Greg was placed in an induced coma. The news he got on waking was a shock
While he had been unconscious, his family had been told he was unlikely to survive after multiple organ failure brought on by Type 2 diabetes.
Bird had no idea he even had the disease.
The 60-year-old said he had gone in pain to the chemist, who called an ambulance for him.
He was rushed to Midland Hospital before being transferred to Royal Perth Hospital and placed in the coma.
'The diabetes had been sitting there and building up and building up, and it led to the point where the whole system shut down,' he said.
'They didn't think I was going to make it.'
Bird is one of millions of Australians living with diabetes for whom healthcare costs are, on average, double that of someone without the condition – $9677 per person with diabetes annually compared to $4669.
Those figures have come from new research released by researchers from Deakin, La Trobe and Curtin University, who found the total cost of diabetes to Australia's healthcare system was $14.2 billion in 2024.
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Sydney Morning Herald
11 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Greg was placed in an induced coma. The news he got on waking was a shock
It was November 2024, and Greg Bird had just woken up from an induced coma in Royal Perth Hospital after 20 days when he was given some horrific news. While he had been unconscious, his family had been told he was unlikely to survive after multiple organ failure brought on by Type 2 diabetes. Bird had no idea he even had the disease. The 60-year-old said he had gone in pain to the chemist, who called an ambulance for him. He was rushed to Midland Hospital before being transferred to Royal Perth Hospital and placed in the coma. 'The diabetes had been sitting there and building up and building up, and it led to the point where the whole system shut down,' he said. 'They didn't think I was going to make it.' Bird is one of millions of Australians living with diabetes for whom healthcare costs are, on average, double that of someone without the condition – $9677 per person with diabetes annually compared to $4669. Those figures have come from new research released by researchers from Deakin, La Trobe and Curtin University, who found the total cost of diabetes to Australia's healthcare system was $14.2 billion in 2024.
The Age
11 hours ago
- The Age
Greg was placed in an induced coma. The news he got on waking was a shock
It was November 2024, and Greg Bird had just woken up from an induced coma in Royal Perth Hospital after 20 days when he was given some horrific news. While he had been unconscious, his family had been told he was unlikely to survive after multiple organ failure brought on by Type 2 diabetes. Bird had no idea he even had the disease. The 60-year-old said he had gone in pain to the chemist, who called an ambulance for him. He was rushed to Midland Hospital before being transferred to Royal Perth Hospital and placed in the coma. 'The diabetes had been sitting there and building up and building up, and it led to the point where the whole system shut down,' he said. 'They didn't think I was going to make it.' Bird is one of millions of Australians living with diabetes for whom healthcare costs are, on average, double that of someone without the condition – $9677 per person with diabetes annually compared to $4669. Those figures have come from new research released by researchers from Deakin, La Trobe and Curtin University, who found the total cost of diabetes to Australia's healthcare system was $14.2 billion in 2024.
The Advertiser
2 days ago
- The Advertiser
Australia scores well in managing chronic health issues
Australia has a world-class health system for dealing with chronic conditions, a new survey has found. The country was one of the top five performers in the world when it comes to the quality of care, coordination of care, person-centred care and physical health. The findings were part of the the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) inaugural Patient-Reported Indicator Surveys. The Paris-based body collected data from 107,000 patients and 1800 primary care practices across 19 countries, including Australia. Achieving such high satisfaction in the personal care provided by GPs showed a world-class health system at work, The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care's Clinical Director Liz Marles said. Australia performed better than or close to the OECD average across all 10 areas measured in the survey. Dr Marles pointed to how 97 per cent of Australian patients surveyed, who had a single GP for three to five years, rated their care positively describing it as an "amazing result." "We know that where a person is able to establish a good relationship with a GP over the long term, they get much better outcomes and that leads to better trust in the system as a whole," she told AAP. "If you see the same GP over a period of time, they get to know you as a person, get to know your preferences, understand your context and they know what's going on in your life," the practising Sydney GP said. Nearly 2400 Australian patients aged 45 years and above, suffering from at least one chronic condition, and who visited a GP in the last six months gave feedback on their experiences and health outcomes for the survey. The most common chronic conditions reported included high blood pressure, arthritis or ongoing back and joint pain, depression, anxiety or other mental health issues, breathing and heart conditions. When it came to mental health, patients seeing their GPs were less than positive with Australia's ranking dipping to 13th out of 19. Dr Marles said the other health measures of the survey where Australia could have performed better were still close to the OECD averages but that did not prevent GPs and policymakers from making care more accessible. She pointed to geographical accessibility and financial considerations as presenting barriers to patients. "Our goal is to help patients who have chronic conditions not only survive but to thrive," Dr Marles said. The burden of chronic disease across the country is high, with one in two Australians having at least one chronic condition. An eye-watering $82 billion was spent on treating chronic diseases in 2022/23. Australia has a world-class health system for dealing with chronic conditions, a new survey has found. The country was one of the top five performers in the world when it comes to the quality of care, coordination of care, person-centred care and physical health. The findings were part of the the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) inaugural Patient-Reported Indicator Surveys. The Paris-based body collected data from 107,000 patients and 1800 primary care practices across 19 countries, including Australia. Achieving such high satisfaction in the personal care provided by GPs showed a world-class health system at work, The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care's Clinical Director Liz Marles said. Australia performed