Christmas stories

Merry Christmas to all the supporters of our blog.  We will be having a little break now to enjoy the festive season with our families and friends but will be back with more health news, reports and online research tools in 2012.

Here are a few interesting stories to leave you with:
Feeling under the weather?  You've got Christmas Tree Syndrome, is an item in Britain's Telegraph reporting on an article in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, about how Christmas trees  might be making you sick, due to mould.

Christmas tips to reduce stress - on the Victorian Government's Better Health Channel.  Lots of ideas on staying calm and dealing with relationships, meals, shopping, budgeting, and more.

Try the BMJ's Christmas picture quiz.  This journal always has fun articles in their Christmas issue - have a look as well at What the Three Wise Men have to say about diagnosis and, for the new year perhaps, Neo-evolution : is Homo sapiens ready?

Australia's mothers and babies, 2009

The Australian Institute of Health & Welfare has just released Australia's mothers and babies 2009, a report which shows that Australian women continue to wait longer to have children. The average age of women who gave birth in Australia has increased steadily from 29.0 years in 2000 to reach 30.0 years in 2009.  Approximately 41.6% of women were having their first baby and the average age for first time mothers was 27.


In 2009, 294,540 women gave birth to 299,220 babies in Australia. The increase in births continued, with 2,295 more births (0.8%) than reported in 2008. Smoking while pregnant was reported by 14.5% of all mothers, by 37.0% of teenage mothers and almost half (49.6%) of Indigenous mothers.  In 2009, 863 women had a homebirth, representing 0.3% of all women who gave birth.

Cost of poor dental health - report

The Brotherhood of St Laurence has released a report analysing the costs of poor dental health on the economy and those least able to afford dental care. Millions of people are financially locked out of Australia's expensive dental health system, undermining their capacity to gain and keep employment and at an annual cost to the economy of more than $1.3 billion.

End the Decay: The cost of poor dental health and what should be done about it, analysed existing data to estimate the disease burden of untreated dental conditions - and the resulting economic burden. The report's authors, Professor Jeff Richardson from Monash University and Bronwyn Richardson from Campbell Research and Consulting, found that the direct and indirect costs to the economy are significant.

Health Statistics NSW

Health Statistics NSW is an interactive, web-based application that allows users to access data and tailor reports about the health of the New South Wales population for their own use. Health Statistics NSW is a NSW Government initiative and provides information on:

• the health status and demography of the NSW community


• health inequalities and the determinants of health


• the burden of disease and current health challenges


• trends in health and comparisons between age groups and geographic locations.

Case management: What it is and how it can best be implemented

Case management is a well-established way of integrating services around the complex needs of people with long-term conditions. "Case Management: What it is and how it can best be implemented" examines how delivery of integrated care for people with long-term conditions can be improved. The authors explore the questions:
What is case management?
What are the core components of a case management programme?
What are the benefits of case management when it is implemented effectively?
What factors need to be in place for successful case management?
One of the authors, Nick Goodwin of the Kings Fund, has also made available a slide presentation of the highlights of the publication.

2010 Australian national infant feeding survey: indicator results

The 2010 Australian National Infant Feeding Survey is the first specialised national survey of infant feeding practices in Australia. The survey also collected information on attitudes towards, and enablers for and barriers against breastfeeding. This report by AIHW provides baseline data on key infant feeding indicators, including: most babies (96%) were initially breastfed, but only 39% were exclusively breastfed for less than 4 months, and 15% for less than 6 months; overall 35% of infants were introduced to solid foods by 4 months of age and 92% by the recommended age of 6 months; around 7% of infants drank cow's milk by 6 months, with most not starting until the recommended age of 12 months.

List of 56 best interventions will help to reduce maternal and child deaths

A study has identified 56 essential interventions which are most likely to improve the health and safety of mothers, infants, and young children and help countries to meet Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5. The list of evidence based interventions includes screening and treating pregnant women for anaemia and hypertension, preventing and managing post-partum haemorrhage, immediate thermal care for newborns, and antibiotics for the treatment of pneumonia in children.
Every year 358 000 women die during pregnancy and childbirth and 7.6 million children die before the age of 5, says the study. More than half of maternal deaths are caused by excessive bleeding (35%) and hypertension (18%). Half of newborn babies die during the first 24 hours of life and 75% during the first week of life, mainly from preterm birth, severe infections, and asphyxia.The list will help policy makers set priorities and decide where to put their funds and resources, say the World Health Organization, the Aga Khan University, and the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, which supported the three year study.

Read or download "Essential Interventions, Commodities and Guidelines for Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health".

Glen's story - hospital associated infections

The Victorian Infection Control Professionals Association (VICPA) has produced a video to show how hospital associated infections can have a serious impact on a person’s health outcomes.
In Australia each year, it is estimated there are 200,000 hospital-associated infections and many of these infections are preventable. The VICPA video, Glen’s story, aims to support healthcare professionals in their infection prevention and control initiatives. The video was produced with the assistance and support of a family who share their experience and the impact that acquiring a hospital associated infection has had on their lives.

Health Systems Evidence

Health Systems Evidence, an initiative of McMaster University, "is a continuously updated repository of syntheses of research evidence about governance, financial and delivery arrangements within health systems, and about implementation strategies that can support change in health systems. Over time Health Systems Evidence will also contain a continuously updated repository of economic evaluations in these same domains, descriptions of health system reforms, and descriptions of health systems."
It is a free access point for evidence to support policymakers, stakeholders and researchers interested in how to strengthen or reform health systems.
It is free to register to gain access to the site.

