Blog 1: Australia-Health/Disease

Author Ben Hurley’s article in the January 18, 2013 issue of the Australian weekly business magazine BRW details how the vast country is dealing with a shortage of physicians and other health practitioners.  The solution: an online network of medical practitioners available to be booked directly by patients for health appointments.  The implementation of this in Australia has not been without problems, but is a positive step in addressing the country’s shortage of healthcare practitioners.

       In 2012, Australia’s federal health minister Tanya Piibersek directly addressed the shortage by creating a national internet directory of providers, their location, and business hours. This was helpful to those in need of care and streamlined patients’ searches, but they still had to deal with long waiting periods until appointments were available, book appointments only for normal office hours, and book through receptionists.

      The online healthcare appointments website 1stAvailable.com.au saw an opportunity to not only make an excellent financial move for the company but also to help solve the problems Australians were experiencing using the national internet directory. 1^stAvailable partnered with huge medical center corporation IPN to create a partnership of 3,000 healthcare professionals available across Australia to be booked directly for appointments by patients at appointment times of a patient’s choosing.

     This venture has been welcomed enthusiastically by patients for several reasons. First, patients will soon be able to directly access their health records, so if the appointment they make is with an unfamiliar healthcare professional, that doctor will have access to the records, too.  Next, patients also are able to select healthcare professionals with appointment times that work well with patients’ work hours and family duties. Also, patients in the most remote areas of Australia would be able to not only book appointments online but also be assessed online via an online appointment. Finally, patients with minor issues would be able to book the first available appointment from among a large network of healthcare providers instead of the first available from an individual one with limited openings and therefore longer waiting times.

     Healthcare professionals in Australia are a little less enthusiastic about the undertaking, but are not resistant. Dr. Steve Hambleton, president of the Australian Medical Association, believes Australian health professionals could and should be doing more with technology. His biggest concerns are loss of a long-term relationship with patients, possible compromised care when patients have complex medical issues and are seen by several health professionals, and higher risk when patients are assessed online. The new venture cannot be all that bad, however: the majority of 1^stAvailable’s owners are healthcare professionals.  Medical practitioners pay a monthly fee to 1^stAvailable in order to subscribe to the service.

     Hurley’s article shows Australia making a concrete effort to deal with the country’s shortage of healthcare providers. Patients who are seen sooner rather than later experience fewer of the risks of postponing care: increased pain, worsening of the condition, and deterioration of their health. This may also result in patients missing fewer days of work and returning sooner to their normal routines at work and home. It may not be the total solution to Australia’s healthcare provider shortage, but it could be an important part of the solution.

      

   

http://www.brw.com.au/p/sections/fyi/online_health_group_doubles_network_GvjuLhh1qm7N8k40cxJ2bN


Emily Crigger
Health/Disease
January 21, 2013   
9:35PM