More doctors in cities, report says

Patients in major cities are blessed with more doctors and specialists per person than those in remote areas, new health statistics reveal.

In the cities there are slightly more than four doctors for every 1000 people, compared to fewer than three in remoter parts of the country.

Overall the supply is 380 per 100,000, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare says in its latest report.

The institute broadly categorises medical practitioners as clinicians, administrators, teachers and researchers, and includes GPs and specialists.

It said there were just over 95,000 medical practitioners registered in Australia in 2013.

Almost two in five are women, while one in four were 55 or older.