Each year, inspectors visit Australian hospitals. But they’re less like secret shoppers who identify flaws, and more like guests of a carefully orchestrated performance. This needs to change.
High fees are prohibitive for many people who need to see a specialist.
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Yes, doctors’ fees should be transparent, but that requirement alone doesn’t go far enough to combat “bill shock”. Specialists should also be required to set fees that are “fair and reasonable”.
The sugar industry has a lot of influence over health policy.
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Australia needs a sugar tax, as part of a broader national nutrition policy, to combat the obesity crisis. And the sugar industry is getting in the way.
The sugar industry has employed various tactics to influence health policy in its favour.
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Tonight, Four Corners looks at the tactics Big Sugar has used to influence health policy. Here’s our pick of five analysis pieces that will get you informed on the issue before the program airs.
A Malawian woman receives a bednet to protect her and her child from mosquitoes that spread malaria.
MSF/ Wilfred Masebo
Jane Hall, University of Technology Sydney and Rosalie Viney, University of Technology Sydney
Public hospitals in Australia are owned and operated by state (and territory) governments. So why does the Commonwealth government attract blame for lack of hospital funding?
Government price controls start with good intentions but often result in unintended consequences.
AAP/David Crosling
We are paying more for our health insurance because we are using it more. No crude, short-term measures to restrict premium growth will deal with this fact.
The rate of complications varies markedly between hospitals.
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The rapid growth of genetic testing and data-gathering could revolutionize health and medicine if governments work to protect people against privacy and societal risks.
As cities in developing countries - like Lagos in Nigeria, pictured here - grow, so do obesity risks.
Reuters/Akintunde Akinleye
Governments must understand that the factors making cities convenient and productive also make their residents prone to obesity. They must confront this challenge with intelligent, focused policies.
Information on patients’ experiences with their hospital care is often not reported back to public hospitals at unit or ward level.
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One would think governments would do all they could to ensure palliative care is available to all who need it. This is not the case in Australia today.
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne