERTS have defended GPs from a renewed claim that cuts to rebates for care plans under the Better Access program were the result of doctors becoming disengaged with mental health care.
Decade-long fall in after-hours care: report
AFTER-hours services have been on a steady decline during the past decade, according to the latest BEACH data, which comes amid uncertainty about the future of existing services as Medicare Locals are appointed administrators of after-hours care.
Surveillance increasing for early prostate cancer
ALMOST half of men diagnosed with low risk prostate cancer are being treated with surveillance only, new Australian figures show, amid continued controversy about PSA testing.
Concern about poor uptake of contraceptive implants and devices
A LACK of familiarity among GPs with inserting and removing intrauterine devices and implants - or medico-legal concerns - may be factors behind their low uptake in Australia, an analysis suggests.
Stilnox to stay on market despite deaths
CONTROVERSIAL insomnia drug zolpidem will not be taken off the market by the TGA, despite renewed reports of deaths and bizarre behaviours.
Young GPs do same hours as septuagenarians
GEN Y GPs work the same number of hours a week as the average septuagenarian, according to a new analysis of data from general practice research program Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health (BEACH).
Young GPs work same hours as septuagenarians
GEN Y GPs work the same number of hours a week as the average septuagenarian according to a new analysis of data from general practice research program Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health (BEACH).
BEACH to investigate GPs' unpaid work
General practice research program Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health (BEACH) is for the first time gathering information on how much time GPs spend on patient care outside Medicare-rebatable consultations.
Fall in antibiotic prescribing for URTIs
ANTIBIOTIC prescribing for acute upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) has dropped significantly in Australia over the past 13 years, new BEACH data shows.
Rebate cuts jeopardise GP role in child mental health
CHILDREN’S mental health visits to GPs have risen dramatically under the Better Access program and cutting the rebates would leave the profession’s role in child mental health care in doubt, new research suggests. An analysis of Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health (BEACH) data by the research project’s own authors also suggests GP involvement in child psychology has become less prescription-focused under Better Access as the family doctor plays a more active ongoing role in the mental health care of young Australians. The study, published in the latest Australian and New ...
Calls for mental health rebate cuts to be reversed
FEDERAL Parliament has been urged to seek savings in programs such as the GP super clinics and Medicare Locals in order to save rebates for GP mental health plans which were slashed significantly in the recent Budget. In a letter to all Federal MPs and senators, the AMA has today requested the rebate cuts be axed, arguing that the decision was made with no prior consultation with the profession and would undermine the Government’s own push to bolster mental health services. The letter came as Mental Health Minister Mark Butler today repeated his claims that GPs were ...
BEACH heads in new reporting direction
AUSTRALIA’S largest annual general practice study is set for a minor shake-up next month with the news BEACH is to part ways with long-term collaborator the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). The Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health (BEACH) study has been carried out by researchers at the University of Sydney’s Family Medicine Research Centre in collaboration with the AIHW since 1998. However, from this year its program will instead continue only with the support of its other participating organisations, including the Department of Health and Ageing. BEACH director Associate Professor Helena Britt ...
Nurse role in GP consults continues to rise
THE number of GP-patient consultations involving the use of a practice nurse has increased dramatically over the past year, a new report shows. The latest General Practice Activity in Australia 2009-2010 (BEACH) report, based on almost 100,000 consultations carried out by about 1000 GPs, revealed the number of encounters rose by nearly 50% from 6183 in 2008–09 to 9154 in 2009–10. When extrapolated to all GPs, these figures indicate practice nurses are involved in about 10.5 million GP-patient encounters, about 6.2 million more than in 2005–06. The number of encounters at which practice nurse item numbers ...
GPs fitting more chronic disease care into fewer hours
NEW data revealing the continuing rise in GP management of chronic disease has sparked fresh calls for better remuneration of complex care. The latest General Practice Activity in Australia 2008-09 (BEACH) report has shown that chronic conditions management constitutes over a third of GPs’ workload with more cases being diagnosed and treated, despite fewer hours being worked. The report published this week by the AIHW based on almost 100,000 consultations carried out by almost 1000 GPs, has also shown the number of GPs working more than 40 hours per week has plummeted from 43% in ...
Rise in shingles justifies elderly zoster vaccine
HERPES zoster (HZ) vaccination should be added to the current National Immunisation Program (NIP), experts say, to counter a significant rise in rates of shingles in older people. An analysis of BEACH data revealed that since the introduction of varicella vaccination in 1999, the number of HZ encounters in general practice had climbed steadily, from an average of 1.52 per 1000 visits in 1999/2000, to 2.35 per 1000 in 2008/09. This equated to an increase of 55%, with patients commonly presenting with HZ between 57 and 64 years of age, the authors said. An increase in HZ ...
