Landmark study identifies major gaps in Australian healthcare

Australian patients received appropriate care in only 57% of clinical encounters reviewed in a landmark new study that is galvanising efforts to improve care.

Researchers reviewed the medical records of 1154 patients from a population based sample of more than 15 000 people and assessed the management of 22 common conditions at 35 573 clinical encounters during 2009 and 2010.

Most of the care was provided by general practices and specialist practices and hospitals, but the study also included care given by chiropractic, physiotherapy, psychology, and mental health services.

Care was judged on 522 indicators developed from clinical guidelines and by expert reviewers.

The CareTrack study, conducted by researchers from the University of South Australia, University of New South Wales, and Kaiser Permanente in the United …