This study presents estimates of the cost of providing primary health care to remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory for a number of common conditions. These conditions are the metabolic syndrome related diseases (hypertension, diabetes, ischaemic heart disease and renal disease), chronic lung disease, well children under five years of age, and antenatal care. The aim of the project was to inform the development of proposed Medicare items that will improve access for Aboriginal populations in remote areas to mainstream primary health care funding.

This study provides a comprehensive comparison of the Medicare and PBS utilisation levels in the Northern Territory compared to the other States/Territories for the eleven years from 1993/94 to 2003/04. The Medicare and PBS services, payments and expenditure data were obtained mainly from the Health Insurance Commission and Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing either via accessing on-line datacubes or by special requests. The estimated resident populations are from Australian Bureau of Statistics reports. Direct and indirect age standardisation methods were applied as part of the statistical analyses.

This fact sheet provides updated information on Medicare and PBS usage in the NT as well as recent estimates of the cost of delivering primary care in remote NT communities. It makes the point that Medicare presently subsidises services that are delivered by general practitioners, which are absent in remote communities, where primary care services are delivered by remote area nurses and Aboriginal health workers whose services aren't eligible for Medicare benefits.

This study of mobility among Northern Territory nurses and midwives (including employment of overseas-qualified nurses in the Northern Territory of Australia) has been undertaken in three parts. A team from the School for Social and Policy Research at Charles Darwin University has been responsible for interviewing nurses and midwives and using that to prepare a questionnaire that explores motivations for coming to the NT, staying, or leaving the NT workforce. The Health Gains Planning branch of the Department of Health and Families has been responsible for analysing statistical data on turnover rates and determining the economic costs of nurse and midwife turnover. The report itself is provided by Charles Darwin University for consideration by the Department of Health and Families who will respond to recommendations based on this and other complementary information.

This report is the second burden of disease (BOD) study for the Northern Territory (NT), and applies the methodology used in the most recent Australian BOD study. The report provides a comprehensive assessment for 177 conditions over the period from 1999 to 2003. It includes information on the health care needs of Territorians by major disease and injury category and by demographic characteristics (age, sex and Aboriginality), comparisons with the national average using age standardised disability adjusted life years (DALY) rates, and the contribution of 17 risk factors for the common conditions. The risk factors include low socio-economic status, obesity, physical inactivity, tobacco and alcohol. This document is based on The burden of disease and injury in Australia 2003 by S Begg, T Vos, B Barker, C Stevenson, L Stanley and AD Lopez, Canberra, Aust. Institute of Health and Welfare, 2007, which can be found at http://www.aihw.gov.au/publications/index.cfm/title/10317.

This report investigated whether there has been a change in the NT’s relative circumstances since the end of the previous study published in 2005 by extending the analysis of trends in MBS and PBS utilisation to include the period between 2004-05 and 2008-09.

The Northern Territory Medical Workforce Model (the medical model) projects the requirement for, and supply of, medical practitioners from 2006 to 2022. The medical model was produced as part of the Health Workforce Modelling Project established by the Strategic Workforce Committee of the Department of Health and Families (DHF) to inform workforce planning by projecting future numbers of health professionals in the Northern Territory (NT).

The Northern Territory (NT) medical workforce model and the NT nursing workforce model project the requirement for, and supply of, medical practitioners and registered nurses and midwives (nurses) from 2006 to 2022. The models were produced as part of the Health Workforce Modelling Project established by the Strategic Workforce Committee of the Department of Health and Families (DHF) to inform workforce planning by projecting future numbers of health professionals in the NT. Three reports have been produced under the project. This report presents projections from the medical and nursing models and discusses key issues identified by the modelling. The two other reports provide a technical description and more detail on the outputs from the models. This report is structured as follows: first, the approach for modelling the NT health workforce is discussed. Second, the data parameters of the model are outlined and issues with current data sources noted. Third, baseline projections of demand and supply are presented for the medical and nursing workforces and key influences on the projections discussed. Pressure points with regard to specialty, subgroups within the population and regional areas are then investigated and the level of the current NT health workforce compared with the national average. Finally, the implications of the modelling are discussed and summarised.

