Outcome 5: Primary Care

Outcome 5 aims to provide Australians with access to quality, cost-effective primary care, including primary mental health care, that is evidence-based and coordinated with other forms of care, such as specialist and aged care services.

The Department helped achieve Outcome 5 in 2007–08 by supporting general practitioner training and managing initiatives that encouraged general practices to undertake targeted activities such as cervical cancer screening and asthma and diabetes management. The Department also managed programs which focused on influencing the quality and standard of services, funding research, and helping general practitioners to access best business practice.

This chapter reports on the major activities undertaken by the Department during the year, addressing each of the key strategic directions and performance indicators published in the Outcome 5 chapters of the 2007–08 Health and Ageing Portfolio Budget Statements and 2007–08 Health and Ageing Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements.

Outcome 5 was managed in 2007–08 by the Primary and Ambulatory Care Division and the Mental Health and Workforce Division. General Practice Education and Training Ltd, which produces its own annual report, also contributed to this outcome.