Patient Experiences

Latest release

Contains data on access and barriers to, and experiences of, healthcare services including GPs, specialists, dental professionals, hospitals and EDs.

Cite
Print
Reference period
2022-23 financial year

Key statistics

  • 45.6% of people who saw a GP for urgent medical care waited for 24 hours or more 
  • 19.3% of people delayed or did not see a health professional for their own mental health when needed due to cost 
  • 52.3% of people saw a dental professional

The scope of the Patient Experience Survey was restricted to people aged 15 years and over who were usual residents of private dwellings.

Health service use

General practitioners (GPs) continued to be the most common health professionals seen in 2022-23. However, the proportion of people who saw a GP decreased to 82.3% in 2022-23, from 83.6% in 2021-22.

The proportion of people who saw a dental professional increased to 52.3% in 2022-23, from 49.4% in 2021-22.

Health service use in 2022-23 remained similar to 2021-22 for those who:

  • saw a medical specialist (37.9% compared to 38.9%)
  • visited a hospital emergency department (ED) (15.2% compared to 14.8%)
  • were admitted to hospital (12.6% compared to 12.8%)
  • saw a GP for urgent medical care (8.6% compared to 8.0%)
  • saw an after hours GP (stayed at 5.5%).

The proportion of people who could not see their preferred GP on one or more occasions increased to 36.3% in 2022-23, from 32.8% in 2021-22.

By sex

Females were more likely than males to use the following health services:

  • see a GP (86.9% compared to 77.6%)
  • see a dental professional (55.7% compared to 48.7%)
  • see a medical specialist (40.5% compared to 35.1%)
  • be admitted to hospital (14.2% compared to 10.9%)
  • see a GP for urgent medical care (9.7% compared to 7.3%)
  • see an after hours GP (6.4% compared to 4.5%).

By age

People aged 85 years and over were more likely than those aged 15-24 years to:

  • see a GP (96.1% compared to 70.9%)
  • see a medical specialist (59.6% compared to 25.0%)
  • visit a hospital ED (28.7% compared to 14.6%)
  • be admitted to hospital (26.8% compared to 6.7%)
  • see a GP for urgent medical care (11.8% compared to 6.9%).

People aged 65-74 years were more likely than those aged 25-34 years to see a dental professional (57.8% compared to 45.2%).

  1. Includes dentist, dental hygienist and dental specialists.

By long-term health condition

People with a long-term health condition were more likely than those without a long-term health condition to use all health services as follows:

  • see a GP (93.9% compared to 69.7%)
  • see a medical specialist (54.4% compared to 19.8%)
  • see a dental professional (54.3% compared to 50.0%)
  • visit a hospital ED (21.2% compared to 8.6%)
  • be admitted to hospital (18.2% compared to 6.4%)
  • see a GP for urgent medical care (12.7% compared to 4.0%)
  • see an after hours GP (6.9% compared to 4.0%).

By Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage (IRSD)

People living in areas of least socio-economic disadvantage were more likely than those living in areas of most disadvantage to:

  • see a GP (83.8% compared to 81.3%)
  • see a dental professional (65.0% compared to 41.9%)
  • see a medical specialist (40.9% compared to 35.4%).

People living in areas of most socio-economic disadvantage were more likely to visit a hospital ED than those living in areas of least disadvantage (18.4% compared to 13.7%).

By Remoteness

People living in major cities were more likely than those living in outer regional, remote or very remote areas to:

  • see a dental professional (54.3% compared to 44.9%)
  • see an after hours GP (6.0% compared to 3.7%).

People living in outer regional, remote or very remote areas were more likely than those living in major cities to:

  • visit a hospital ED (19.6% compared to 13.8%)
  • be admitted to hospital (14.3% compared to 12.2%)
  • see a GP for urgent medical care (9.1% compared to 8.0%).

See Tables 1, 2.3, 3.2 and 5.3 in Data downloads section.

Waiting times

GP waiting times

In 2022-23, 29.6% of people reported waiting longer than they felt acceptable for a GP appointment.

