AUSTRALIANS living in the most socio-economically disadvantaged areas are twice as like to delay or not get a prescription filled than those in the least disadvantaged areas, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reveals.
The Patient Experience Survey found 18.5% of Australians went to a pharmacist to seek "advice only" in the last 12 months, with 82.8% of respondents saying they had visited their general practitioner in that period.
Of patients who saw a GP, 67.4% received a prescription, with one-in-15 of those reporting that they delayed filling or did not fill the script due to cost, with close to one-in-10 patients from the most socio-economic disadvantaged areas putting off or not buying the medication because of financial concerns.
Roughly three-quarters of respondents reported that they felt their GP "always listened carefully to them", with a similar proportion claiming they believed their doctor spent sufficient time assessing them.
Patients aged 65 years and older were more likely to report that their GP showed them respect (87%), than patients aged between 15 and 64 years (79.4%).
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