National Healthcare Agreement: PI 11–Proportion of adults with very high levels of psychological distress, 2017

Collection and usage attributes

Derived from the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale, with higher scores indicating a higher level of distress; lower scores indicate a low level of distress.

A ten item scale is currently employed by Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) in general population collections (i.e. K10), while a modified five item scale is included in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population collections (K5).

Total scores from the K10 scale will be grouped as follows:

• 10–15 Low;
• 16–21 Moderate;
• 22–29 High; and
• 30–50 Very high.

Total scores from the K5 scale will be grouped as follows:

• 5–11 Low/moderate; and
• 12–25 High/very high.

Presented as a percentage. Rates are directly age-standardised to the 2001 Australian population. 95% confidence intervals and relative standard errors calculated for rates.

100 × (Numerator ÷ Denominator)

Number of people aged 18 years or over with a very high distress score as measured by the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale.

Population aged 18 years or over.

2014–15—State and territory by sex.

2014–15—Nationally by:

• remoteness (Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Remoteness Structure)
• 2011 Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA) Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage (IRSD) quintiles and deciles
• sex by 2011 SEIFA IRSD quintiles (not reported)
• remoteness (major city, other) by 2011 SEIFA IRSD deciles (not reported)
• disability status

2014–15—Grouped high/very high levels of psychological distress—State and territory by:

• Indigenous status
• remoteness (ASGS Remoteness Structure)
• 2011 SEIFA IRSD quintiles
• disability status

2014–15—Grouped high/very high levels of psychological distress—Nationally by (all not reported):

• sex by remoteness (ASGS Remoteness Structure)
• remoteness (ASGS Remoteness Structure) by 2011 SEIFA IRSD deciles

Some disaggregations may result in numbers too small for publication.

Most recent data available for the 2017 National Healthcare Agreement performance reporting: 2014-15 (total population, non-Indigenous: NHS); 2014–15 (Indigenous only: NATSISS).

National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey (NATSISS) or National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey (NATSIHS) data may be used for analysis, dependent upon which survey is most recent.

The modified K5 scale from the 2014–15 NATSISS was used with the corresponding 5 questions from the 2014–15 NHS to compare the psychological distress levels of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous peoples.

Representational attributes

N[NN].N

Data source attributes

Accountability attributes

National Healthcare Agreement

Australian Bureau of Statistics

Specification: Final, the measure meets the intention of the indicator.

Source and reference attributes

Australian Bureau of Statistics

Relational attributes