The following people were more likely to report waiting longer than they felt acceptable for a GP appointment:

  • those living in outer regional, remote or very remote areas than those living in major cities (37.5% compared to 28.0%)
  • those aged 35-44 years than those aged 85 years and over (33.7% compared to 17.7%)
  • females than males (32.6% compared to 26.0%)
  • those with a long-term health condition than those without a long-term health condition (31.7% compared to 26.5%)   
  • those living in areas of most socio-economic disadvantage than those living in areas of least disadvantage (31.3% compared to 27.6%).

A comparison of 2022-23 and 2021-22 reported waiting times to see a GP for urgent medical care indicated:

  • an increase in those who saw a GP for urgent medical care and waited for 24 hours or more (45.6% compared to 39.1%)
  • a decrease in those who saw a GP for urgent medical care and were seen within 4 hours (41.5% compared to 49.7%)
  • the proportion of those who saw a GP for urgent medical care and waited for 4 to 24 hours remained similar (12.7% compared to 10.9%).

The following people were more likely to wait for 24 hours or more to see a GP for urgent medical care:

  • those living in areas of most socio-economic disadvantage than those living in areas of least disadvantage (52.0% compared to 42.2%)
  • those living in outer regional, remote or very remote areas than those living in major cities (51.3% compared to 44.0%)
  • those with a long-term health condition than those without a long-term health condition (48.5% compared to 36.5%).

Medical specialist waiting times

In 2022-23, 27.9% of people reported waiting longer than they felt acceptable for a medical specialist appointment.

The following people were more likely to report waiting longer than they felt acceptable for a medical specialist appointment:

  • those aged 25-34 years than those aged 85 years and over (36.3% compared to 14.6%)
  • those with a long-term health condition than those without a long-term health condition (29.5% compared to 22.5%)
  • females than males (29.4% compared to 26.0%).

Public dentistry waiting lists

Public dental care is only available to a limited segment of the Australian population. Adults must generally have a healthcare card or Centrelink pensioner concession card to be eligible. The Child Dental Benefits Schedule (CDBS) provides basic dental services to eligible children aged 0-17 years[1][2].

The proportion of people placed on public dentistry waiting lists in 2022-23 has remained similar to 2021-22 (4.7% compared to 4.2%).

The following people were more likely to be placed on a public dentistry waiting list:

  • those aged 85 years and over than those aged 15-24 years (13.4% compared to 3.3%)
  • those living in areas of most socio-economic disadvantage than those living in areas of least disadvantage (11.4% compared to 1.1%)
  • those with a long-term health condition than those without a long-term health condition (6.9% compared to 1.9%)
  • those living in outer regional, remote or very remote areas than those living in major cities (6.8% compared to 3.8%)
  • females than males (5.2% compared to 4.1%).

See Tables 4, 5.3, 6.2, 10, 11.3, 12.2, 14.3 and 15.2 in Data downloads section.

Barriers to health service use

Delayed or did not use health services when needed

The proportion of people who delayed or did not use the following health services when needed increased in 2022-23 compared to 2021-22:

  • after hours GPs (46.9% compared to 37.8%)
  • GPs (30.3% compared to 28.3%)
  • hospitals (11.9% compared to 9.8%).

The proportion of people who delayed or did not see a dental professional when needed decreased to 29.7% in 2022-23, from 32.7% in 2021-22.

Females were more likely to delay or not use the following health services when needed than males:

  • GPs (33.7% compared to 26.4%)
  • medical specialists (24.4% compared to 20.2%).

People aged 25-34 years were more likely to delay or not use the following health services when needed than those aged 85 years and over:

  • dental professionals (38.1% compared to 17.8%)
  • GPs (35.9% compared to 17.8%)
  • medical specialists (32.2% compared to 10.8%)
  • hospitals (14.9% compared to 5.3%).

People aged 75-84 years were more likely to delay or not see an after hours GP when needed than those aged 15-24 years (51.9% compared to 42.2%).

People with a long-term health condition were more likely to delay or not use the following health services when needed than those without a long-term health condition:

  • after hours GPs (49.5% compared to 41.9%)
  • dental professionals (34.1% compared to 23.9%)
  • GPs (34.0% compared to 24.9%)
  • hospitals (13.4% compared to 7.1%).
  1. Includes dentist, dental hygienist and dental specialists.

