How do potentially preventable hospitalisations vary by geographic areas?
This report describes results based on where people lived, not the location of the hospital. People can attend a hospital outside their area.
Potentially preventable hospitalisations (PPH) involve admission to hospital for a condition where the hospitalisation could have potentially been prevented through the provision of appropriate individualised preventative health interventions and early disease management usually delivered in primary care and community-based care settings (including by general practitioners, medical specialists, dentists, nurses, and allied health professionals).
Variation in PPH rates within a region, or between areas with similar characteristics, can be used to identify and investigate area or populations of need (Falster & Jorm 2017).
There was considerable variation across Primary Health Networks (PHNs). In 2021–22, there were approximately 2,300 total PPH per 100,000 people in Australia (age-standardised to take account of variations in age across PHNs). Across PHNs, age-standardised rates of total PPH were highest in Western Queensland (4,800 hospitalisations per 100,000 people) and the Northern Territory (4,700 per 100,000 people), and lowest in Northern Sydney (1,600 per 100,000 people) (see Figure 4).
For detailed 2020–21 and 2021–22 data at the PHN and Statistical Area Level 3 (SA3) areas, refer to the data tab. Refer to the Technical notes for details about the geographical areas and groupings included in this report.
For more information about admitted patient hospitalisations, see MyHospitals: Admitted patients.
For more information about PHN, including what they are, what they do and a map of their boundaries, see Primary Health Networks
Figure 4: Age-standardised rate of total potentially preventable hospitalisations, by Primary Health Network, 2021–22
Across Primary Health Networks, Western Queensland and the Northern Territory had the highest age-standardised rates of total potentially preventable hospitalisations.
| Primary Healthcare Network | Hospitalisations (per 100,000 people) |
|---|---|
| Western Queensland | 4823 |
| Northern Territory | 4729 |
| DDWM | 3766 |
| Northern Queensland | 3348 |
| CQWBSC | 3029 |
| Gold Coast | 2806 |
| Gippsland | 2763 |
| Country WA | 2757 |
| Brisbane South | 2729 |
| Murrumbidgee | 2589 |
| Brisbane North | 2588 |
| Murrary | 2403 |
| Tasmania | 2346 |
| North Coast | 2331 |
| Adelaide | 2306 |
| Australia | 2293 |
| South Eastern Melbourne | 2277 |
| Western NSW | 2266 |
| Country SA | 2239 |
| Western Victoria | 2206 |
| North Western Melbourne | 2192 |
| HNECC | 2019 |
| Perth North | 2000 |
| Perth South | 1993 |
| South Eastern NSW | 1934 |
| Eastern Melbourne | 1899 |
| Nepean Blue Mountains | 1887 |
| South Western Sydney | 1841 |
| Central and Eastern Sydney | 1760 |
| Western Sydney | 1757 |
| Australian Capital Territory | 1754 |
| Northern Sydney | 1565 |
About the measure
Potentially preventable hospitalisations (PPH) in this report are defined in accordance with the National Healthcare Agreement specifications PI 18-Selected potentially preventable hospitalisations, 2022.
The PI 18 definition includes 22 conditions, for which hospitalisation is considered potentially preventable across 3 broad categories:
- acute (conditions that come on suddenly and lasts for a limited time, but may not result in hospitalisation if timely and adequate care had been received in the community)
- vaccine-preventable (hospitalisations due to conditions that can be prevented by vaccination)
- chronic (conditions that are persistent and long-lasting but may be preventable through lifestyle change and can be managed effectively through timely care to prevent deterioration and hospitalisation).
It is important to note that PPH does not mean that a patient admitted for that condition did not need to be hospitalised at the time of admission. Rather, the hospitalisation could have potentially been prevented through the provision of appropriate individualised preventative health interventions and early disease management usually delivered in primary and community-based care settings.
DDWM = Darling Downs and West Moreton. CQWBSC = Central Queensland, Wide Bay and Sunshine Coast. HNECC = Hunter New England and Central Coast.
Source:
AIHW analysis of the National Hospital Morbidity Database (NHMD) 2021–22.
References
Falster M & Jorm L 2017. A guide to the potentially preventable hospitalisations indicator in Australia. Centre for Big Data Research in Health, University of New South Wales in consultation with Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care and Australian Institute of Health and Welfare: Sydney.