Optimising access to best practice primary health care: A systematic review
Key Objectives
To use the results from a systematic review of the published literature on potential interventions to enhance access to ‘best practice’ primary health care suitable for implementation in the Australian primary health care system
Ensuring that Australians have access to best practice primary health care (PHC) is an integral component of Australian health care policy. Growing awareness of the importance of a high quality PHC and equitable and cost-effective health care is creating interest in better ways to understand and address access to PHC.
A systematic review of the published literature examined three areas of PHC: chronic disease management, prevention and episodic care, with a focus on diabetes prevention, management, screening cervical cancer (Pap test), and episodic care (timely appointments, out-of-hours care and continuity).
Factors associated with access to best practice PHC can be grouped into patient, organisational, financial, workforce, and geographical factors. Effective interventions had the following elements: inclusion of multiple strategies, e.g. patient information, practitioner behaviour, and practice systems; building strategies into usual practice, e.g. practice systems to recall patients and outreach; financial incentives, e.g. to encourage multidisciplinary teams; maintaining ongoing education and awareness. There was fairly strong match between factors identified as influencing access to best practice PHC and effective strategies. The results of this review indicate a number of areas in which there would be scope for improving access to best practice primary health care.
A report has been submitted to APHCRI.
Funding source
Australian Primary Health Care Research Institute, Stream 13 funding round.
CHERE staff
Marion Haas, Jane Hall
Collaborators
Elizabeth Comino, Mark Harris, Gawaine Powell-Davies, Bettina Christl, Yordanka Krastev1, John Furler2, Antony Raymont3.
1. Centre for Primary Health Care and Equity, UNSW
2. University of Melbourne
3. Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand
