The National health priority areas - costs Unit 3: Australia’s health / Area of Study 1 Understanding Australia’s Health

Key Knowledge: Key Skills: Unit 3: Australia’s health / Area of Study 1 Understanding Australia’s Health

National Health Priority Areas (NHPA) The National Health Priority Areas initiative was Australia's response to the World Health Organisation's global strategy Health for All by the year 2000 and its subsequent revision. The initial 1996 set of NHPAs included cardiovascular health, cancer control, injury prevention and control and mental health. Diabetes mellitus was added in 1997, followed by asthma in 1999, arthritis and musculoskeletal conditions in 2002, obesity in 2008 and dementia in 2012.  Arthritis & Musculoskeletal problems Asthma Cancer Control Cardiovascular Health Dementia Diabetes Mellitus Mental Health Injury Prevention & Control Obesity

There are three different recognised costs! Direct Costs Indirect Costs Intangible Costs

Direct Costs Costs associated with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease and disability Include all costs associated with developing and implementing health promotion strategies as well as the diagnosis, management and treatment of the condition. Often expressed in monetary terms as it is easy to put a dollar value

Direct costs for individuals Those paid for by the ill person or their family Ambulance transport Pharmaceuticals (medication) Diagnostics tests (blood tests, dental x-rays) not covered by Medicare Doctor & Specialist fees not covered by Medicare Surgery or Hospital fees not covered by Medicare or Private Health Insurance

Direct costs to the community Costs associated with implementing health promotion strategies and diagnosing and treating the condition, but are paid for by the community. The cost of health care services covered through Medicare, PBS or PHI The cost of pharmaceuticals The cost of prevention strategies/programs Costs that arise from demand on the health care system

Indirect Costs Costs not directly related to diagnosis and treatment of the disease, but occur as a result of the person having the disease, such as loss of productivity

Indirect costs for individuals Loss of income if they can’t work Employing someone to mow the lawns Paying a housekeeper to perform home duties Transport costs if person is no longer able to drive

Indirect cost to the community Lost productivity- businesses losing employees, which decreases services or products, may be paying sick leave Social Security payments- such as disability pension if person is no longer able to work Lost taxation revenue- If a person is unable to work, they no longer contribute to the economy through tax payments

Intangible Costs Things that cannot be measured physically or with a monetary measure, such as pain and suffering

Intangible costs for individuals Pain and suffering Anxiety and stress Frustration and emotional stress due to being limited and/or isolated Loss of quality of life and/or independence Loss of time Loss of self esteem

Intangible costs to the community Loss of participation in social activities Emotional impacts (family, friends, work colleagues)

Case study. Read through the information on the next 3 slides. As you go, try to identify any costs: for Francois (direct, indirect ,intangible) for the community (direct, indirect ,intangible)

The condition - Anaemia. This is a condition where the body has insufficient levels of haemoglobin in the red blood cells, or insufficient levels of red blood cells entirely. As haemoglobin carries oxygen, which is essential for cell respiration, anaemia means your body can’t carry enough oxygen to working cells and the cells won’t work properly.

Francois’s Story Francois is a 36 year old male who lives in Melbourne and operates a struggling boutique art gallery. He is a vegetarian and doesn’t like the taste of whole grains, so he eats white bread, rice and pasta. Francois started to notice his skin was getting pale, he would get headaches frequently and he would lose his breath walking up the stairs from his basement in the gallery. Because Francois has avoided red meat and whole grains for the past 19 years, he has developed iron-deficiency anaemia, as these are the foods that are high in iron. Because he does not have enough iron, his body is unable to produce haemoglobin.

Treatment Francois’s doctor advised him to eat multigrain bread, brown rice, and plenty of green leafy vegetables. He also needs to take a daily multivitamin, iron supplement pills and blood pressure stabilising medication until his haemoglobin levels improve.

Home life Francois lives with his wife and three kids. He has a best friend whose name is Neville. When his business was struggling, Neville lent him a sizeable portion of money to help out. He also fills in for Francois sometimes at the shop, when Francois has to be away.

Time to answer! What were the costs to Francois? What were the costs to the community as a result of Francois condition?

Impacts - Individual DIRECT Francois has had numerous visits to the doctor before he was diagnosed, which cost a significant amount of money if his doctor charges above the scheduled fee. He needs to continue to buy medication such as daily multivitamin, iron supplements and blood pressure stabilising medication

INDIRECT Misses work. Owns a small business so needs to shut the shop for the day or hire more staff. Driving to doctor. Loss of income Loss of time with his family when he can’t participate in particular activities due to his health They may need to get assistance to help around the house with duties i.e. lawn mowing

INTANGIBLE Francois was always uncomfortable, unfit, out of breath and in pain because of the lack of oxygen getting to his brain, organs and muscles. He felt terrible that he was finding it difficult to repay Neville the money he loaned him for the business, because he was losing customers. He would be stressed due to worrying about how the business would be able to survive Would experience restless nights due to health and stress

Impacts - Community DIRECT Medicare footed some of the bill for Francois’s doctors visits Medicare would have covered the diagnostic blood test Pharmaceutical benefit scheme helped pay for his medication.

INDIRECT Neville may lose money to fill in at the shop – can’t work anywhere else. If the business cannot operate normal hours there would be a reduction in productivity and a reduction in taxation revenue His wife would take on some responsibility for caring for Francois

INTANGIBLE Neville is finding it harder to live without the money he was expecting to receive from Francois, and there relationship could be struggling because of it. Stress on the family due to worrying about Francois’s health