The Parental Brain

This special issue of the Journal of Neuroendocrinology is all about parenthood and the changes in the brain that facilitate successful rearing of the next generation. This special issue also provides insight into what we are now beginning to understand about the coinciding changes that occur in the 'parental brain'. It features a collection of original research articles and reviews submitted following the Parental Brain Conference, held in Edinburgh on 1-4 September 2010.
Click here to read all the articls for free.

Facilitating the use of research evidence

This free virtual issue of the Millbank Quarterly includes twenty-two articles and two commentaries that have been published in the Quarterly between 2001 and 2011. All of the articles in this issue pertain to facilitating the use of research evidence. The overall theme in the articles on this topic is that the practical use of health services research (broadly defined) is something that can be facilitated.

Interventions for preventing obesity in children

This review primarily aims to update the previous Cochrane review of childhood obesity prevention research and determine the effectiveness of evaluated interventions intended to prevent obesity in children, assessed by change in Body Mass Index (BMI). Secondary aims were to examine the characteristics of the programs and strategies to answer the questions "What works for whom, why and for what cost?"

Online Resource for Clinical Effectiveness Reviews

NLM's National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), in partnership with England's national Centre for Reviews and Dissemination, the Cochrane Collaboration, the US Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and other agencies in the US and abroad, now makes available more than 18,000 clinical effectiveness reviews via PubMed Health. PubMed Health organizes these clinical effectiveness research results, including full texts as well as summary information, for consumers and clinicians.

Closing the Gap Clearinghouse

A new resource sheet for the Closing the Gap Clearinghouse (set up to publish evidence-based research on overcoming disadvantage for Indigenous Australians by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare), is  Effective practices for service delivery coordination in Indigenous communities This resource explores what is known about service delivery coordination activities in regional, rural and remote areas of Australia. It examines the principles that underpin service delivery coordination efforts to improve the wellbeing of Indigenous Australians.

There are now several resource sheets and papers on the Closing the Gap Clearinghouse site.

Aged care reform information sheets

The National Aged Care Alliance has published a number of information sheets designed to inform health professionals and the public about changes recommended by the Productivity Commission. Titles of the sheets are:

• Aged Care and Access to the Gateway
• Aged Care Services - Access and Consumer Protections
• The Aged Care Workforce
• Dementia and Aged Care Reform
• Entitlement to Aged Care Services and Greater Choice
• Health Reform and Aged Care
• Paying for Aged Care
• Quality Aged Care Services
• Special Needs Groups - Access and Consumer Protections

Australian dietary guidelines - NHMRC draft

Drafts of the Australian Dietary Guidelines and the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating have been released by the NHMRC for public comment.  The Guidelines provide information for health professionals and the general population to reduce the risk of diet-related disease, encouraging healthy dietary patterns to promote and maintain the nutrition-related health and wellbeing of the Australian population.

The revised Australian Dietary Guidelines have been updated with recent scientific evidence about the relationships between food, dietary patterns and health outcomes. They are based on foods and food groups, rather than nutrients as in the 2003 edition.  The evidence base has strengthened for:

• The association between the consumption of sugar sweetened drinks and the risk of excessive weight gain 
• The health benefits of breastfeeding
• The association between the consumption of milk and decreased risk of heart disease and some cancers
• The association between the consumption of fruit and decreased risk of heart disease
• The association between the consumption of non-starchy vegetables and decreased risk of some cancers
• The association between the consumption of wholegrain cereals and decreased risk of heart disease and excessive weight gain.

Submissions are invited on the guidelines until Wednesday, 29 February, 2012.  Supporting resources and submission instructions can be found here.

On be(com)ing a good doctor

Students are often resistent to thinking in new and different ways about the problems patients bring to them, but need to learn how, if medical care is to be genuinely caring, according to
Annette Braunack-Mayer who has written a very interesting article in Australian Review of Public Affairs. She addresses the question of "how do we train medical students to become morally sensitive doctors?"
Read the full article here.

Youth Mentoring

This report by Melanie Thomson and Lauren Costello of the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute, looks at national and international evidence on the value for investment of youth mentoring and identifies evidence regarding the social and economic benefits for youth of quality one-to-one relationship based mentoring. Youth mentoring is, according to the Australian Youth Mentoring Network, defined as ‘a structured and trusting relationship that brings young people together with caring individuals who offer guidance, support and encouragement’. The goal of youth mentoring is to enhance social engagement and thereby minimise negative behaviours through growth in social and developmental behaviours. .

European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control TV

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has produced a number of short online videos on such topics as;

• Childhood Tuberculosis


• Influenza Epidemics


• Antimicrobial Resistance


• HIV

Click here to go to the website.

Australian Women’s Health Network

Read the latest AWHN newsletter and updates on women's health policy and women's health services here.

Australian guideline for treatment of problem gambling

The Problem Gambling Research and Treatment Centre (PGRTC) at Monash University has developed the first guideline to address problem gambling in Australia - Guideline for screening, assessment and treatment in problem gambling.  It has been developed in response to the need for problem gambling services, practitioners and policymakers to have evidence-based guidance in the design and delivery of treatments for people with gambling problems. The growing availability of a research base in problem gambling has helped make this possible.