People living in areas of most socio-economic disadvantage were more likely to delay or not use the following health services when needed than those living in areas of least disadvantage:

  • after hours GPs (53.4% compared to 42.6%)
  • dental professionals (39.0% compared to 23.1%)
  • medical specialists (26.4% compared to 20.0%)
  • hospitals (16.5% compared to 7.5%).

People living in outer regional, remote or very remote areas were more likely to delay or not use the following health services when needed than those living in major cities:

  • after hours GPs (57.1% compared to 43.8%)
  • dental professionals (34.2% compared to 27.9%)
  • GPs (33.2% compared to 28.9%)
  • hospitals (15.5% compared to 10.5%).

Delayed or did not use health services when needed - due to cost

The proportion of people who reported that cost was a reason for delaying or not using the following health services when needed increased in 2022-23 compared to 2021-22:

  • medical specialists (10.5% compared to 8.0%)
  • GPs (7.0% compared to 3.5%)
  • hospitals (3.2% compared to 1.8%).

Females were more likely to delay or not use the following health services when needed due to cost than males:

  • dental professionals (18.8% compared to 16.3%)
  • medical specialists (12.2% compared to 8.4%)
  • GPs (8.4% compared to 5.5%).

People aged 25-34 years were more likely to delay or not use the following health services when needed due to cost than those aged 85 years and over:

  • dental professionals (26.3% compared to 8.2%)
  • medical specialists (19.1% compared to 3.0%)
  • GPs (10.2% compared to 2.3%).

People with a long-term health condition were more likely to delay or not use the following health services when needed due to cost than those without a long-term health condition:

  • dental professionals (20.5% compared to 14.0%)
  • GPs (7.8% compared to 5.9%).

People living in areas of most socio-economic disadvantage were more likely to delay or not use the following health services when needed due to cost than those living in areas of least disadvantage:

  • dental professionals (26.1% compared to 11.1%)
  • medical specialists (12.9% compared to 8.7%)
  • GPs (7.9% compared to 5.9%)
  • hospitals (5.4% compared to 1.2%).
  1. 2016 Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage: A lower Index of Disadvantage quintile (e.g. the first quintile) indicates relatively greater disadvantage and a lack of advantage in general. A higher Index of Disadvantage (e.g. the fifth quintile) indicates a relative lack of disadvantage and greater advantage in general.
  2. Includes dentist, dental hygienist and dental specialists.

People living in outer regional, remote or very remote areas were more likely to delay or not see a dental professional when needed due to cost than those living in major cities (20.6% compared to 16.3%).

Delayed or did not use health services when needed - reasons other than cost

The proportion of people who reported reasons other than cost (e.g. ‘Service not available when required’, ‘Too busy’ or ‘Waiting time too long’) for delaying or not using the following health services when needed decreased in 2022-23 compared to 2021-22:

  • GPs (23.3% compared to 24.8%)
  • dental professionals (12.0% compared to 16.2%)
  • medical specialists (12.0% compared to 14.0%).

The proportion of people who delayed or did not see an after hours GP when needed for reasons other than cost increased to 42.4% in 2022-23, from 34.5% in 2021-22.

Females were more likely to report reasons other than cost for delaying or not using the following health services when needed than males:

  • GPs (25.4% compared to 20.9%)
  • hospitals (9.7% compared to 7.4%).

Prescription medication

The proportion of people who delayed or did not get prescription medication when needed due to cost increased to 7.6% in 2022-23, from 5.6% in 2021-22.

The following people were more likely to delay getting, or go without, prescription medication when needed due to cost:

  • people aged 25-34 years than those aged 75-84 years (11.8% compared to 4.3%)
  • those living in areas of most socio-economic disadvantage than those living in areas of least disadvantage (10.2% compared to 5.4%)
  • females than males (9.4% compared to 5.5%)
  • those with a long-term health condition than those without a long-term health condition (8.4% compared to 6.1%).

See Tables 4, 5.3, 6.2, 7, 8.2, 9.2, 10, 11.3, 12.2, 14.3, 15.2, 17.2 and 18.2 in Data downloads section.

