Category: HCCWA Blog

Slim chance of losing lots of weight

Posted on March 14, 2016

If you are obese your chances of achieving normal weight without surgery are slim to put it mildly. If you are male, you have a chance of one in 210. Women fare a little better; their chances are one in 124. These depressing statistics come from a ten-year study of 77,000 obese men and 100,00 obese women in the UK. To compound this picture at least half of those who managed to lose substantial amounts of weight put it back on within five years. No wonder the diet and gym industry is booming.

 

Dr Simon Rosenbaum, national director of Exercise and Sports Science Australia, writing in The Conversation says weight loss important but fitness, not fatness is a better focus. He says many people who start an exercise program to lose weight are setting themselves up to fail because exercise in the absence of dietary modification is not all that effective for weight loss.

 

An online survey carried out by CSIRO says Australians are their own worst enemies when it comes to eating better and controlling their weight. The survey, which looked at the weight management habits of more than 2300 Australians, found 69 per cent of respondents identified themselves as the main barrier to achieving their weight loss goals. CSIRO’s Research Director for Nutrition and Health, Professor Manny Noakes said it was critical that those looking to lose weight seek support.

 

“For many Australians losing weight is a challenging experience. The survey also showed that 40 per cent of dieters stated that no one supports them in their weight loss attempts.”

“Health professionals, friends and family can all play a role in helping dieters eat better and control their weight.”

 

The good news for seniors is that being overweight (but not obese) is not a health hazard. Ms Ngaire Hobbins – a dietician who specialises in the care of older Australians – warns that a healthy weight once you are over 65 is not necessarily the same as applies for younger adults. She says a Body Mass Index (BMI) between 23 and 28 is probably ideal for older adults. Being thin in older age is associated with a higher likelihood of dementia, of having a fall, of general poor health and even death. Those who are a bit heavier fare best. Ms Hobbins’ conclusions are supported by researchers at the University of Western Australia.

 

They studied over 12,000 Perth men selected at random from the electoral roll. All were between the ages of 65 and 84 and had no symptoms of dementia.  Overweight – but not obese – older men were healthier than either their slimmer or fatter colleagues. “We are struggling to explain the results,” said Leon Flicker, Professor of Geriatric Medicine and one of the study authors. “Being overweight after 70 doesn’t have the same negative effects that it does in younger men.” “Men over 70 and in reasonably health good health but overweight, are less likely to develop dementia. Exactly why we don’t know. We can speculate that fat tissue may have some important protective role in older men or it may build some resilience into the system.”

Dr Rosenbaum says exercise is important, but for other reasons. It helps protect against developing chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, even for people who are obese.

 

By Frank Smith – HCC Blog Contributor

Patient Experience Week is Launched!

Posted on February 24, 2016

Patient Experience Week Event Series_Poster

In 2015 the Health Consumers’ Council took the decision to begin a tradition of running events during the global Patient Experience Week which takes place annually in the last week of April. We have also shifted our Consumer Excellence Awards to close Patient Experience Week rather than being held at Christmas.

We are very excited to be able to build on the momentum of the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards, Partnering with Consumers, the current environment of change, reform and re-focus on the patient by bringing you our inaugural Patient Experience Week Event series on Thursday 28 and Friday 29 April. Highlights include; new author Kate Ryder talking about her book, ‘An Insider’s Guide to Getting the Best out of the Health System’ (Kate will have signed copies of her book available for purchase). Professor Michael Greco, Patient Opinion Australia CEO; Dr Karen Luxford, Clinical Excellence Commission of New South Wales, Director of Patient Based Care; Professor Anne Williams, Murdoch University, Chair of Health Research and Helen Fernando, Consumer Advocate and ‘Patients for Patient Safety’ champion, will present on the latest and best patient experience tools. Click here to book your events now!

Patient Experience Week is an initiative of the Beryl Institute. It is an annual event to celebrate healthcare staff impacting patient experience every day. Inspired by members of the Institute community, Patient Experience Week provides a focused time for organisations to celebrate accomplishments, re-energise efforts and honour the people who impact patient experience every day. From nurses and physicians, to support staff and executive professionals, to patients, families and communities served, the Institute hopes to bring together healthcare organisations across the globe to observe Patient Experience Week.

Patient Experience Week will close with the annual Health Consumers’ Council Health Consumer Excellence Awards. Since 1997 the Health Consumers’ Council has been celebrating the achievements of the unsung heroes in WA Health, from the administrator to the clinician and to recognise health consumers that go out of their way to make a difference. Nominations are now open, and close on April 15th, 2016.

You can always call (08) 9221 3422 or email info@hconc.org.au for more information.  Find us on Facebook or Twitter. Hash tag #hconcwa_PatientExpWk16

Pap smear costs- a storm in a teacup?