An abridged outline of this guideline has been published by MJA.  MJA Online First, 22 November 2011 : doi: 10.5694/mja11.11088

Domestic violence in Australia: an overview of the issues 2011

This background note by Liesl Mitchell of the Parliamentary Library is a guide to research and resources on domestic violence in Australia. It includes an overview of research on the prevalence of domestic violence, attitudes and risk factors, at risk groups and communities and the costs of domestic violence to communities and to the economy. It also covers policy approaches designed to prevent domestic violence, a survey of current Australian Government programs and initiatives and a review of future directions in domestic violence prevention. Appendix A contains extensive links to sources of further information on domestic violence in Australia.

Shared Care in Mental Illness

"Shared care in mental illness : a rapid review to inform implementation" is recent article by Brian J. Kelly and others.  The authors present a review of the evidence on shared care models of ambulatory mental health services. It was found that shared care models resulted in improved social function, self management skills, service acceptability, reduced hospitalisation, greater access to specialist care and better engagement with and acceptability of mental health services in some clinical settings. Effective shared care models incorporated linkages across various service levels, clinical monitoring within agreed treatment protocols, improved continuity and comprehensiveness of services.

International Journal of Mental Health Systems 2011, 5:31 doi:10.1186/1752-4458-5-31

BreastScreen Australia monitoring report

AIHW has also released the BreastScreen Australia Monitoring Report 2008-2009.  More than 1.3 million women aged 50-69 participated in BreastScreen Australia in 2008-2009, equivalent to around 55% of the target age group. Deaths from breast cancer are at an historic low at 47 deaths per 100,000 women aged 50-69 in 2007.

In 2007, there were 6,297 new cases of breast cancer and 1,085 deaths.  In 2009, 11% of women screened for the first time were recalled for further investigation, whereas for women attending subsequent screens, 4% were recalled. For every 10,000 women screened for the first time, 80 had an invasive breast cancer detected, whereas for every 10,000 women attending subsequent screens, 45 had an invasive breast cancer detected.

Oral health and dental care in Australia

Oral health and dental care in Australia : key facts and figures 2011, has been released this week by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.  Some of the findings include the fact that:

• In 2010, approximately 21% of adults aged 65 and over were edentulous (without natural teeth).  Of these people, nearly half (47%) wore dentures.
• In 2010, around 15% of adults reported experiencing toothache in the previous 12 months, and 25% reported feeling uncomfortable about their dental appearance. 
• In 2010, 64% of persons aged 5 and over visited a dentist in the previous year, ranging from 78% in children aged 5–14, to 57% in adults aged 25–44. 
• The majority (54%) of persons aged 5 and over had some level of private dental cover, with those living in Major cities (59%) having higher rates of insurance than those in Inner regional (47%) and Outer regional areas (46%).  
• In 2009–10 the total expenditure on dental services was $7,690 million, a 13% increase from the previous year. 

The capacity for the dental labour force to supply dental visits is expected to range between 33.0 and 40.1 million visits by 2020, compared to a projected demand for between 33.6 and 44.1 million visits.

Cancer in Adolescents and Young Adults in Australia

Cancer in adolescents and young adults in Australia presents the latest available incidence, survival and mortality statistics on cancer in young Australians aged 15 to 29. The incidence of cancer in this age group has become steady since the mid-1990s while cancer mortality has fallen between 1983 and 2007. Survival from cancer in adolescents and young adults has been relatively high and has improved with time, although cancer outcomes vary across population groups. Melanoma was the most common cancer diagnosed and brain cancer was the leading cause of cancer death.

Cancers in adolescents and young adults are uncommon but can cause a substantial disease burden. This is the first report to present a comprehensive picture of national statistics on cancer in young Australians and it provides an evidence base to underpin improvements in cancer outcomes.

International Profiles of Health Care Systems

This publication presents overviews of the health care systems of Australia, Canada, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. Each overview covers health insurance, public and private financing, health system organisation, quality of care, health disparities, efficiency and integration, use of health information technology, use of evidence-based practice, cost containment, and recent reforms and innovations.

Electronic Health Records: An International Perspective on "Meaningful Use"

This paper was published by the Commonwealth Fund in the US and describes the extent of meaningful use  of EHRs in three countries with very high levels of health information technology adoption—Denmark, New Zealand, and Sweden.  The United states is endeavouring to The U.S. has now embarked on a major effort to achieve "meaningful use" of health information technology by clinicians and hospitals and is hoping to take some lessons from these international examples.

Australia's Welfare 2011

Australia's welfare 2011 is the 10th biennial welfare report of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. It presents the latest national statistics on welfare services and factors influencing wellbeing in Australia. Topics include: children and young people; disability and disability services; ageing and aged care; informal carers; homelessness; housing assistance; community services workforce; welfare expenditure.  Australia's shifting geographic profile, changing workforce and education patterns, and developing trends in family structure means that welfare needs are complex and diverse.

Australia's welfare 2011 in brief presents selected highlights from the above report.

Speaking Out About Reducing Alcohol-Related Harm on Children and Young People

This report was prepared for the Commissioner for Children and Young People in Western Australia. The interviews and online survey canvassed young people’s views on a broad range of topics. These included knowledge of standard drinks and the national alcohol guidelines, the main influences on their decisions about drinking alcohol, their concerns about harms that arise from alcohol consumption and their views and ideas on strategies to reduce these harms.

