Rural Australians ‘Crying Out’ as Health Gaps Revealed

People in rural Australia are 24 times more likely to be hospitalised due to domestic violence than those in the city. Remote Australians are more than twice as likely to die of potentially avoidable causes. Rates of coronary heart disease, chronic kidney disease, type two diabetes, lung cancer, stroke and suicide all increase with remoteness. Statistics about the health of Australians living outside the capital cities also show nearly 45,000 people in the bush do not have access to primary healthcare within an hour’s drive from their homes. The National Rural Health Alliance, which represents 50 health organisations, compiled the annual snapshot to show the inequities faced by those who live in the country....