HBS107 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Information System, Health Policy, Copayment
HBS107 Week Three
Understanding Australia's Health Care System
Low back/neck pain is the highest contributor to YLL.
Systems is defined as a set of different things (actors or elements) working together (interaction) as
part of a mechanism or interconnected network or whole.
WHO 2000 defines health care system as "all the activities whose primary purpose is to promote,
restore or maintain health".
This includes: formal health services, traditional healers, all medications) prescribed or not), health-
focused activity in other areas (education, environment, transport).
But boundaries are never simple to define, fitness and food industries, improving communities and
workplaces.
LEVELS OF CARE:
May help to describe a health system using levels of care:
• Primary health care
o Community-based, entry level
o E.g. GP's
• Secondary health care
o More serious, usually referred, requires more specialist skills/tools
o E.g. hospital
• Tertiary health care
o Specialist services, highly advanced facilities, fewer in number
o E.g. specialist services in hospitals
HEALTH SYSTEM BLOCKS A:
6 Building Blocks of any health care system:
• Service delivery:
Primary and secondary/tertiary health care:
o GP
o Community Nurse
o Community psych/paed etc.
o Pharmacy
o Maternal & Child Health
o Aged care (community and residential)
• Access to essential medicines
o Service delivery/access to essential medicines
o "Pharmaceutical products - more commonly known as medicines or drugs 0 are a
fundamental component of both modern and traditional medicine. It is essential that
such products are safe, effective, and of good quality, and are prescribed and used
rationally."
o Quality, safety, effectiveness
o Efficiency, cost-effectiveness, (Equity of) access
o Want to ensure universal access to pharmaceutical drugs in a cost-effective way.
• Health workforce
o $155bn employs 1 in 11 Australians.
o >1.3m work in "Health & Social Assistance" (abs.gov.au) - largest industry in Aus
o 462k work in hospitals
o 505k in medical/other health services, including: 305k nurses/midwives in practice, 88k
doctors, plus allied health, assistants, admin/management, cleaners.
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