General practice activity in Australia 2006-07

This publication is the 21st in the General Practice Series produced by the Australian General Practice Statistics and Classification Centre, a Collaborating Unit of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and the University of Sydney. It reports the results of the ninth year of the BEACH program, April 2006 to March 2007. Data reported by 930 general practitioners on 93,000 GP-patient encounters are used to describe aspects of general practice in Australia: the general practitioners and their patients; the problems managed and the treatments provided. Changes that have occurred over the last nine years of the BEACH study, from 1998-99 to 2006-07 are investigated. In addition, changes in the management of type 2 diabetes and depression from 1998-99 to 2006-07 are considered in light of changes in policy The contribution of practice nurses to the GP-patient encounters in terms of their clinical activities, the problems they assist with and the Medicare items claimed are described in this report. Information on body weight to height ratio, smoking status and alcohol use for a subsample of patients is provided. Abstracts and research tools used in other BEACH substudies from 2006-07 are also included.