Groups were comprised of young people with a range of alcohol consumption patterns and varied socio-economic backgrounds. Interviews were also undertaken with Aboriginal young people, young people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and those considered at increased likelihood of engaging in highrisk alcohol consumption. Some issues specific to different groups have been noted and are identified in the report. However, due to the low numbers of young people involved, caution should be used in extrapolating the comments to the broader population of young people.

Trends in Young People's Wellbeing and the Effects of the School-to-Work Transition

This briefing paper explores the link between wellbeing and the stages of transition of participants from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) from 1995 to 2006. The paper also examines trends in the physical, emotional and psychological health of young people. The report finds that, although young people are generally disability-free, there are some concerning trends in their wellbeing over time. Notable changes in life satisfaction ratings of young people are also observed during the transition process and coincide with different milestones at different stages.

(Free registration to LSAY is required to access this paper)

Guide to the Model Work Health and Safety Regulations

This paper, by Safe Work Australia, provides an overview of the structure of the Model Work Health and Safety Regulations, cross references to relevant additional Regulations, and references to provisions of the Model Work Health and Safety Act. This Guide will help readers identify what duties or rights are contained in each Part of the Regulations. Where defined terms are provided by the Regulations, a non-exhaustive list of these has been included. Click on this link to access the Model Work Health and Safety Regulations.

Therapeutic Residential Care in Australia : Taking Stock and Looking Forward

Therapeutic residential care is becoming an increasingly relevant out-of-home care option for children and young people with multiple and complex needs. It is a new and developing approach in Australia, one aimed not simply at containment of the “hard cases” - as is often the case in traditional residential care—but rather at actively facilitating healing and recovery from the effects of abuse, neglect and separation from family. In this Issues Paper, therapeutic residential care is described and contrasted with other models of out-of-home care. The theory and evidence supporting the use of this form of care are examined and used to develop a set of key elements, which, it is argued, should guide the provision of therapeutic residential care in Australia.

This growing interest in how best to offer a healing, therapeutic environment within the context of residential care led to a proposal to hold a national workshop, which was endorsed by the Community and Disability Services Ministers’ Advisory Council (CDSMAC) in late 2009. The National Therapeutic Residential Care Workshop was subsequently held in Melbourne in September 2010. The workshop brought practitioners and service providers together with researchers and government policy-makers. This paper, by the Australian Institute of Family Studies, draws on the proceedings of that workshop, Australian and international literature, and information about current models offered by jurisdictions within Australia to provide a picture of the increasing investment in therapeutic residential care and the key elements that characterise this model of care.

People Living With Psychotic Illness : a SANE response

A study of thousands of people with psychotic illness provides evidence of the need to provide more support and better-coordinated community mental health services in Australia. The important new study People Living with Psychotic Illness released by the Department of Health and Ageing is the largest ever carried out in Australia on the impact of conditions such as schizophrenia.

This paper from SANE Australia summarises the key findings of the Department's report, and outlines the action needed in response to them. SANE Australia has identified several areas for action including:
• Wider education across the community to identify people who may be in need of assessment;• More access to psychosocial rehabilitation/recovery programs to continue education and find employment;• Focused assistance to help people manage and reduce symptoms and continued research to improve effectiveness of treatments;• Regular focus on physical health including targeted quit smoking resources; • Simplify the system so people can connect with the support they need;• More education and support to GPs treating people with psychotic illness;• More public housing including supported accommodation.

People Living With Psychotic Illness 2010

This report, from the Australian Department of Health and Ageing, is part of the National Mental Health Strategy. It is the second national survey of psychotic illness which was conducted in 2010 to provide updated estimates of the number of people being treated for psychosis and to determine who these people are, the health services they receive and the impact of these illnesses.The survey provides information on adults aged 18-64 years with psychotic illness in contact with public specialised mental health services, as well as those receiving mental health services from non-government organisations. See also: People living with psychosis: A SANE response

7 Billion+ - new UNSW population site

The world’s population is growing extremely quickly with another billion people added in a little over a decade. In this special website, 7 billion +, the University of New South Wales presents guidance and food for thought from some of its many independent academic experts, with a focus on Australia.  Topics covered are:

• Health systems
• Water
• Food security
• Ageing population
• Energy
• Economy
• Climate

Professor Jeffrey Braithwaite writes in the health systems section, "Keep going at this rate, and there will be an earth inevitably so depleted and unhealthy that it will support none of us. And after two million years of human existence, ... Exit, Homo sapiens: a drastic solution to the population problem." He also warns that in Australia we will need one million aged care workers by 2025 to support our ageing population.

Comorbidity booklets from NDARC

The National Drug & Alcohol Research Centre has launched a series of new resources for those living with both substance use and mental health issues. The five booklets – Anxiety and Substance Use, Mood and Substance Use, Personality and Substance Use, Psychosis and Substance Use, and Trauma and Substance Use – are targeted at consumers of mental health and alcohol and other drug services Australia-wide.

Click here to order copies.

Pharmaceuticals in the environment

This week's Health Report on ABC's Radio National had an in-depth report on the hazards of pharmaceuticals entering our waterways via waste water.  Reporter Corinne Podger interviewed Dr Stuart Khan who heads the Trace Chemical Contaminants research team at the University of NSW, David Cunliffe, principal water quality advisor with the South Australian Department of Health, Professor Alistair Boxall from York University and Dr Richard Cuthbert from Britain's Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.  All expressed great concern about where prescription drugs end up if flushed down the sink or when leaving our bodies. 

