The Australian Health Policy Collaboration is urging the Federal Government to commit to regularly repeating the Australian Health Survey (conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics during 2011–2013), warning the Australia lags behind most other advanced countries in the health information it regularly collects and uses in health policy and planning.
Ben Harris, Manager, National Policy and Strategy at the Australian Health Policy Collaboration at Victoria University, outlines the findings and priorities of a new report that makes the case for the Survey in the post below. He writes:
The data from Australian Health Surveys would help us understand why we are getting fatter as a nation, why chronic diseases are becoming more prevalent, and more importantly, what we need to do about it. We will be able to better focus our preventive health efforts, become more effective, and be able to build the case for more investment into the wars that are robbing us of life, health and happiness.
The Australian Health and Hospitals Association, a member of the Collaboration, says regular and predictable repeats of comparable surveys increase the value of the data collected over time. AHHA Acting Chief Executive Dr Linc Thurecht said this week in a statement:
‘It also builds the skills of the survey’s administrators, data analysts and policy analysts over time, which could lead to administrative savings by not having to re-skill a workforce on an ad hoc basis.
‘The survey will provide a strong evidence-base for decision making and a valuable source of data for health and medical researchers.
Ben Harris writes
Napoleon famously stated that “war is 90 per cent information.”
Australia has declared war on obesity, and we need to battle chronic disease, poor diet and low levels of physical activity across the community. However, we do not have the information we need to fight effectively.
In today’s society, the value of data is well recognised. Data drives business, community, dating, transport and the economy. However, in health care, we don’t have the right data to tackle the problems we need to improve our standards of health.
Australia has a number of health related surveys but remains behind most other advanced countries in the health information it regularly collects and uses in health policy and planning.
A new paper – Better data for better decisions: the case for an Australian Health Survey – from the Australian Health Policy Collaboration (AHPC) at Victoria University recommends a new Australian Health Survey be conducted in 2021, and each six years thereafter. We recommend that the funding be sourced from the Medical Research Future Fund.
Effective health services planning and management depends on comprehensive health information.
The Australian Health Survey, conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics during 2011 – 2013, has provided a once-off collection of comprehensive health information needed for health services planning and medical and health services research. The Australian Health Survey measured a range of anthropometric, biomedical and environmental measures and risk factors for preventable chronic diseases in the Australian population.
These data have provided invaluable intelligence to address the burden of chronic disease to individuals, families, carers, employers, the economy and the community. A thorough evaluation of the Australian Health Survey 2011-13 found that the rich data from the survey has informed responses to contemporary health challenges like chronic disease and obesity. Data have been used to fill population health data gaps, in particular around the prevalence of undiagnosed chronic disease and nutrition deficiencies.
Despite the data from the Australian Health Survey being regularly quoted by governments, by third sector organisations and by researchers, there is no current commitment to repeat the survey. Repeating the Australian Health Survey regularly would provide data that tracks changes in health needs and risk factors to provide better targeting of health care and health interventions and improve efficiency in health care spending.
As recently outlined by the Productivity Commission in the Shifting the Dial report, Australia needs to improve our game with health data and information, not just for the sake of the health system, but for the entire community and our economy.
Regular Australian Health Surveys would provide longitudinal data so we know if things are getting better or worse on key measures, such as the indicators in Australia’s Health Tracker. Businesses cannot function in the modern economy without good data on their clients’ habits and preferences, yet we expect our health system to function without these basic building blocks.
The data from Australian Health Surveys would help us understand why we are getting fatter as a nation, why chronic diseases are becoming more prevalent, and more importantly, what we need to do about it. We will be able to better focus our preventive health efforts, become more effective, and be able to build the case for more investment into the wars that are robbing us of life, health and happiness.
Ben Harris is Manager, National Policy and Strategy at the Australian Health Policy Collaboration at Victoria University. Improving health information is one of ten national policy priorities developed by leading Australian population health experts to improve the health of all Australians highlighted in the AHPC report Getting Australia’s Health on Track.
