One in 27 sent to hospital for preventable reasons

One in 15 hospitalisations Australia wide and one in 27 admissions in the Mid West, could have been prevented in 2017 if patients had sought health care earlier, a new report claims. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report showed 748,000 hospital admissions during 2017 were classed as potentially preventable. The risk of preventable hospitalisation was greatly increased among older people, Aboriginal patients and those living in remote areas. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare spokesman Richard Juckes said classifying a hospitalisation as preventable indicated early management may have prevented the condition worsening to the point of requiring the need to go to hospital. In the Mid West, one in 27 residents was admitted to hospital for a preventable reason — 74 per cent higher than the Perth average of one in 47. Mid West General Practitioners Network deputy chairman Dr Ian Taylor said this was because accessing primary care, typically a GP, was harder in regional areas. “Geraldton has a lack of doctors — practices around Geraldton are understaffed and under pressure,” he said. “What that means is it can be harder for people to see doctors when they need to.” The most common reasons for preventable hospitalisations in the Mid West were dental conditions such as tooth cavities; cellulitis; a common bacterial skin infection; and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Dr Taylor said he was surprised cellulitis was the second-most common reason. He said it was easy to treat in its early stage and the statistic should remind people to take management seriously. “The job of a GP is to provide primary care,” he said. “Primary care is all about looking after the health of a person, including prevention and early detection of disease.”