The Rural Doctors Association of Australia (RDAA) says the latest report confirming the poorer health of rural and remote males compared with those living in the cities underlines the urgent need for major national initiatives to boost access to doctors and healthcare services in the bush.
Released today, the report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, A snapshot of men's health in regional and remote Australia, found that:
- men living in rural Australia were more likely to experience chronic health conditions than their urban counterparts
- men living in rural Australia had decreased life expectancy of around 3 years compared with those in the city
- cardiovascular diseases were responsible for nearly one-third of the elevated male death rates outside major cities and, compared with the major cities, death rates from diabetes were 1.3 times as high for men in inner regional areas and 3.7 times as high in very remote areas
- the rates of injury and poisoning for men living in very remote areas were over 3 times as high as for men living in major cities
- men living outside major cities were more likely to have health risk factors such as daily smoking and risky or high-risk alcohol use than their counterparts in the major cities-and they were also more likely to have experienced a substance use related mental disorder throughout their lifetime.
"This latest report is yet another reminder to the federal and state governments that rural communities are crying out for better local access to doctors, other health professionals and local healthcare services-and governments must make the investment required to deliver this" RDAA CEO, Steve Sant, said.
"Despite their poor health relative to those living in the cities, rural Australians continue to suffer from significant under-investment by governments in local health services-for example, there is a Medicare underspend in rural Australia of around $1 billion dollars annually when the difficulties that rural Australians face in accessing primary care, specialist care and allied health care are taken into account.
"On top of this, the Howard Government and now the Rudd Government have ignored the call by RDAA and the AMA for a Rural Rescue Package to entice and retain more doctors in the bush, despite the fact that at least an additional 1700 doctors are needed in country Australia just to ensure basic access to healthcare.
"The Rudd Government has demonstrated that it understands the crisis facing rural health in Australia, and pleasingly it has taken some initial steps to combat the problem. But it is now time for the Government to introduce the „big ticket items‟ such as a Rural Rescue Package that are really needed to turn the situation around.
"It is also imperative that rural males better look after themselves by quitting smoking, reducing alcohol consumption, exercising more, eating healthier foods, and getting more regular health checkups. After all, most rural men are happy to take their car to the mechanic‟s for an annual service, but they wince at the thought of getting an annual check-up themselves. As with a car, it is amazing what a difference an annual check-up can make to a human engine too."
Source
Rural Doctors Association of Australia