More talk, less action as prescriptions fall
GPs are pulling out their prescription pads less and less, according to the latest report card from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). Australia’s Health 2010, released last week by the AIHW, showed GP prescribing rates have dropped from 94 medications prescribed per 100 encounters in 1998/99 to 86 per 100 consultations in 2008/09. Conversely, the use of counselling in management of problems increased, from 31 per 100 encounters in 1998/99 to 34 per 100 encounters in 2008/09. A spokesperson for the National Prescribing Service was positive about the figures. “Quality use of ...
Tribute paid to a pioneer of general practice
THE general practice community is mourning the loss of one its most prominent figures, after the passing last week of Emeritus Professor Charles Bridges-Webb at the age of 75. Professor Bridges-Webb, who was appointed foundation professor of community medicine/general practice at the University of Sydney in 1975, is widely regarded as one of the founders of general practice research. Associate Professor Helena Britt, director of the Family Medicine Research Centre at the University of Sydney, said his work from 1965 until his retirement in 1994 was vital to the establishment of Australia’s largest and most influential general ...
Questions raised on GP performance data
EXPERTS have questioned a performance indicator used by the Federal Government to judge the appropriateness of GP care. In its Report of Government Services 2010 , the Productivity Commission assessed “appropriateness of GP services” based on four indicators, one of which was the unnecessary use of antibiotics to manage URTIs. The commission chose to assess GP management of URTIs using PBS data on prescription rates of antibiotics used most commonly to treat them. It noted that a downward trend in this rate could indicate appropriate GP care. But PBS figures showed a significant increase ...
Questions raised on GP performance data
EXPERTS have questioned a performance indicator used by the Federal Government to judge the appropriateness of GP care. In its Report of Government Services 2010, the Productivity Commission assessed “appropriateness of GP services” based on four indicators, one of which was the unnecessary use of antibiotics to manage URTIs. The commission chose to assess GP management of URTIs using PBS data on prescription rates of antibiotics used most commonly to treat them. It noted that a downward trend in this rate could indicate appropriate GP care. But PBS figures showed a significant increase in this ...
Questions raised on GP performance data
EXPERTS have questioned a performance indicator used by the Federal Government to judge the appropriateness of GP care. In its Report of Government Services 2010, the Productivity Commission assessed “appropriateness of GP services” based on four indicators, one of which was the unnecessary use of antibiotics to manage URTIs. The commission chose to assess GP management of URTIs using PBS data on prescription rates of antibiotics used most commonly to treat them. It noted that a downward trend in this rate could indicate appropriate GP care. But PBS figures showed a significant increase in this ...
Call for after-hours funding to boost GP access
NEW workforce data showing a drop in GP after-hours services has sparked fresh calls for more investment in general practice to improve access to GP services. The latest BEACH report has revealed the percentage of doctors providing or involved in cooperative practice coverage of after-hours care decreased from 60% to 43% in the last 10 years. In the past year alone, coverage dropped by 2 per cent. The report, General practice activity in Australia 2008-09, which draws on data gathered from 100,000 patient-encounters, also shows that just 39% of the 6183 encounters involving practice nurses were recorded ...
50 and male? You're Dr Typical
IF you were painting a portrait of the typical Australian GP, the AMA’s new vice-president Dr Steve Hambleton (pictured) would pretty much fit the bill. At age 48, he’s just two years shy of the average age of 50, works in a group practice, and puts in about 41 hours of consulting per week. The latest available official GP statistics show that not too much has changed in the GP landscape since Medical Observer last looked comprehensively at this picture back in 2006, although work hours have continued to drop to an average of about ...
BEACH reveals rising tide of CKD in GP patients
MORE than one in 10 patients seen by GPs have varying degrees of chronic kidney disease (CKD), according to latest BEACH data. The latest national snapshot of CKD revealed it was associated with 10% of all deaths in 2006 and more than one million hospitalisations in 2006-07 alone. From 2000 to 2007 the rate of people receiving dialysis and kidney transplants rose by 26 per cent. The report, released last week by the AIHW, included new results from a 2008 BEACH sub-study. This revealed that from a snapshot of 2474 GP encounters with patients aged 24 ...
Call for government to control practice locations
FEDERAL regulation of general practice location and size could be the first step in solving Australia’s GP workforce problems, according to a leading primary care academic. In a controversial submission to the National Primary Health Care Strategy, Associate Professor Graeme Miller, medical director of Sydney University’s Family Medicine Research Centre – which runs the BEACH program – has called for the introduction of limits on the number of MBS-supported practices in one geographic location. While GPs at existing practices would not lose their MBS rebates, GPs working at new practices would only have access to the MBS ...
Multimorbidity a common problem
THREE in 10 patients attending general practice in Australia are being managed for multiple illnesses, the first study of its kind suggests. The data, collected by BEACH researchers, found a quarter of the overall population – more than five million people – were managed for at least two diagnosed chronic diseases. The results led to calls for multimorbidity to be considered when designing best practice guidelines. This would avoid the chance of adverse drug events through polypharmacy, the researchers said. The most common combinations were arthritis/chronic back pain and vascular disease (15%), followed by a psychological ...