Cost Barriers to Specialist, GP, Imaging or Pathology

Identifying Attributes

Care Settings
Primary Care
Country
Australia
Publishing Organisation
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW): Healthy community indicators
Type of Quality Indicator
Outcome
IOM Quality Dimension
Equity
Domain
Consumer Experience

Defining Attributes

Definition

Percentage of people who delayed or did not see a medical specialist, GP, get an imaging test and/or get a pathology test at least once due to cost in the last 12 months.

Numerator

Sum of calibrated sample weights for people aged 15 years or over who reported delaying or not accessing either a medical specialist, GP, imaging and/or pathology test when needed due to cost and who were enumerated within the particular PHN area.

Denominator

All people aged 15 years or older who reported that they needed to see/have a medical specialist, GP, imaging and/or pathology test within the PHN area.

Exclusions

Excludes pathology and imaging tests conducted in hospital, and any dental imaging tests.

Use of Risk Adjustment
No
Risk Adjustments

None

Stratifications

By Primary Health Network (PHN).

Collection and Reporting Attributes

Type of Data Collection
Surveys
Data Collection Methods

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Patient Experiences in Australia Survey, 2016–17.

Frequency of Data Collection
Frequency of Data Collection in Days
Reporting Methods
Reporting Frequency
Reporting Frequency in Days
Indicator Has Recommended Targets
No

Source and Reference Attributes

Link to Measurement Tools
Quality Indicator Confirmed to be Part of a Program Used to Monitor Quality and Safety of Care Among Older People at a Population-Level between 2012-2022
Yes
Assessed by the Australian Consortium for Aged Care Collaborators as Generally Containing Good Properties (Importance and Scientific Acceptability)
No
Australian Consortium for Aged Care Endorsed
No
Identified by PHARMA-Care Project
No
Upload Date
02 December 2025