It is not often you see detailed analysis of one of the most fundamental elements of the health system: the decision-making underpinning a patient’s journey from primary to secondary care.

Or put another way, the GP referral.

Published on Tuesday, the medical defence organisation Avant released survey results on this very topic compiled from some 357 GPs, a broadly representative sample from around Australia.

Do GPs think the specialists to whom they are sending patients are any good? Do they believe they charge too much? To what extent does this influence their referral decisions?