National Healthcare Agreement: PI 17–Treatment rates for mental illness, 2016

Collection and usage attributes

The number of people receiving clinical mental health care expressed as a rate, which is directly age-standardised to the 2001 Australian population.

Age group is calculated from age at first service event during the reference period, or as at 1 July of the reference period where a service event (hospital admission or residential episode) commenced prior to 1 July.

Remoteness is derived from Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) (or postcode where SA2 is not available) of the client at first service event, consistent with derived age, and is proportionally allocated using a population-based concordance.

Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA) is derived from SA2 (or postcode where SA2 is not available) of the client at first service event and is proportionally allocated using a population-based concordance.

For remoteness and SEIFA, if a null result is returned from the first event, the next valid result is to be used.  That is, if a valid SA2 (or postcode where SA2 is not available) is not obtained from the client's first service event, then this information will be obtained from the next possible service event.

Indigenous status is the Indigenous status of the client recorded at the first service event.

The client's first service event is the first time that a client receives a service during the reporting period, or as at 1 July of the reference period where a service event (hospital admission of residential episode) commenced prior to 1 July of the reference period.

Public

Number of individuals recorded on jurisdictional mental health information systems as receiving one or more services from state/territory public mental health services, including specialised mental health hospital services, residential mental health care services and community mental health care services.

Person counts should be confined to individuals who received one or more services from state or territory specialised mental health services. Jurisdictional systems should be used, where available, to remove duplicate person counts between the different specialised mental health service settings.

For community mental health care service contacts, all types of service contacts to be included in defining whether a person receives a service, including those delivered ‘on behalf’ of the consumer, that is, where the consumer does not directly participate.

‘Assessment only’ cases are included.

Community mental health care data for non-uniquely identifiable clients are to be excluded.

State and territory disaggregation of mental health care data is based on the jurisdiction that provided the health care service.

Private

Number of individuals receiving specialist psychiatric care in private hospitals with psychiatric beds. Services provided to patients with psychiatric diagnoses by other private hospitals (that is, those without designated psychiatric beds) are not included.

State and territory disaggregation of Private Mental Health Alliance data is based on location of service.

Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS)

Inclusive of all mental-health related MBS items and includes some ambulatory-equivalent admitted patient mental health service contacts.

Consultant psychiatrist services include MBS items: 134, 136, 138, 140, 142, 288, 289, 291, 293, 296, 297, 299, 300, 302, 304, 306, 308, 310, 312, 314, 316, 318, 319, 320, 322, 324, 326, 328, 330, 332, 334, 336, 338, 342, 344, 346, 348, 350, 352, 353, 355, 356, 357, 358, 359, 361, 364, 366, 367, 369, 370, 855, 857, 858, 861, 864, 866, 14224.

GP and other services include MBS items: 170, 171, 172, 2574, 2575, 2577, 2578, 2700, 2701, 2702, 2704, 2705, 2707, 2708, 2710, 2712, 2713, 2715, 2717, 2719, 2721, 2723, 2725, 2727, 20104.

Clinical psychologist services include MBS items: 80000, 80005, 80010, 80015, 80020.

Other allied health services include MBS items: 10956, 10968, 80100, 80105, 80110, 80115, 80120, 80125, 80130, 80135, 80140, 80145, 80150, 80155, 80160, 80165, 80170, 81325, 81355, 82000, 82015.

Medicare Benefits Scheme data presented by Indigenous status are adjusted for under-identification in the Medicare Australia Voluntary Indigenous Identifier (VII) database. Indigenous status is the Indigenous status of the client recorded as at June of the latest reference period.

State and territory, remoteness and SEIFA disaggregation of MBS data is based on postcode of residence of the person as recorded in Medicare Australia's database at the date the last service was received in the reference period.

For MBS data age group is calculated from age at last service event.

Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) 

Inclusive of all mental-health related MBS items and additional DVA items and includes some ambulatory-equivalent admitted patient mental health service contacts.

Consultant psychiatrist services include MBS items: 134, 136, 138, 140, 142, 288, 289, 291, 293, 296, 297, 299, 300, 302, 304, 306, 308, 310, 312, 314, 316, 318, 319, 320, 322, 324, 326, 328, 330, 332, 334, 336, 338, 342, 344, 346, 348, 350, 352, 353, 355, 356, 357, 358, 359, 361, 364, 366, 367, 369, 370, 855, 857, 858, 861, 864, 866, 14224.

GP and other services include MBS items: 170, 171, 172, 2700, 2701, 2702, 2710, 2712, 2713, 2715, 2717, 2719, 2721, 2723, 2725, 2727, 20104.

Clinical psychologist services include MBS items: 80000, 80005, 80010, 80015, 80020 and DVA items US01, US02, US03, US04, US05, US06, US07, US08, US50, US51, US99.

Other allied health services include MBS items: 10956, 10968, 80100, 80105, 80110, 80115, 80120, 80125, 80130, 80135, 80140, 80145, 80150, 80155, 80160, 80165, 80170, 81325, 81355, 82000, 82015 and DVA items CL20, CL25, CL30, US11, US12, US13, US14, US15, US16, US17, US18, US21, US22, US23, US24, US25, US26, US27, US31, US32, US33, US34, US35, US36, US37, US52, US53, US96, US97, US98.

State and territory disaggregation of DVA data is based on postcode of residence of the person as recorded by Medicare Australia at the date the last service was received in the reference period.

Presented as a percentage.

100 x (Numerator ÷ Denominator)

Calculated separately for public, private, and combined Medicare Benefits Scheme and DVA data.

Number of people receiving clinical mental health services

Total population

2012–13 (resupplied for updated Qld and WA public data), 2013-14—Nationally, by service type, by:

• 2011 SEIFA Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage (IRSD) deciles.

2012–13 (resupplied for updated Qld and WA public data), 2013–14—State and territory, by service type, by:

• remoteness (Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Remoteness Structure)
• Indigenous status (public and Medicare Benefits Scheme data only)
• profession type of service provider (Medicare Benefits Scheme and Department of Veterans' Affairs data only).

Most recent data available for 2016 National Healthcare Agreement performance reporting: 2013–14.

MBS and DVA item numbers change over time. Extracted data may include historical item numbers that are no longer current but have been processed by Medicare Australia within the reference period.

There is likely to be considerable overlap between the MBS/DVA data and the private hospital data, as most patients accessing private hospital services would access MBS items in association with the private hospital service.

Indigenous information is not currently available for private psychiatric hospital or DVA data.

For 2013–14 data, the 2011 SEIFA IRSD quintile and decile data are produced using the ASGS geographical unit of SA2.

Representational attributes

Indicator conceptual framework

Data source attributes

Accountability attributes

National Healthcare Agreement

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare

Specification: Substantial work required, the measure requires significant work to be undertaken.

Source and reference attributes

Relational attributes