Apparently 300 million prescriptions are filled each year in Australia, and many are quite toxic. One study found alarming levels of antibiotics in vultures, and another found male fish taking on female characteristics after ingesting oestrogen from contraceptive pills. More studies are needed on the effects on drinking water and on humans and other plants and animals and there are calls for better prescribing and better disposal of unwanted drugs.

Listen to the podcast or read the transcript here.

New diabetes clinical care guidelines

The National Evidence-Based Clinical Care Guidelines for Type 1 Diabetes for Children, Adolescents and Adults has been developed by the Australasian Paediatric Endocrine Group and the Australian Diabetes Society.

This guideline is an update of the NHMRC approved Clinical practice guidelines: Type 1 diabetes in children and adolescents (2005). The scope of the guideline has been extended to address the needs of adults and the transition period from adolescence to adulthood, including pregnancy. This is the first Australian evidence-based guideline for type 1 diabetes that addresses clinical care across the whole lifespan.

Allergic rhinitis (hay fever) in Australia

Hay fever effects a vast number of Australians each year and over $220 million was spent last year in prevention methods. About 3.1 million Australians, or 15% of the population, suffer from hay fever, making it one of the most common chronic respiratory conditions in Australia, according to a report released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).

ANZ Journal of Surgery toolkit

ANZ Journal of Surgery is dedicated to the promotion of outstanding surgical practice and research of contemporary and international interest in Australia and New Zealand. Freely available on their website is a Toolkit linking you to definitions, classification data, and suturing and knot tying. They also give free access to some articles.

Myocardial Infarction Topic Resource

The Myocardial Infarction Topic Resource Center was created to help clinicians keep up to date with the latest news and advances in the diagnosis and treatment of myocardial infarction. The site includes links to a number of review articles and patient resources.

National Ageing Research Institute

A new webpage listing tools and resources developed by NARI (alone or in collaboration with other organisations) has been added to NARI (National Ageing Research Institute) website. This section includes links directly to the tool/resource and links to the Research section of the NARI website that provides details of project staff, project partners, funding source, project summary and report.

Women's Health

Women’s Health Study reveals resilient rural women are still short-changed in health. A special report on rural-urban differences from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health (ALSWH), based at the Universities of Newcastle and Queensland, highlights the resilience of rural women during drought. Rural women have poorer health in general and worse access to health services than those in cities- and the health care they get is inadequate. The risk and prevalence of diabetes and hypertension are much higher for women (of all ages) with increasing distance from major cities. Rural women were more likely to die from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and ischaemic heart disease than women in urban areas. The report shows that women in rural areas have higher levels of risk factors for heart disease. Obesity, which is strongly associated with increased risk of diabetes and hypertension, is much higher for country women of all ages. Read more here.

Two new drug and alcohol reports

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) has this week released these reports:
Drugs in Australia 2010: tobacco, alcohol and other drugs, provides a comprehensive summary of Australians' consumption of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs and use of treatment services. It also includes information about drug-related health issues, and drugs in the context of crime and law enforcement. 

In 2010, 15% of Australians aged 14 years or over were daily smokers, and 24% were ex-smokers. 59% had never smoked. Daily smoking rates have fallen by more than a third over the past two decades, from 24% in 1991.  78% of Australians over 12 had consumed alcohol over the previous year in 2010, including 46% who drank at least weekly.  Most people drank at levels that did not put them at risk of harm, but 28% of males and 11% of females drank alcohol at levels that put them at risk of alcohol-related harm over their lifetime. In addition, 23% of males and 9% of females consumed alcohol in quantities that put them at risk of alcohol-related injury from a single drinking occasion at least weekly. An estimated 13.1% of people aged 14 years or older had driven a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol in 2010.

Alcohol and other drug treatment services in Australia 2009-10: report on the National Minimum Data Set reveals that around 170,000 treatment episodes for alcohol and other drug use were provided in Australia in 2009-10. Almost half were for treatment related to alcohol use-the highest proportion observed since the collection began in 2001. As with previous years, counselling was the most common type of treatment offered. One in ten episodes involved more than one type of treatment.

Dementia guide for occupational therapists

Osborne Park Hospital in WA has published a resource called Dementia: Osborne Park Hospital Guide for Occupational Therapists in Clinical Practice, and it is available freely online.  It is an evidence-based guide developed by clinicians for clinicians.  “To our knowledge there was, and is, no comparable resource available in Australia or in other parts of the world, and as such is both innovative and will lead to excellence in occupational therapy services through the consistent use of current evidence-based interventions.” says Heather Freegard, Project Coordinator, WA Dementia Training and Study Centre, Curtin University.

The contents include : definitions and natural course of dementia, occupational therapy guidelines and standards for dementia care, occupational therapy strategies for aspects of dementia care (Driving, ADL, wandering etc), and a section on the caring role of families.

New mental health app for young men

The Work Out app, designed specifically for young men was launched for trial last week by the Minister for Mental Health and Ageing, Mark Butler.  Developed independently by the Inspire Foundation and the University of Sydney’s Brain and Mind Research Institute, it aims to encourage help-seeking by young men  for their mental health.

