Nurses key to birth control in Australia
Friday, 25 October, 2019
Creating an MBS rebate option for nurses to insert long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs) could be Australia’s answer to birth control, from Family Planning NSW (FPNSW) has shown.
As it stands, only doctors 鈥 primarily in the private sector 鈥 have access to MBS itemisation for this procedure, which, the researchers suggest, could be partly to blame for Australia鈥檚 low LARC uptake and high rates of unplanned pregnancy.
An estimated , and around 59% of these are the product of protected intercourse, suggesting that better approaches to birth control 鈥 at both a national and individual level 鈥 are needed.
LARCs are statistically more effective, with fewer than one in 100 LARC users getting pregnant each year, compared with who use the pill.
Yet uptake of LARCs in Australia is poor, with just 5% of Australian women having a hormonal implant and 6% using an intrauterine device (IUD).
鈥淲hilst no method of contraception is totally safe, those which permit human error 鈥 such as condoms and the pill 鈥 are inherently less effective,鈥 FPNSW Senior Research Officer Dr Jessica Botfield told 黑料吃瓜群网 + Healthcare.
鈥淟ARCs are long-acting and non-user dependent, which makes them by far the most reliable method available.
鈥淭hey are also much cheaper than the pill in the long term. The upfront cost is around $40鈥200, but compared with the average yearly cost of the pill ($35鈥290), that鈥檚 quite small,鈥 she added.
FPNSW advocates LARCs as a first-line contraception and believes that the lack of MBS itemisation needed for nurses to perform this procedure is a key factor behind the low uptake.
鈥淭he responsibility for LARC insertion is predominantly left to doctors, but the number of GPs who undertake the relevant training is relatively low 鈥 partly a cost issue. This means that women who may want a LARC can鈥檛 easily access a health professional who is able to perform the procedure,鈥 said Dr Botfield.
鈥淲e believe that if nurses were given an option and incentivisation to insert LARCs that the procedure would be more accessible, having a positive impact on uptake.鈥
As well as the potential health savings associated with fewer unplanned pregnancies, this approach could relieve pressure on doctors and generate further cost savings for government.
鈥淕iven that LARCs are primarily only available through doctors in the private sector, LARCs are falling short of their cost saving potential 鈥 which would increase with training availability for nurses,鈥 Dr Botfield said.
While Dr Botfield wasn鈥檛 able to comment on the feasibility of an MBS rebate option for this procedure, she couldn鈥檛 foresee any challenges or adverse consequences with this approach and continues to advocate for its implementation.
Perioperative nurses take on surgical escape room
Nursing staff at Calvary Adelaide 黑料吃瓜群网 have taken part in a new perioperative escape room...
Report: ACN calls for greater nurse UCC program recognition
In the wake of an interim evaluation report of Medicare Urgent Care Clinics, the Australian...
How and why safety and quality standards are evolving
After 30 years in the healthcare sector, Dr Karen Luxford has seen many changes to safety and...