Acute dental problems put people in hospital - report

Dental conditions are one of the major contributors to hospitalisation for acute conditions, according to a report released today.

The report says that dental conditions account for 7.9% of the avoidable admissions, involving almost 44,000 people.

Dental conditions were the third highest cause of avoidable hospital admissions for children aged 0-10 years, with only asthma and ear, nose and throat infections experiencing higher rates.

Released by the Australian Institute of Health Welfare, the report - Atlas of avoidable hospitalisations in Australia: ambulatory care sensitive conditions - looks at the level and extent of regional variation in a sub-set of avoidable hospitalisations: ambulatory care-sensitive (ACS) conditions. ACS are certain conditions for which hospitalisation is considered avoidable through preventive care and early disease management.

In 2001-02 admissions for ACS conditions accounted for 8.7% of all hospital admissions. This equates to more than 552,000 admissions, all of which are potentially avoidable. One of the key findings is that people in the most disadvantaged areas had 61% more hospitalisations for an ACS condition than those in the least disadvantaged areas.

ACOSS wants $160 million for dental checks

The Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) today called on the Federal Government to spend $160 million on dental checks for low-income adults every two years. In its budget submission, ACOSS wants almost $3 billion for child care, indigenous health and other welfare initiatives.