“About one in four young people aged between 16 and 24 experience a mental disorder, yet more than 80 per cent of young men do not seek the help they need, often because of stigma or they feel that asking for help is a sign of weakness,” Mr Butler said. “They are more likely to try and ‘tough it out’ or may turn to alcohol and illicit drugs to mask the symptoms of depression or other mental illnesses.”  The idea is that young men can access help via this app in a non-intimidating way. It guides people through a mental health survey, gives advice for improving their wellbeing and shares tips and advice from various role models.

Lung cancer report

The rate of new cases of lung cancer among women has risen while the rates for men have fallen, according to a new report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and Cancer Australia. Lung cancer in Australia in 2011 : an overview is the first comprehensive summary of national statistics on lung cancer in Australia. "The report shows the number of new lung cancers increased markedly in both sexes between 1982 and 2007," said AIHW spokesperson Chris Sturrock. "But when the age structure and size of the population are taken into account, lung cancer incidence fell by 32% in men but rose by 72% in women."

The differing directions in lung cancer incidence rates in men and women may be attributed to the fact that smoking rates in men decreased from the 1960s but for women, the rates did not decrease until the 1970s. Data in this report provide a comprehensive picture of lung cancer in Australia including how lung cancer rates differ by geographical area, socioeconomic status, indigenous status and country of birth.

Assisted reproductivity technology report

In 2009, there were 70,541 assisted reproductive technology treatment cycles undertaken in Australian and New Zealand. Of these cycles, 17.2% resulted in a live delivery and in total, 13,114 liveborn babies were born following ART treatment in 2009. The most important trend in ART treatment has been the increase of single embryo transfer, from 48.3% in 2005 to 69.7% in 2009. This trend has resulted in significant reduction of multiple delivery rate from 14.1% in 2005 to 8.2% in 2009. Read all the details in the AIHW's recently released report, Assisted reproductive technology in Australia and New Zealand 2009. 

Do not damage and disturb: on child protection failures and the pressure on out of home care in Australia

This monograph written by Jeremy Sammut from the Centre for Independent Studies, argues that the rising size, cost, and complexity of the out-of-home care system in Australia is directly linked to child protection failures. Children are entering care later and more damaged, and are spending longer in care due to the misguided emphasis placed on family preservation by child welfare agencies.

Facilitating the use of research evidence

The Millbank Quarterly: A Multidisciplinary Journal of Population Health and Health Policy has released a free virtual issue on facilitating the use of research evidence. This virtual issue includes, in chronological order, free access to twenty-two articles that have published in the Quarterly between 2001 and 2011.

Increase in use of methamphetamine: Findings from the DUMA program

The latest Drug Use Monitoring in Australia data shows that the continuing decline in methamphetamine use since 2004 has ended, with rates of use among police detainees increasing in both 2010 and 2011. Self-report data also indicates that methamphetamine is considered by users to be higher in quality and easier to obtain in 2011 compared with earlier years.

Read the report from the Australian Institute of Criminology’s Drug Use Monitoring in Australia (DUMA) program here.

Infection rates available on the MyHospitals website

Rates of hospital-associated Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia (SAB) infections have been made available, for the first time, on MyHospitals, a website managed by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). To access the data you need to follow the Safety and Quality link once you have found the relevant hospital.
MyHospitals is an Australian Government initiative to inform the community about hospitals, by making it easier for people to access information about how individual hospitals are performing. The website is available at http://www.myhospitals.gov.au/.

Trends in palliative care in Australian hospitals

Trends in palliative care in Australian hospitals , a new AIHW report, provides an overview of the nature and extent of palliative care separations in public and private hospitals across Australia for the 10-year period from 1999-00 to 2008-09. These separations may have occurred in a dedicated palliative care ward, a hospice or in other admitted patient beds in a hospital. The report indicates that there has been a substantial increase in the number of palliative care separations in admitted patient settings over time.

Attitudes towards people with mental disorders

An article in the most recent issue of the Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, Stigmatizing attitudes towards people with mental disorders: Findings from an Australian National Survey of Mental Health Literacy and Stigma  reports on a national survey focusing on stigmatising attitudes towards people with mental illness. It was found that schizophrenia was most commonly associated with dangerousness, unpredictability and a preference for not employing someone with the condition. On the other hand, social phobia was frequently perceived as being due to personal weakness. Thus, anti-stigma interventions are likely to be more successful if they focus on individual mental health conditions rather than mental illness in general.

[Reavley NJ, Jorm AF (2011). Aust & NZ J of Psych, doi:10.3109/00048674. 2011.621061]. Contact your health library if you would like the full text and have trouble obtaining it.

Exercise and bones

Listening to ABC Radio National's Health Report this week I discovered that my daily walks were not helping my low bone density.  Exercise and Bones involved an interview with Robin Daly, Professor of Exercise and Ageing at Deakin University in Melbourne.  He presented the findings of research he's been involved with to show that "if we can increase bone mass by about 10% [in children] we can delay the development of osteoporosis by 13 years and potentially reduce fracture risk by 50%."

Daly stressed the importance of building weight-bearing exercise regimens into schools which significantly increase their bone density and set them up for later life.  In adults, weight bearing exercise and resistance training maintain bone density.  But walking isn't enough because our bones are already used to that type of impact and need to be "surprised" into doing more stressful things, such as multidirectional movement, jumping or hopping.

Obesity and injury report

Obesity and injury are major health burdens on society and the need has arisen to establish the relationship between the two.  "Obesity and injury in Australia: a review of the literature" is a new AIHW report which overviews the existing literature to investigate obesity–injury relationships. 

