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Regional Australians are presenting to the emergency department at a higher rate than those who live in the city, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. / (min cost $ 0 ) or signup to continue reading For every 1000 regional Australians who attended the emergency department, 159 were triaged as semi-urgent or non-urgent. For metropolitan Australians, that number is only 97.

Nicole O'Reilly, chairperson for the National Rural Health Alliance said was the likely cause. "Not being able to access primary health care services in rural and remote areas could mean people tend to end up being sicker before they seek help or it may be that the primary health care services aren't available," Ms O'Reilly said. She said metropolitan areas were also more likely to have urgent care services outside of emergency departments.



Australians in regional and remote areas were more likely than their metropolitan counterparts to attend the emergency department because their GP wasn't available when required. It was the second most common reason for regional and remote Australians to attend the emergency department - only following being taken to the hospital by an ambulance or having a serious condition. That's according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2023 Patient Experience Survey, which asked 25,934 Australians about their experiences with the healthcare system.

29.6% of Australians who live in remote areas reported their GP's availability as the reason they last att.

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