Australian health review : a publication of the Australian Hospital Association
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To create and report survey-based indicators of the affordability of prescription medicines for patients in Australia. ⋯ A substantial minority of participants who had obtained prescription medicines in the 3 months prior to survey experienced a level of financial burden from the cost of these medicines that was reported as being moderate to extreme.
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To identify end-of-life (EOL) decision making processes for patients with non-cancer illnesses in a major metropolitan hospital. ⋯ This study has shown that the development and effective implementation of EOL plans is associated with the active involvement of both family members and health professionals. It also draws attention to the risks of delaying EOL discussions until late in the illness trajectory or later in life as well as pointing to challenges in acting on EOL developed outside the hospital environment.
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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples experience inferior outcomes following diagnosis of lung cancer. ⋯ It is imperative that the disproportionate burden of lung cancer in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is addressed immediately. Whilst strategic interventions in lung cancer prevention and care are needed, service providers and policy makers must acknowledge the entrenched inequality that exists and consider the broad range of factors at the patient, provider and system level. Primary care strategies and health promotion activities to reduce risk factors, such as smoking, must also be implemented, with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples' engagement and control at the core of any strategy. This review has indicated that multifaceted interventions, supported by enabling policies that target individuals, communities and health professionals, are necessary to improve lung cancer outcomes and disparities.
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The provision of health services in Australia currently is primarily financed by a unique interaction of public and private insurers. This commentary looks at a loophole in this framework, namely that private insurers have to date been able to avoid funding healthcare for some of their policy holders, as it is not a requirement to use private insurance when treatment occurs in Australian public hospitals.
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Health policy making is complex, but can be informed by evidence of what works, including systematic reviews. We aimed to inform the work of the Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care (EPOC) Group by identifying systematic review topics relevant to Australian health policy makers and exploring whether existing Cochrane reviews address these topics. ⋯ This survey has identified questions for which Australian policy makers have indicated a need for systematic reviews. Further, it has confirmed that existing reviews do address issues of importance to policy makers, with the potential to inform policy processes.