Most evidence suggests that obesity increases the risk of injury, especially from falls, trips or stumbles, and resulting musculoskeletal injury. This may be somewhat offset by the possible protective effects of fat mass as cushioning and of increased bone density in weight-bearing joints. Sleep apnoea increases road injury risk and is strongly associated with obesity.  In children the relationship is complex and evidence limited, but the risk of falls is higher for obese children, probably increasing rates of face, tooth and musculoskeletal injuries. Obesity is also a risk factor during pregnancy, with increased rates of injury to mother and baby. 

The average length of stay in hospital is significantly longer for obese injured patients, and they have greater requirements for respiratory support relative to the non-obese. Also, obese injured patients are more likely to suffer complications of care during the period in hospital following injury. 

Think differently on health equity: report

According to a new report by the Global Action on Health Equity Network (HealthGAEN), co-founded by researchers at the Australian National University, “Health inequity is still a major problem in the Asia Pacific region. There is no biological reason for the 23 year difference in life expectancy between countries in Asia Pacific or the 12 year difference in life expectancy between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian males. As Asia Pacific is home to over 60 per cent of the world’s population, improving the conditions for health and health equity here would vastly improve global health equity, ”ANU Associate Professor and chair of HealthGAEN Sharon Friel said. The report brings together a range of evidence on what can and must be done to improve health inequity.

Health expenditure Australia 2009–10

Over $120 billion was spent on health goods and services in Australia in 2009–10, according to a report released by the AIHW. The report, Health expenditure Australia 2009–10, shows that total health expenditure was $121.4 billion in 2009-10—up by $7.9 billion since 2008–09.
This report looks at the period from 1999–00 to 2009–10 and includes important information about the costs of health care in Australia, in terms of both the total number of dollars spent and the proportion of Australia’s national income that is spent on health. It also looks at the types of health goods and services that attracted funding and where that funding came from. The report also examines Australia’s health spending from an international perspective—how it compares with the region and with other developed economies.

Quality Improvement and new technology

According to a recent article, healthcare providers have proven eager adopters of health care "apps," the software applications used on mobile devices to perform specific tasks, such as charting data points or aggregating information. A recent survey reported in Health Infomatics found that of the 4,000 US physicians they looked at, nearly 80 percent used smartphones capable of running apps—a far greater proportion than among the general public.

Health Care Quality Improvement: There's an App for That is an article by Martha Hostetta in the Quality Matters newsletter published by the Commonwealth Fund in the US.  Various apps useful to health workers are described.  "Disease management apps, in particular, can improve communication between patients and providers and promote adherence to recommended care. Still, for apps to achieve their potential to improve health care quality, they will need to be factored into reimbursement models and meet clear clinical needs."

Older people with chronic diseases study

"Community based service providers' perspectives on frequent and/or avoidable admission of older people with chronic disease in rural NSW: a qualitative study" is an article now available online in BMC Health Services Research.  Among the co-authors are our own local public health executives, Vahid Saberi and Paul Corben. They wished to establish some reasons why older people with chronic conditions were so often admitted to hospital.

The study involved intensive interviews with community health care providers to discover barriers which limited access to their services by older people with chronic disease.  Both external barriers (such as patients' lack of awareness of services, poverty, or actual lack of services) and internal barriers (such as the patients' fear or unwillingness to accept their health status) were identified.  The authors concluded that the reasons which prevent this group from accessing community health services, and thus being admitted to hospital, were complex.  "Improving accessibility of services ... includes consideration of patients’ social, emotional and psychological ability and willingness to use services as well as those services being available and easily accessed."

The hospital dementia services project: a study description

The Hospital Dementia Services Project is an innovative mixed-methods study to investigate how health and aged care system factors influence care outcomes for hospital patients with dementia. The project focuses on patients aged 50 or over who had an overnight stay in a public hospital in New South Wales during 2006-07.

Funded by the NHMRC, the project aims to inform health practitioners, health and aged care policy makers and planners, and consumers of how system factors influence care outcomes for patients with dementia. Read the AIHW publication on this project here.

Births, Australia, 2010

A new Australian Bureau of Statistics publication Births, Australia 2010 has been released this week. It contains statistics on live births and fertility for Australia, states and territories, and sub-state regions, based on calendar year of registration data. Information on characteristics of the child include place of usual residence, sex, Indigenous status, and age, martial status and country of birth of parents.

Testing Treatments: better research for better healthcare

The new edition of Testing Treatments, while building on the success of the first edition published 5 years ago, incorporates extensive revision and updating. There is expanded coverage of the benefits and harms of screening in a separate chapter (Chapter 4) entitled 'Earlier is not necessarily better.' And in 'Regulating tests of treatments: help or hindrance?' (Chapter 9) the authors describe how research can become over-policed to the detriment of patients. In an important chapter (Chapter 12) it is asked: ‘So what makes for better healthcare?’ and shows how the lines of evidence can be drawn together in ways that can make a real difference to all of us. The last chapter gives a blueprint for a better future and an action plan (Chapter 13).

As with the first edition of the book, the full text of the new edition is available for free download.

Windows into Safety and Quality in Health Care 2011

The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care, in consultation with clinicians, consumers, public and private hospitals, and other healthcare provider organisations, has identified the priority national safety and quality areas for action in Australia. Windows into Safety and Quality in Health Care 2011 builds upon previous years’ Windows reports to offer perspectives on a range of healthcare safety and quality matters in a number of settings. 

