Healthcare use in disadvantaged groups

Despite being in poorer health, disadvantaged groups generally have lower use of primary healthcare than other Australians. Disparities in primary healthcare use can lead to higher use of relatively more costly acute services and contribute to, or exacerbate pre-existing, health inequalities. This thesis provides an overview on unequal use of healthcare by disadvantaged groups and explores how the relative importance of different supply- and demand-side factors influence healthcare use among priority populations; namely, sexual and gender diverse populations, Indigenous peoples, and people with mental illness and disability. This thesis makes an important contribution to the understanding of how different strategies can be implemented to improve healthcare use and health outcomes among some of Australia’s most vulnerable populations.