What's new on the Closing the Gap Clearinghouse

A key feature of the Clearinghouse is the Assessed Collection. Subject specialists are assessing the evidence on what works across a range of topics relevant to the COAG Building Blocks for overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage. Some of the recent assessments have identified the following factors that work to close the gap on Indigenous disadvantage:
* a kidney and cardiovascular disease treatment program found that systematic treatment of Aboriginal people with hypertension, diabetes and/or renal disease is highly cost-effective;
* the importance of regard for local and community context is a significant feature that contributes to the success of programs aimed at increasing the level of Indigenous school attendance ;
* an early intervention program focusing on family functioning and social relationships mainstreamed into existing agencies such as schools and mental services could have an appreciable effect on improving community health and wellbeing.

Pragmatic indicators for remote Aboriginal maternal and infant health care: why it matters and where to start

Steenkamp M, Bar-Zeev S, Rumbold A, Barclay L, Kildea S (2010)

Pragmatic indicators for remote Aboriginal maternal and infant health care: why it matters and where to start. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health; 34:(S5-S8)

Contact your library if you would like a copy of this article.

View abstract: Wiley InterScience

Australia’s health 2010: the twelfth biennial health report of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2010). Australia’s health 2010: the twelfth biennial health report of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Canberra.

Australia’s health 2010 was released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare as the twelfth edition of its biennial national health report. The report shows that Australia is one of the healthiest nations in the world, with most Australians generally have good health and access to a range of good health care services, but Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples continue to have much poorer health than the general population.

Full report AIHW

Assessment of the unwell child

The Australian Family Physican journal has made free online a guideline on the assessment of the unwell child. The objective is to outline the early recognition and management of children who are seriously ill.

Renovascular Disease

Caring for Australians with Renal Impairment (CARI) has a new guideline on renovascular disease divided up into five parts.

Natural history and progression of atherosclerotic renal vascular stenosis
Screening tests for diagnosis of renal artery stenosis
Inhibition of the renin-angiotensin system
Endovascular treatment
Role of distal protection devices

They also have a number of other guidelines available.

New research on Coeliac Disease

Today, scientists at the Walter & Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research have announced a breakthrough in the study of a possible treatment for Coeliac Disease. Dr Bob Anderson and his team from Australia and the UK, have identified three toxic peptide components of gluten which seem to be responsible for the majority of problems. A drug company is already developing an immunotherapy which works by exposing people with coeliac disease to small amounts of the three toxic peptides and is based upon the same principles as desensitisation for allergies.

Anderson's research is published in today's issue of Science Translational Medicine. You can read about it on the website of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute or in their media release today.

International profiles of health care systems

This report, published by the Commonwealth Fund, presents overviews of the health care systems of 13 countries—Australia, Canada, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. A summary table presents information on population, health care spending, number of physicians, hospital spending and utilization, use of health information technology, and number of potentially avoidable deaths. Each country summary provides information on insurance coverage and benefits, health system financing, delivery system organization, quality assurance mechanisms, efforts to improve efficiency and control costs, and recent innovations and reforms.

Of these countries, only the UK spends less on health care as a percentage of GDP. On most other indicators Australia rates fairly lowly in the group as well.

National Health and Hospitals Network

The Australian Department of Health and Ageing has released the implementation plan of its health reform package. A National Health and Hospitals Network for Australia’s Future – Delivering the Reforms provides details of implementation activities over the coming months and years, including timelines and major milestones to implement the major health reform agreed by COAG in April 2010.

Just to remind you, the Government has undertaken to create a single national unified health system which is "nationally funded and locally run to ensure all Australians have access to affordable and high quality health care. The Commonwealth will become the dominant funder of hospital services and have full policy and funding responsibility for general practice, primary health care and aged care."

The Quality of Death

A new report places Australia second only to the UK in a ”Quality of Death” Index devised by the Economist Intelligence Unit , ranking countries according to their provision of end-of-life care. The Quality of Death: Ranking end-of-life care across the world is a white paper analysing the Index results and issues surrounding end-of-life care.

Professor Margaret O'Connor AM, President of Palliative Care Australia, warns, "Australia mustn't rest on its laurels. We still have a long way to go to ensure that all Australians can access high quality end of life care, delivered in the location of their choice in a culturally appropriate manner. We need to improve funding and delivery of community based palliative care, and to rapidly increase training in the field to better meet our health care needs."

The future in public health

"Where is the future in public health?" by Hilary Graham, explores how the future is represented in contemporary public health, examining both its conceptual base and influential approaches through which evidence is generated for policy.

The author found that rather than facilitating sustained engagement with future conditions and future health, public health research is focusing on today’s population. "While their orientation to the present and near future aligns well with the compressed timescales for policy delivery on which democratic governments tend to work, it makes it difficult for the public health community to direct attention to conditions for future health." Graham emphasises the need for research perspectives and practices that, consistent with public health’s conceptual and ethical foundations, represent the interests of both tomorrow’s and today’s populations.

The Milbank Quarterly, 88(2), 2010.

Caring for people with chronic conditions

Caring for people with chronic conditions : a health system perspective, edited by Ellen Nolte and Martin McKee, has made available free online by the World Health Organisation.

