Following on from World Obesity Day, a day that was created last year by the Obesity Prevention, Policy and Management Group to raise awareness of this global epidemic, we are continuing to explore reasons why obesity rates have risen so high and continue to do so in Australia.
A study published in the Medical Journal of Australia (Inequalities in bariatric surgery 2012) has found significant inequalities to patient access to clinically effective weight loss surgery in Australia.
“We know that obesity is concentrated in socioeconomically disadvantaged groups but our research shows that those who need bariatric surgery the most are the least likely to receive it.”
The study found that individuals that were “socioeconomically advantaged individuals” (an annual household income of $70k or more) were five times more likely to undergo weight loss surgery compared to those in the lowest income bracket. Those with private health insurance were nine times more likely to have the surgery. “While there is very limited availability of bariatric surgery in public hospitals, Medicare subsidises the surgery for private patients, effectively restricting access to people with private health insurance and those who can afford to pay what are usually large out-of-pocket costs,” Dr Korda said.
In Australia weight loss surgery is not widely available for public patients, which is reflected in the above statistics; “the decision to have surgery should be made by the patient and their doctor based on clinical need. If surgery was distributed among a wider range of patients, inequalities in obesity and health-related problems could decline”.
One of the reasons why Australia are falling behind in worldwide best practices for care of obese patients may be linked to state and federal responsibilities; hospital care is a state responsibility whereas the care of a chronic illness such as diabetes is covered by federal funding under Medicare. Weight loss surgery (where non-surgical options have failed) has been proven to be effective in treating medical problems such as type 2 diabetes, which can save a person (and the Government) a substantial amount in long-term medical costs.
World Obesity Day is part of an initiative urging Governments around the world to take more responsibility for this increasing problem. Unless the Government in Australia recognises this inequality in weight loss surgery and deals with a way to overcome this then obesity is going to continue to be a problem and a drain on the public healthcare system due to long term costs of weight related illnesses.
Dr Michael Talbot, our lead surgeon here at Upper GI Surgery, has written a similar article to this blog in 2014 if you would like to read that here. For more information on weight loss surgery please visit our website or contact us if you would like to discuss this further as a possible option for yourself.
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