Experience with health professionals

In 2022-23, all proxy interviews (for those aged 15 to 17 years where permission was not given by a parent or guardian to interview them AND those aged 18 years and over who were not capable of answering for themselves due to illness, injury or language problems) were not asked:

  • self-assessed health status
  • experience with health professionals (listened to carefully, shown respect, enough time spent with person)
  • whether waited longer than felt acceptable for a GP or medical specialist appointment
  • whether would use telehealth again.

Prior to 2022-23, only proxy interviews for those aged 15 to 17 years were not asked these questions.

Care should be taken when comparing these data items with previous survey cycles.

In 2022-23, over 60.0% of people who needed to and saw a health professional reported positive experiences with them.

People reported the most positive experiences with dental professionals and the least positive experiences with hospital ED doctors and specialists.

Experience with health professionals in 2022-23
Health Professional

Proportion of people who reported health professional always listened carefully (%)(a)

Proportion of people who reported health professional always showed respect (%)(a)

Proportion of people who reported health professional always spent enough time with them (%)(a)

Dental professionals(b)86.189.289.0
Medical specialists77.982.878.9
Hospital nurses(c)77.680.274.5
Hospital doctors and specialists(d)74.178.171.0
Hospital ED nurses(e)72.375.568.2
GPs71.380.370.8
Hospital ED doctors and specialists(f)64.669.862.1
  1. Excludes persons for whom proxy interviews were conducted.
  2. Includes dentist, dental hygienist and dental specialists.
  3. Includes those who didn't see any nurses in a hospital.
  4. Includes those who didn't see any doctors or specialists in a hospital.
  5. Includes those who didn't see any nurses in a hospital emergency department.
  6. Includes those who didn't see an doctors or specialists in a hospital emergency department.

Males reported more positive experiences with hospital ED doctors and specialists than females:

  • always listened to carefully (69.0% compared to 60.8%)
  • always shown respect (73.1% compared to 66.7%)
  • always had enough time spent with them (66.3% compared to 58.3%).

Males also reported more positive experiences with hospital ED nurses than females:

  • always listened to carefully (74.8% compared to 69.7%)
  • always shown respect (78.8% compared to 72.3%)
  • always had enough time spent with them (71.7% compared to 65.1%).

People aged 65-74 years reported more positive experiences with hospital ED doctors and specialists than those aged 25-34 years:

  • always listened to carefully (75.4% compared to 56.6%)
  • always shown respect (79.9% compared to 63.0%)
  • always had enough time spent with them (72.2% compared to 54.2%).

People aged 75-84 years reported more positive experiences with hospital ED nurses than those aged 25-34 years:

  • always listened to carefully (82.7% compared to 63.0%)
  • always shown respect (84.8% compared to 66.1%)
  • always had enough time spent with them (75.8% compared to 60.7%).
  1. Excludes persons for whom proxy interviews were conducted. Includes those who didn't see any doctors or specialists in a hospital emergency department.

See Tables 5.3, 11.3, 14.3, 17.2 and 20.2 in Data downloads section.

Coordination of care

The proportion of people who saw three or more health professionals for the same condition was similar in 2022-23 compared to 2021-22 (17.9% compared to 17.3%).  

Of these people:

  • 68.0% reported that at least one health professional helped coordinate their care, similar to 70.2% in 2021-22
  • 31.6% reported that no health professional helped coordinate their care, an increase from 29.3% in 2021-22
  • 14.5% reported that there were issues caused by a lack of communication between health professionals, similar to 15.9% in 2021-22.

Of those who received coordination of their care, 57.2% reported that GPs helped most in coordinating their care.

People with a long-term health condition were more likely than those without a long-term health condition to:

  • see three or more health professionals (27.7% compared to 7.1%)
  • receive coordination of their care (69.7% compared to 60.7%)
  • report issues caused by a lack of communication between health professionals (15.7% compared to 9.2%).

People living in areas of most socio-economic disadvantage were more likely than those living in areas of least disadvantage to:

  • receive coordination of their care (74.2% compared to 65.4%)
  • report issues caused by a lack of communication between health professionals (17.4% compared to 12.1%).

See Tables 1, 22 and 24.2 in Data downloads section.

Private health insurance

In 2022-23, the proportion of people with private health insurance remained similar to 2021-22 (58.1% compared to 58.8%). Both hospital and extras cover continued to be the most common type of private health insurance (46.9%).

