AFTER HOURS VISITS TO A GP
Around a million people aged 15 years and over had seen a GP after hours in the 12 months prior to the survey (8% of people who had seen a GP). Slightly more women than men had seen a GP after hours (9% compared with 6%), but the general pattern of after hours visits for both sexes was that they declined with age (see Table 3.2).
More people living in major cities had seen a GP after hours than people living in regional and remote Australia (9% compared with 5% and 6%).
The rate of people who felt their health was fair or poor seeing a GP after hours was almost double that of people who thought their health was generally good, very good or excellent (10% compared with 7%).
South Australia had the highest rate of seeing a GP after hours (11%) and Tasmania had the lowest (6%). South Australians also had the highest rates of seeing a GP after hours for their children's health (see Chapter 7).
Around 1 in 3 people who reported seeing a GP after hours had seen them at a regular general practice (36%) and 24% had been to an after hours clinic at a hospital. Figure 3.3 shows that people from regional and remote areas of Australia who had seen a GP after hours were much more likely to do this at a hospital clinic than people in major cities (around 46% compared with 19%).
3.3 Type of after hours GP clinic visited (a) by Remoteness
(See Table 3.1 for more detail)