A proper oral health surveillance system in Australia is lacking. An oral health surveillance system is a large enterprise that will require piecemeal development involving proof-of-concept, a feasibility study, a demonstration case, and implementation of a working prototype, before a full-fledged system can be put in place.

Malnutrition in community-living older adults is a prevalent but under-recognised condition. This study demonstrated that a model of care designed to improve the identification and management of malnutrition improved staff knowledge about malnutrition and patient awareness of risk factors for malnutrition. The study provides evidence that routine malnutrition screening and accompanying pathways for management can be incorporated into general practice, with promising effects on patient outcomes.

Diet-related chronic diseases are the leading cause of death and disability worldwide, and primary care provides an ideal setting to provide nutrition care to people at risk of chronic disease. This paper provides health consumer views on how the nutrition care model should be tailored to meet patient needs. The findings highlight the need for practice and healthcare system change to the current model of nutrition care in Australia to better meet the needs of patients.

South Asian migrants share diverse characteristics and have comparatively higher risks to chronic diseases with lower utilisation of health services. We explored various socio-cultural factors that influence their perception and practice to access health services. Their preference to seek health information from families and use of home remedies to manage illness are critical to the health system to consider while designing relevant policies, care models and programs.

Policies incentives have been initiated to encourage the use of community health centres for initial diagnosis, but it is unclear how the effects of those policies are for certain patients. Both financial and non-financial policy incentives are useful tools to attract more visitors to community health centres for initial diagnosis; however, their incentive effects vary in different subgroups. Policymakers should consider the heterogeneous responses of patients to policy incentives and focus their efforts on key cohorts.

Preconception care can improve pregnancy outcomes, childhood health and the health of future generations, but many men and women in Australia are not receiving this service. Primary health care nurses are the largest workforce in primary health in Australia and are ideally placed to deliver preconception care. Collaborative education programs, the development of resources and consideration of financial incentives for primary care practices can enhance the primary health care nurses’ capacity to provide preconception care.