Understanding the Tasmanian health care system

Tasmania has a healthcare system with four levels that concentrate on different types of healthcare delivery.

• Tertiary healthcare is highly specialised care that requires a referral from a specialist. Sometimes people who attend the emergency department are admitted to hospital for urgent access to tertiary care.
• Secondary healthcare is the place you get referred to for specialist care. For example, a paediatrician, psychiatrist, surgeon, or respiratory based physiotherapists. Secondary health care can be provided in the community, outpatient clinic, or hospital setting.
• Primary healthcare is your first place to go for healthcare. These are usually local, non-emergency services that you can access within your community. For example, your general practitioners (GP), dentists, pharmacists, or allied health professionals.
• Population-based healthcare (also known as universal healthcare) services are provided to a whole population. In Australia, Medicare and public hospitals provide free or low-cost healthcare to everyone and we also have systems to help to make medications affordable. Universal health care also includes health promotion to help communities and individuals lead healthy lives and prevent illness and lifestyle disease, for example; providing clean water, parks and foot paths as safe places for people to exercise or providing information that helps individuals to make healthy choices.