The following people were more likely to have private health insurance cover:

  • those living in areas of least socio-economic disadvantage than those living in areas of most disadvantage (78.6% compared to 35.3%)
  • those aged 65-74 years than those aged 25-34 years (61.8% compared to 51.5%)
  • those who rated their health as excellent, very good or good than those who rated their health as fair or poor (61.4% compared to 42.8%)
  • those living in major cities than those living in outer regional, remote or very remote areas (61.1% compared to 49.3%).
  1. 2016 Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage: A lower Index of Disadvantage quintile (e.g. the first quintile) indicates relatively greater disadvantage and a lack of advantage in general. A higher Index of Disadvantage (e.g. the fifth quintile) indicates a relative lack of disadvantage and greater advantage in general.

See Tables 1, 2.3 and 3.2 in Data downloads section.

Experience of telehealth services

The proportion of people who had at least one telehealth consultation for their own health in the last 12 months decreased to 27.7% in 2022-23, from 30.8% in 2021-22.

In the last 12 months:

  • 23.6% of people had a telehealth consultation with a GP
  • 5.7% of people had a telehealth consultation with a medical specialist.

The highest proportion of people who had at least one telehealth consultation were females aged 25-34 years (38.4%).

The following people were more likely to have a telehealth consultation:

  • those with a long-term health condition than those without a long-term health condition (37.1% compared to 17.3%)
  • females than males (33.7% compared to 21.4%)
  • those aged 65-74 years than those aged 15-24 years (31.6% compared to 20.9%)
  • those living in areas of least socio-economic disadvantage than those living in areas of most disadvantage (29.3% compared to 24.9%)
  • those living in major cities than those living in outer regional, remote or very remote areas (28.3% compared to 23.4%).

In 2022-23, people who had a telehealth consultation reported the following experiences with telehealth practitioners:

  • always listened to carefully (80.7%)
  • always shown respect (83.9%)
  • always had enough time spent with them (79.1%).

Males reported more positive experiences with telehealth practitioners than females:

  • always listened to carefully (84.0% compared to 78.8%)
  • always shown respect (86.6% compared to 82.2%)
  • always had enough time spent with them (82.7% compared to 76.9%).

People aged 85 years and over reported more positive experiences with telehealth practitioners than those aged 15-24 years:

  • always listened to carefully (93.8% compared to 74.4%)  
  • always shown respect (94.3% compared to 80.8%)  
  • always had enough time spent with them (91.2% compared to 71.9%).

Whether would use telehealth again

Of those who had a telehealth consultation, 87.7% reported that they would use telehealth for a consultation again if it was offered.

People aged 45-54 years were more likely to use telehealth for a consultation again if it was offered than those aged 75-84 years (91.5% compared to 78.3%).

See Tables 1, 25.3 and 26.2 in Data downloads section.

Experience of mental health services

Use of mental health professionals

In 2022-23, 16.5% of people saw at least one health professional for their own mental health, similar to 2021-22 (16.6%):

  • 12.5% saw a GP for their own mental health (similar to 12.7% in 2021-22)
  • 7.7% saw a psychologist (similar to 7.6% in 2021-22) 
  • 2.9% saw a psychiatrist (similar to 2.7% in 2021-22) 
  • 2.2% saw an other mental health professional such as a mental health nurse, social worker, counsellor or occupational therapist (similar to 2.1% in 2021-22). 

Of people who needed to and saw a health professional for their own mental health in 2022-23, 29.3% did so at least once using a telehealth service (a decrease from 34.5% in 2021-22).

By sex

Females were more likely to see a health professional for their own mental health than males (20.5% compared to 12.3%). 

Females were more likely to see the following health professionals for their own mental health than males:

  • GPs (15.8% compared to 9.1%)
  • psychologists (9.8% compared to 5.5%)
  • an other mental health professional (2.7% compared to 1.6%). 

By age

Younger people were more likely to see a health professional for their own mental health than older people:

  • 20.7% of people aged 15-24 years saw a health professional for their own mental health compared to 9.4% of those aged 65 years and over. 
  1. Includes mental health nurse, social worker, counsellor or occupational therapist.