Posted on January 7, 2016

The announcement slipped in easily enough just before Christmas. On December 15, in its mid-year budget update, the Federal Government announced that they would scrap the incentive payments for pathologists for bulk billing of tests, because the rate of bulk billing had not increased. In other words, the measure appeared to have failed.

This announcement reflects the work being undertaken in the Medicare Benefit Schedule (MBS) reform process which was established in April 2015. The MBS is a list of more than 5,500 item numbers against which medical practitioners can bill the federal government for payment. It is the basis of business models for public, private and not for profit health services. It includes clinical items as well as this type of incentive payment.

Queue then the entrance of the Royal College of Pathologists, and the Australian Medical Association. In other words, organisations whose bottom line is affected by this change. In some online and newspaper reports, figures were put on the cost to consumers of a pap smear  at around $30. On 6th January an article appeared on Mamma Mia’s website, and a petition about the cost of Pap Smears and pathology tests was launched by Change.org. Signatures are nudging very close to 150,000, and rising as this blog is being written. Yet the incentive payment being scrapped was in the region of $1.30-$1.40 according to the Federal Government. In the short discussion I just had with the media spokesperson for the College of Pathologists, the position of the College seems to be a reluctance to nominate an actual figure to be passed onto consumers. So is this an issue, or isn’t it?

I would venture to suggest that it is not. Change is always a difficult phenomenon to manage, and communication seems to have contributed to the backlash the Federal Government is experiencing. The real story is the reason behind the MBS Review and why it is so important for Australians that this happens. Here are some terrifying facts and figures about the MBS provided by our national body The Consumers Health Forum:

  • Until 1 January 2010, there was no clear process for adding new items to the MBS.
  • There was also no clear, consistent system for identifying and removing items from the MBS when they were no longer considered best practice or effective.
  • There was no consistent and formal process in place to test or review items already on the MBS, or new items coming onto it, to ensure they were doing what they were intended to do and were safe and cost effective.
  • Only three percent of items have been assessed for safety, effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. 

You read that right. Only three percent.

So the MBS Review team are carrying on their work, amidst the media cacophony. They are still very keen to hear from the community, but many people find the topic inaccessible and can fail to see how this may affect them. Perhaps this controversy will raise awareness of this enormous and much-needed reform currently unfolding. It is unfortunate that this Review is always going to get caught up in economic rationalist arguments and the undeniable need for our country to reduce its health costs. Public scrutiny will be important to ensure that the focus is on eradicating inefficiencies, duplication and waste rather than diminishing access to quality health services. But let’s ensure that this is a patient centred discussion, not a vested interest centred discussion.

Just before Christmas the MBS Review Taskforce released a new consultation has to look at obsolete MBS items, with feedback invited until 8th February 2016. If you are brave to work your way through the consultation documents, feel free to have your say.

Written by Pip Brennan, Executive Director of the Health Consumers’ Council of WA.

 

Wasted – did you watch this?

Posted on September 29, 2015

Wasted

Did you watch the Four Corners episode Wasted on waste in health care last night? It is highly recommended viewing and made a number of interesting points:

  1. That our Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) pays an amount to a health care provider every time they provide a test or treatment. This provides a perverse incentive for medical practitioners to offer more tests and treatments. And more does not always equal better.
  2. That up until the last five years, procedures were not subjected to an evidence base test before being added to the MBS. Which means there are several decades worth of procedures on the MBS that do not pass the evidence base test.
  3. That there is no connection easily made between the number of treatments done and the health outcomes they are achieving for us. So while data is collected from MBS, from our hospitals and health services, from our diagnostic services, this data is collected in silos and cannot easily be translated into a coherent picture of what works, and what doesn’t
  4. That health consumers are sometimes asking for diagnostic procedures and treatments on the understanding that this will ensure they a) reduce their worries and concerns and b) they will get better.
  5. That it takes time in a clinical consultation to explain why tests and treatments may not actually achieve the outcome the consumer is seeking, and spending more time discussing and explaining treatments and options with consumers is not financially rewarded.

At one point consumers are encouraged to ask questions in order to feel sure that the treatment they are having will a) be useful and b) won’t potentially harm them and c) won’t waste our precious resources. A key question is “what’s the evidence for that?”

The imagery throughout the episode of the journey we all face through the different systems once a test is ordered highlights how important it is for us to get on the train knowing exactly where we may end up.

If you have a body and have ever been to a GP, then this story affects you, and you can be part of the change. The current MBS reform has a consumer survey open until 9th November 2015 which aims to help update the MBS to reduce waste and unnecessary treatments. Jump on board now to have your say – you have until 9th November 2015.

This blog was written by Pip Brennan, Executive Director of the Health Consumers’ Council.