This fact sheet updates previously reported rates and trends in injury-related mortality and hospital admission in the NT.

Medicare is the Australian Government’s universal health insurance scheme and reimburses the cost of primary care services principally provided by General Practitioners (GP). The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) is a parallel publicly funded plan, which subsidises a wide range of prescribed medicines. In 2012, a total payment of $131 million ($100 million in Medicare and $31 million in PBS) was made on behalf of the Northern Territory (NT) residents.

This study provides an estimate of NT RRT service provision from 2001 to 2012 and projects future service demand from 2013 to 2022.

This report examines hospitalisations, emergency department (ED) presentations and deaths related to injury for the periods 2001-2011, 2003-2011 and 1997-2006 respectively. It is the third injury study prepared by the Department of Health for the Northern Territory (NT) population.

This report is the fatal part of the third burden of disease (BOD) study for the Northern Territory (NT), and applies the methodology used in the most recent Australian BOD study. The report provides a comprehensive assessment of years of life loss (YLL) due to disease and injury over the period from 2004 to 2013. It includes information on the health care needs of Territorians by major disease and injury category and by demographic characteristics (age, sex and Aboriginality), comparisons with the national average using age standardised YLL rates. This document can be found at http://www.aihw.gov.au/publication-detail/?id=60129550176

The objective of this project was to ascertain and validate the costs of dialysis in the Top End in the 2011/2 and 2012/3 financial years at a service level. The report was completed in 2014. The study found: • The average cost per same-day HD was estimated at $563 in 2011/12 and $559 in 2012/13 for the Nightcliff Renal Unit. • These estimates were just below the Australian national activity based costing estimates ($577 in 2010/11 and $563 in 2011/12). • Average episode costs for the combined 2011/12 and 2012/13 were also estimated for home HD ($410), peritoneal dialysis ($168), and HD performed at Palmerston ($545) and Tiwi Islands ($741) satellite clinics.

The report provides an overview and trends on alcohol-attributable hospital admissions and alcohol-related emergency department presentations. The report also provides information on trends in alcohol-related emergency department presentations for five NT public hospitals.

This report is the Burden of disease (BOD) and injury study for the Northern Territory (NT). The report provides a comprehensive assessment of years of life loss (YLL), and years lived with disability (YLD) due to disease and injury over the period from 2004 to 2013. It includes information on the health care needs of Territorians by major disease and injury category and by demographic characteristics (age, sex and Aboriginality), comparisons with the national average using age standardised YLL rates.

Domestic Violence is behaviour that is adopted by a person to control their victim. It is a behaviour that results in physical, sexual and/or psychological damage, forced social isolation or economic deprivation, or that leaves a person living in fear. These behaviours are perpetrated by someone who is well known to the survivor. Domestic violence affects many men, women and children in Territory families. Nearly a quarter of the respondents in a recent survey knew families in which there was abuse. The seriousness of this problem is seen every day in community health centres and hospitals.

Cigarette smoking is a major risk factor for the development of many diseases and conditions. The Northern Territory has the highest smoking rates of any state or territory in Australia. This study aims to quantify the effect of smoking on mortality and hospital morbidity among residents of the Northern Territory for the period 1986-1995.

As part of the teaching and training package that I undertook for the NT Health Department at the request of Carol Beaver, I agreed that I would write a report on that teaching. The intention was not to attempt to repeat the content of the teaching but rather to try to indicate from my perspective what I saw as the lessons learned from the experience. Clearly, and this needs to be recognised, I come to this task with the biases of the teacher and the 'students' ought also to be consulted as to how they viewed the exercises on which I report here. Indeed it may well be that to circulate this note to those involved would be a useful way to determine whether there is agreement between my perspective and theirs. The circulation of my note in this way might at least help to elicit responses from the participants.

Allocating resources to address the various and competing needs of a population, requires comprehensive sets of information. The complexity of these needs has led to the development of data systems, with significant funds spent each year on data collection, manipulation, analysis and the dissemination of information. It is clearly desirable that the information from these systems provides policy makers, purchasers and providers with the evidence necessary to develop and implement targeted strategies, in a way that will contribute to health and well being gain and at the same time equity and efficiency objectives.