A positive response to the Private Health Public Benefit campaign launched by Private Healthcare Australia with over 700 entries since it was launched in April.
The campaign was launched to encourage Australians to share their stories about private health.
"As you know there are many good news stories about the care provided in the private sector, about hospitals, health funds and medical practitioners supporting patients above and beyond what is expected, however in the current sea of coordinated complaint seeking surveys and political propaganda, these stories are rarely heard," said Private Healthcare Australia CEO Dr Rachel David at the campaign launch.
The campaign includes a short-story competition based on the experiences of people with private healthcare. Winners, who are selected by a judging panel comprised of representatives from private health insurers, healthcare professionals and private hospitals, can win a weekly prize of $200 or the major prize of $2000.
The campaign website has so far received more than 4,000 unique visitors and more than 1,200 people have visited the Facebook site.
Entries have raised a range of experiences, including pregnancy complications, young people using their private health insurance as a result of an accident or serious unexpected issue, dental treatment, and sick or injured children.
HealthDispatch will showcase some of the individual patient experiences in the weeks ahead.