Should we worry about the 85% collapse in GP home visits?
Associate Professor Joel Rhee says seeing patients at home has advantages for patients — and GPs — but there's no financial incentive.
Once a routine part of general practice, the GP home visit has collapsed in Australia, plunging by 85% over the past three decades, a review shows.
The figure is based on an analysis of Medicare data showing home visits have fallen from nearly four million annually 30 years ago to under 500,000 last year.
Drawn up by Associate Professor Joel Rhee, Head of General Practice at UNSW Sydney, the review compared standard home visit item numbers with equivalent in-clinic items.
He acknowledges telehealth has helped fill part of the home visit gap, but says it does not replace in-person care for those who need home visits.