Source: Patient Experiences, 2022-23, Table 27.3 and Customised data.

Barriers

In 2022-23, 18.6% of all people reported that they needed to see a health professional for their own mental health, similar to 18.5% in 2021-22. 

Of these, 38.5% delayed or did not see a health professional for their own mental health on at least one occasion when needed (similar to 38.9% in 2021-22), while 11.2% did not see a health professional for their own mental health at all when needed (similar to 10.6% in 2021-22). 

The proportion of people who delayed or did not see a health professional for their own mental health varied according to the type of health professional they needed:

  • 28.8% of people who needed to see a GP delayed or did not see one
  • 43.8% of people who needed to see a psychologist delayed or did not see one
  • 42.4% of people who needed to see a psychiatrist delayed or did not see one
  • 35.4% of people who needed to see an other mental health professional delayed or did not see one.

The proportion of people who reported that cost was a reason for delaying or not seeing a health professional for their own mental health when needed increased to 19.3% in 2022-23, from 16.7% in 2021-22. 

The proportion of people who delayed or did not see a health professional for their own mental health when needed due to cost varied according to the type of health professional:

  • 10.4% of people who needed to see a GP delayed or did not see one due to cost 
  • 24.4% of people who needed to see a psychologist delayed or did not see one due to cost
  • 27.8% of people who needed to see a psychiatrist delayed or did not see one due to cost
  • 18.6% of people who needed to see an other mental health professional delayed or did not see one due to cost. 

By sex

Females were more likely to delay or not see a health professional for their own mental health when needed due to cost than males (21.4% compared to 15.4%). 

Females were more likely to delay or not see a GP for their own mental health when needed due to cost than males (11.5% compared to 8.6%).  

By age

Younger people were more likely to delay or not see a health professional for their own mental health when needed due to cost than older people:

  • 23.0% of people aged 15-24 years delayed or did not see a health professional for their own mental health when needed due to cost compared to 8.6% of those aged 65 years and over. 

Source: Patient Experiences, 2022-23, Table 27.3 and Customised data.

By Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage (IRSD)

People living in areas of most socio-economic disadvantage were more likely to delay or not see a health professional for their own mental health when needed due to cost than those living in areas of least disadvantage (24.0% compared to 17.7%). 

By Remoteness

People living in major cities were more likely to delay or not see a health professional for their own mental health when needed due to cost than those living in outer regional, remote or very remote areas (20.5% compared to 14.2%). 

People with a mental health condition

In 2022-23, 77.2% of all people with a mental health condition reported that they needed to see a health professional for their own mental health.

Of these, 38.7% delayed or did not see a health professional for their own mental health on at least one occasion when needed, while 7.3% did not see a health professional for their own mental health at all when needed.

See Tables 27.3 and 28.2 in Data downloads section.

Data downloads

Data revision

This release includes a revision to the 2016–17 margin of error contained in Table 22. The revision applies to the proportion of persons who:

  • Did not see three or more health professionals for the same condition
  • Saw three or more health professionals for the same condition
Download all (1.27 MB)

Data cubes

Data files

Survey material

Questionnaire

Data files
Download xlsx [237.46 KB]

Previous catalogue number

This release previously used catalogue number 4839.0.

Footnotes

  1. Australian Dental Association, ‘Government Dental Care’, https://www.teeth.org.au/government-dental-care; accessed 16/11/2023

  2. Services Australia, 'Child Dental Benefits Schedule', https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/child-dental-benefits-schedule; accessed 16/11/2023

Methodology

Scope

People aged 15 years and over who were usual residents of private dwellings.

Excludes:

  • Australian permanent defence force members and their dependants
  • non-Australian defence forces
  • residents of the Indigenous Community Strata.

Geography

Data available for:

  • Australia
  • Major cities
  • Inner regional
  • Outer regional/remote/very remote.

Source

Multipurpose Household Survey

Collection method

Interviews were conducted by telephone with responses directly recorded in an electronic questionnaire.

Proxy interviews were permissible under certain circumstances.

Concepts, sources and methods

Not applicable to this release

History of changes

From 2022–23, all proxy interviews were not asked questions that called for personal opinions.

See Comparing the data for more detail.

View full methodology

Media releases