Health services administration

Government expenditure is not commensurate with the substantially greater and more complex health needs of Indigenous Australians

Katrina A Alford BA, BEd, PhD

Advising patients with cancer about life expectancy must be tailored to their individual desire for information

Alison C Zucca BA(Hons), MMedSc · Rob W Sanson-Fisher BPsych(Hons), MPsych, PhD · Amy Waller BA(Hons), PhD · Mariko Carey DPsych(Health), BSc(Hons) · Alice Grady BPsych · Lisa Mackenzie BPsych(Hons), PhD

High-quality cancer care can be provided at rural centres by teleoncology models

Bryan A Chan BPharm(Hons), MB BS(Hons), FRACP · Sarah L Larkins MB BS, PhD, FRACGP · Rebecca Evans BSp · Kerrianne Watt PhD · Sabe Sabesan BM BS, FRACP, PhD

In-hospital falls are expensive — even when there is no serious injury

Renata T Morello BPhty, MPH · Anna L Barker BPhty, MPhty(Geriatrics), PhD · Jennifer J Watts BBus(Ec), PGDipHEcon, MComm(Ec) · Terry Haines BPhty(Hons), GCHEcon, PhD · Silva S Zavarsek BSc(Hons), PhD · Keith D Hill BAppSc(Physio), GradDipPhysio, PhD · Caroline Brand MB BS, MPH, FRACP · Catherine Sherrington BAppSc(Physio), MPH, PhD · Rory Wolfe BSc, PhD · Megan A Bohensky BA, MPH, PhD · Johannes U Stoelwinder MB BS, MD, FRACMA

Continuous quality improvement initiatives contribute to improved pregnancy care for Indigenous Australians

Melanie E Gibson-Helm PhD, MRepSci, BSc(Hons) · Helena J Teede MB BS, FRACP, PhD · Alice R Rumbold PhD, MPH, BSc(Hons) · Sanjeeva Ranasinha MSc, MEpid · Ross S Bailie MD(CommHlth), FAFPHM, MB ChB · Jacqueline A Boyle MB BS, FRANZCOG, PhD

Community development and empowerment serve to address these inequalities experienced by Aboriginal Australians, building cultural connectedness and increasing access to eliminate social, emotional and cultural inequality

Sharnee M Townsend BA

A personal checklist for the time-poor clinician

Jeanette Ward MB BS, MHPEd, PhD

A new set of indicators to improve mental health care and help prevent suicide

Sebastian P Rosenberg MPubAdmin · Ian B Hickie MD · Patrick D McGorry PhD, MD, FRANZCP · Luis Salvador-Carulla MD, PhD · Jane Burns BA(Hons), PhD · Helen Christensen MPsych(Hons), PhD, FASSA · John Mendoza BEd, GradDipHealthEd · Alan Rosen MB BS, FRANZCP · Lesley M Russell BSc(Hons), BA, PhD · Sally Sinclair BSc(Hons)

The federal government has announced formation of a Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) Review Taskforce, described as the most comprehensive review of the MBS in its near 50-year history. The Relative Value Study (RVS) was the last major collaborative attempt between the government and the medical profession to restructure the MBS. The RVS was a review of services and fees of the MBS conducted between 1994 and 2001 that was never implemented. This article provides a historical narrative of the RVS and discusses the failure of its implementation in terms of health policy theory. Understanding the specific difficulties of the RVS methodology, and the broader challenges of health care reform, may allow for more successful implementation of the current Medicare review.

Michael Wright MB BS, MSc, FRACGP

Did South Australian clinicians meet legal requirements regarding documentation of the grounds for involuntary mental health admission?

John Brayley BM BS, MHSM, FRANZCP · Andrew Alston BJuris, LLB, LLM · Kynan Rogers LLB(Hon)

Attitudes to what men should be told before undergoing a PSA test were examined

Chris Degeling PhD, BVSc · Lucie Rychetnik PhD, MPH · Kristen Pickles MPH · Rae Thomas PhD · Jennifer A Doust BM BS, PhD, FRACGP · Robert A Gardiner MD, FRCS, FRACS · Paul Glasziou BM BS, PhD, FRACGP · Ainsley J Newson PhD, LLB(Hons), BSc(Hons) · Stacy M Carter PhD, MPH(Hons)

In these challenging times, research funding is seen as an investment, and funders expect demonstrable returns in both monetary and societal terms

Claire L Jackson MD, MPH, FRACGP · Trisha Greenhalgh MD

Targeted outreach service strategies should account for career stage and practice conditions to help sustain access

Belinda G O’Sullivan BPhysio(Hons), MPH(Hons), GradDipAppEpi · Johannes U Stoelwinder MB BS, MD, FRACMA · Matthew R McGrail BSc(Hons), GradDipIT, PhD

Does anybody remember that 1999 was the International Year of Older Persons?

John B Best AO, MD BS, PhD, DSc(Hon)

Australia, Canadian and New Zealand health bodies and the Cochrane Library collaborate to produce a series of special collections

Davina Ghersi PhD, MPH · Samantha Faulkner BA

Policies addressing health care financing should reinforce Australia’s commitment to the principle of universalism

Tracey-Lea Laba PhD, BPharm(Hons), BSc(AppChem)(Hons) · Beverley M Essue MPH, PhD · Stephen Jan PhD, MEc, BEc

AMA survey of trainees identifies positives and negatives in their training experiences

Julian Grabek MB BS · James A Churchill MB BS, BMedSc · Sally Banfield MB BS, BMedSci

Rising health care costs are placing serious strains on the sustainability of the Australian Medicare system in its current structure

Richard W Harper MB BS, FRACP, FCSANZ · Arthur Nasis MB BS(Hons), MD, PhD · Vijaya Sundararajan BA(Hons), MD, MPH

Chronic illness has a severe impact on workforce participation and GDP

Deborah J Schofield PhD, BSpPath, GradDipComp · Rupendra N Shrestha PhD, MSc, BSc · Michelle Cunich PhD, MEc, BEc · Robert Tanton PhD · Simon Kelly PhD, MS, BAppSc · Megan E Passey PhD, BMed(Hons), MPH · Lennert J Veerman PhD, MPH, MD

There is room for improvement in mental health training opportunities for GPs in rural areas

Malcolm P Forbes MB BS · David B King MB BS, FRACGP, MPH

Partnerships between South Australian Medicare Locals and Local Health Networks offer lessons for the new Primary Health Networks

Sara Javanparast PhD, GradDipHumanNutr, MD · Fran Baum PhD · Elsa Barton BS, MChild · Toby Freeman PhD, BPsych(Hons) · Angela Lawless DrPH, GradDipPHC, BAppSc · Jeffrey Fuller PhD, MSc(PHC), BN · Richard L Reed MD, MPH, FRACGP · Michael R Kidd AM, MD, FRACGP

Clinical indicators have been widely adopted as a measure of health system performance and quality of care provided to patients

Gillian E Caughey BSc(Hons), PhD · Lisa M Kalisch Ellett BPharm, PhD · Stan Goldstein MB BS, MHA · Elizabeth E Roughead BPharm, MAppSci, PhD

It is not plausible that a researcher could author 50 or more publications a year and still adhere to the NHMRC authorship criteria

Anthony F Jorm PhD, DSc

A huge undertaking, but is it about improving outcomes or cutting costs?

John B Best AO, MD BS, PhD, DSc(Hon)

Personalised care does not justify use of therapies that have been shown to lack benefit

Joseph E Ibrahim PhD, FAFPHM, FRACP