"The complex nature of many chronic diseases, which affect people in many different ways, requires a multifaceted response that will meet the needs of the individual patient. The traditional relationship between an individual patient and a single doctor is inappropriate, yet there is little agreement about what should replace it. Many countries are experimenting with new approaches to delivering care in ways that meet the complex needs of people with chronic disorders, redesigning delivery systems to coordinate activities across the continuum of care. This book synthesises the evidence on what we know works (or does not) in different circumstances, and addresses the prerequisites for effective policies and management of chronic disease."

Published by Open University Press, European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies series, 2008, xxxii + 256 pages ISBN 978 0 335 23370 0

Wind turbines and health

The NHMRC has released a report assessing the possible health issues surrounding wind turbines. Wind power has been gaining prominence as a viable sustainable alternative to other forms of energy production but not without controversy. Those who oppose the development of wind farms contend that wind turbines can adversely impact the health of individuals living in close proximity. The report is in two parts:

Public Statement - Presenting the potential health impacts of wind turbines on people living in close proximity. The Statement concludes that there is currently no published scientific evidence to positively link wind turbines with adverse health effects.

Evidence Review - Presenting findings from a rapid review of the evidence from current literature on the issue of wind turbines and potential impacts on human health. The Review focuses on concerns regarding the adverse health impacts of infrasound, noise, electromagnetic interference, shadow flicker and blade glint produced by wind turbines.

Age Matters - ABS newsletter

The Australian Bureau of Statistics publishes a regular newsletter called Age Matters, which includes topical articles and reviews of ABS publications related to the ageing population. It includes other information of likely interest to ageing researchers and policy makers and also links to the ageing theme page on the ABS website for ageing-relevant ABS datasets and other web sites.

Evidence-Based Child Health

A special issue of Evidence-Based Child Health: A Cochrane Review Journal presents current Cochrane reviews which address important questions in neonatology. The new Cochrane PICO format is utilised, providing easy-to-read summaries of the Cochrane reviews highlighted in the issue with clear outcomes that can advise decision-making. A range of topics are covered, providing a breadth of evidence for physicians. The issue is free online.

Rhythm of Life: Music Shows Potential in Stroke Rehabilitation

Music therapy provided by trained music therapists may help to improve movement in stroke patients, according to a new Cochrane Systematic Review. A few small trials also suggest a wider role for music in recovery from brain injury. See the full review here.

Australian social trends, Jun 2010

Released quarterly, Australian Social Trends presents analysis and commentary on a wide range of social issues. The June edition includes articles on: Population growth; Child care; Mens health; Underemployment; and, Environmental awareness and action.

Blood borne virus and sexually transmissible infections strategy

The national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander blood borne virus and sexually transmissible infections strategy for 2010 - 2013 has been published. This is one of a set of five national strategies aimed at reducing the transmission of sexually transmissible infections (STIs) and blood borne viruses (BBVs) and their morbidity, mortality and personal and social impacts.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities continue to face significant public health issues and challenges around BBVs and STIs including:

• sustained and unacceptably high rates of bacterial STIs


• the rate of acquisition of HIV and viral hepatitis through injecting drug use


• continued new HIV infections among men who have sex with men.

Available here.

Taking preventative action - a response to Australia: The healthiest country by 2020

In October 2008, the National Preventative Health Taskforce released a discussion paper, 'Australia: the healthiest country by 2020' and three associated technical papers on obesity, tobacco and alcohol.

This report is the Government’s response to the National Preventative Health Taskforce report.

How we use and abuse statistics

The International Journal of Clinical Practice has made available a special free issue on the use and abuse of statistics.

You can read the Editorial by Associate Editor Les Citrome, Professor of Psychiatry at the New York University School of Medicine: Nine out of ten doctors prefer Camels! Three brief essays regarding how we use and abuse statistics,and also read the articles:

1.Death by confounding: bias and mortality S. N. Ghaemi, S. B. Thommi

2. Statistics in drug advertising: what they reveal is suggestive what they hide is vital J. Lexchin

3. The population attributable fraction and confounding: buyer beware D. F. Williamson

Oral healthcare delivery

You can enjoy FREE online access to a special issue:Improving Oral Healthcare Delivery Systems through Workforce Innovations in the Journal of Public Health Dentistry. The authors evaluate oral health care delivery system performance for specific populations’ needs and explore the roles that the workforce can play in improving the care delivery model.

Emergency Care Information Gateway

The Gateway aims to provide access nationally to evidence-based health care resources for clinicians and others working in the emergency care sector. Access is free and links you to the latest emergency care research and locally developed evidence based clinical tools.
The Gateway has been developed to support the exchange of resources and sharing of ideas that will promote improved emergency care.

Access the site here.

Insights into Care: Patients’ Perspectives on NSW Public Hospitals

Insights into Care: Patients’ Perspectives on NSW Public Hospitals, the first report published by the Bureau of Health Information, is now available. Insights into Care is based on analysis of the NSW Health Patient Survey 2009 and provides information about patient experiences with hospital care in NSW.