Main description:

This report highlights changes in general practice activity in Australia over the decade from April 2002 to March 2012 of the BEACH program, a national cross-sectional study of general practice activity. Over this time 9,802 GPs provided details of 980,200 GP-patient encounters. The report highlights changes that have occurred over the decade in the characteristics of GPs and the patients they see, the problems managed and the treatments provided. Changes in prevalence of overweight and obesity, smoking status and alcohol use are also described for sub-samples of more than 30,000 adult patients each year. This report is a companion to the annual report General Practice Activity in Australia 2011-12.

Contents:

List of tables
List of figures
Summary 1. Introduction
2. Methods
3. The samples
4. The participating GPs
5. The encounters
6. The patients
7. Problems managed
8. Overview of management
9. Medications
10. Other treatments
11. Referrals and admissions
12. Investigations
13. Patient risk factors
References
Abbreviations
Symbols
Glossary
Appendix 1: example of a 2011-12 recording form
Appendix 2: GP characteristics questionnaire, 2011-12
Appendix 3: patient information card, 2011-12
Appendix 4: code groups from ICPC-2 and ICPC-2 PLUS