Health Care Encounters by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People Aged 15-24 Years at Urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community-Controlled Health Organisations in Southeast Queensland.

Abstract

IntroductionAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people are less likely to utilise health care services, and very little is known about how they engage with and utilise primary health care (PHC) services, particularly in urban areas.MethodsDescriptive analysis was used to examine health care encounters among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 15-24 years at urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled health organisations (ATSICCHOs) in southeast Queensland (SEQ) between 2018 and 2022.ResultsOverall, 12,449 individual young people had at least one encounter at an urban ATSICCHO in SEQ. Utilisation among this population increased from 4,187 in 2018 to 5,314 in 2022. Utilisation of health services were highest among the 15-19-year age group (54%) and higher among girls/women (57%) than among boys/men. There were 127,225 encounters among young people during the study period, increasing from 21,020 in 2018 to 27,029 in 2022. Almost two-thirds of encounters were among girls/women (65%). The median number of encounters for all young people between 2018 and 2022 was 3 (IQR: 1-6); for girls/women, 3 (IQR: 1-6) and for boys/men, 2 (IQR: 1-4). Preventive health (30.7%) and health conditions requiring ongoing management (21.9%) were the two main reasons for encounters; the number of encounters increased over time for all reasons.ConclusionImproving utilisation of PHC services remains an ongoing challenge despite increased utilisation and a rise in the number of young people engaging with these services. Models of care within ATSICCHOs, centred on young people, should be funded, trialled, and evaluated to ensure that the health and wellbeing of this population are optimised.