better than or close to the OECD average across all 10 areas measured in the survey. Dr Marles pointed to how 97 per cent of Australian patients surveyed, who had a single GP for three to five years, rated their care positively describing it as an "amazing result." "We know that where a person is able to establish a good relationship with a GP over the long term, they get much better outcomes and that leads to better trust in the system as a whole," she told AAP. "If you see the same GP over a period of time, they get to know you as a person, get to know your preferences, understand your context and they know what's going on in your life," the practising Sydney GP said. Nearly 2400 Australian patients aged 45 years and above, suffering from at least one chronic condition, and who visited a GP in the last six months gave feedback on their experiences and health outcomes for the survey. The most common chronic conditions reported included high blood pressure, arthritis or ongoing back and joint pain, depression, anxiety or other mental health issues, breathing and heart conditions. When it came to mental health, patients seeing their GPs were less than positive with Australia's ranking dipping to 13th out of 19. Dr Marles said the other health measures of the survey where Australia could have performed better were still close to the OECD averages but that did not prevent GPs and policymakers from making care more accessible. She pointed to geographical accessibility and financial considerations as presenting barriers to patients. "Our goal is to help patients who have chronic conditions not only survive but to thrive," Dr Marles said. The burden of chronic disease across the country is high, with one in two Australians having at least one chronic condition. An eye-watering $82 billion was spent on treating chronic diseases in 2022/23. Australia has a world-class health system for dealing with chronic conditions, a new survey has found. The country was one of the top five performers in the world when it comes to the quality of care, coordination of care, person-centred care and physical health. The findings were part of the the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) inaugural Patient-Reported Indicator Surveys. The Paris-based body collected data from 107,000 patients and 1800 primary care practices across 19 countries, including Australia. Achieving such high satisfaction in the personal care provided by GPs showed a world-class health system at work, The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care's Clinical Director Liz Marles said. Australia performed better than or close to the OECD average across all 10 areas measured in the survey. Dr Marles pointed to how 97 per cent of Australian patients surveyed, who had a single GP for three to five years, rated their care positively describing it as an "amazing result." "We know that where a person is able to establish a good relationship with a GP over the long term, they get much better outcomes and that leads to better trust in the system as a whole," she told AAP. "If you see the same GP over a period of time, they get to know you as a person, get to know your preferences, understand your context and they know what's going on in your life," the practising Sydney GP said. Nearly 2400 Australian patients aged 45 years and above, suffering from at least one chronic condition, and who visited a GP in the last six months gave feedback on their experiences and health outcomes for the survey. The most common chronic conditions reported included high blood pressure, arthritis or ongoing back and joint pain, depression, anxiety or other mental health issues, breathing and heart conditions. When it came to mental health, patients seeing their GPs were less than positive with Australia's ranking dipping to 13th out of 19. Dr Marles said the other health measures of the survey where Australia could have performed better were still close to the OECD averages but that did not prevent GPs and policymakers from making care more accessible. She pointed to geographical accessibility and financial considerations as presenting barriers to patients. "Our goal is to help patients who have chronic conditions not only survive but to thrive," Dr Marles said. The burden of chronic disease across the country is high, with one in two Australians having at least one chronic condition. An eye-watering $82 billion was spent on treating chronic diseases in 2022/23. Australia has a world-class health system for dealing with chronic conditions, a new survey has found. The country was one of the top five performers in the world when it comes to the quality of care, coordination of care, person-centred care and physical health. The findings were part of the the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) inaugural Patient-Reported Indicator Surveys. The Paris-based body collected data from 107,000 patients and 1800 primary care practices across 19 countries, including Australia. Achieving such high satisfaction in the personal care provided by GPs showed a world-class health system at work, The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care's Clinical Director Liz Marles said. Australia performed better than or close to the OECD average across all 10 areas measured in the survey. Dr Marles pointed to how 97 per cent of Australian patients surveyed, who had a single GP for three to five years, rated their care positively describing it as an "amazing result." "We know that where a person is able to establish a good relationship with a GP over the long term, they get much better outcomes and that leads to better trust in the system as a whole," she told AAP. "If you see the same GP over a period of time, they get to know you as a person, get to know your preferences, understand your context and they know what's going on in your life," the practising Sydney GP said. Nearly 2400 Australian patients aged 45 years and above, suffering from at least one chronic condition, and who visited a GP in the last six months gave feedback on their experiences and health outcomes for the survey. The most common chronic conditions reported included high blood pressure, arthritis or ongoing back and joint pain, depression, anxiety or other mental health issues, breathing and heart conditions. When it came to mental health, patients seeing their GPs were less than positive with Australia's ranking dipping to 13th out of 19. Dr Marles said the other health measures of the survey where Australia could have performed better were still close to the OECD averages but that did not prevent GPs and policymakers from making care more accessible. She pointed to geographical accessibility and financial considerations as presenting barriers to patients. "Our goal is to help patients who have chronic conditions not only survive but to thrive," Dr Marles said. The burden of chronic disease across the country is high, with one in two Australians having at least one chronic condition. An eye-watering $82 billion was spent on treating chronic diseases in 2022/23.