Included in the report is a review of the Commission's activities over the past five years and a look at some of the emerging issues and challenges in the culture of health care, such as the importance of patient-centred care.  For the first time there is also an assessment of safety and quality in mental health care. The issue of technology and how it can be harnessed to improve safety and quality is also discussed.

Asthma in Australia 2011

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has just released Asthma in Australia 2011: with a focus chapter on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.  Asthma remains a significant health problem in Australia, with prevalence rates that are high by international comparison - currently about one in ten people.  Although the mortality rate has decreased significantly over the past 20 years, it is still higher than in other countries.  All aspects of the disease are investigated, including information on the number of people who have asthma and who visit their general practitioner, are hospitalised or die due to asthma. Comorbidities and quality of life among people with asthma are also studied.

The report also includes a chapter that focuses on chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases in Australians aged 55 years and over, which indicates that many more people in this age group are hospitalised or die due to COPD than to asthma.

Physical care of mental health consumers - Guidelines

"Clinical guidelines for the physical care of mental health consumers: a comprehensive assessment and monitoring package for mental health and primary care clinicians" has recently been published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry [2011 Oct;45(10):824-9].

The authors have focused on the fact that Australian mental health patients have a low level of physical health compared to the general population.  They studied medication effects, lifestyle, existing or developing physical disorders, alcohol and illicit drug use, and psychosocial factors, and have produced a package containing a metabolic syndrome algorithm wall chart, a clinician handbook, a psychosocial assessment booklet,  and screening forms. 
 
Contact your hospital librarian for a copy of the guidelines.

Radiotherapy and survival in breast cancer

A major study of 11,000 women over the past 10 to 15 years has been published online in the Lancet .  "Radiotherapy and survival in breast cancer" [doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(11)61296-8], authored by Thomas Buchholz, indicated that a course of radiotherapy after a lumpectomy for breast cancer led to a 50% proportional reduction in the risk of recurrence.

Buchholz, stated on ABC Radio's AM program this week, that the trial showed that radiation therapy "reduces the chance of developing a breast cancer recurrence and most importantly it improves the chance of overall survival of a patient [and] improves the chance that they'll be cured of their disease."
 
To read the full text of the provisional article, go to CIAP and search "Articles in Press".  Contact your hospital librarian if you have trouble finding it.

The Science of Prevention For Children and Youth

The high prevalence of social, emotional and behavioural health problems in children and young people in Australia, and the high cost and relative ineffectiveness of treatments to ‘cure’ them, lead to the conclusion that the most efficient and cost effective approach is to prevent them from occurring. The challenge is in determining what to prevent and how to do so. While there are complex social and political aspects to prevention, it must also be guided by a solid scientific basis. This paper , published in Australian Review of Public Affairs, makes the case that prevention science provides a framework for ensuring that prevention initiatives are founded on robust evidence and implemented in a way that will allow progressive growth in knowledge of ‘what works’ in prevention. The paper examines some of the opportunities and challenges in a shift to an evidence-based prevention agenda to improve the lives of children and young people.

Predictive Risk Modelling in Health : Options for New Zealand and Australia

Predictive risk models (PRMs) are case-finding tools that enable health care systems to identify patients at risk of expensive and potentially avoidable events such as emergency hospitalisation. Examples include the PARR (Patients-at-Risk-of-Rehospitalisation) tool and Combined Predictive Model used by the National Health Service in England. When such models are coupled with an appropriate preventive intervention designed to avert the adverse event, they represent a useful strategy for improving the cost-effectiveness of preventive health care.

This article, published in the Australian Health Review, reviews the current knowledge about PRMs and explores some of the issues surrounding the potential introduction of a PRM to a public health system. We make a particular case for New Zealand, but also consider issues that are relevant to Australia. The authors of this article are Laura E. Panattoni, Rhema Vaithianathan, Toni Ashton, and Geraint H. Lewis.

Taste Disorders in Australian Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal Children

Despite reports that taste disorders can lead to changes in eating behaviour, no study of the prevalence of taste disorders in children in the general community had been reported. Studies with adults report a range from 0.85% to 30% but provide no indication of the prevalence in children. A screening study of 432 Australian Aboriginal (12%) and non-Aboriginal children (7.9%) aged 8-12 years indicated that some had a taste dysfunction characterized by the loss of at least 1, and often more, taste qualities. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines a prevalence of <4% in a population as a massive public health problem. The cause of the disorders is unknown, so there is a need for a wider investigation of the causes and the consequences.

The results of this study have been published in the September 2011 issue of Acta Paediatrica (pages 1267-1271). You will need a subscription to this journal to access the paper by D.G. Laing et al (Available via CIAP for NSW Health)

Indigenous Disadvantage and Cultural Attachment

Only a small number of empirical studies in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand have examined the relationship between Indigenous people's levels of cultural attachment and their socio-economic outcomes. This paper, "Indigenous disadvantage : can strengthening cultural attachment help to Close the Gap?", examines whether strengthening cultural attachment can help reduce Indigenous disadvantage in Australia. It is an e-brief from the NSW Parliamentary Library Research Service.

Depression Stigma in Australian High School Students

To identify predictors of depression stigma in a group of Australian school students, participants (1,804 students aged 12–15 years) completed a questionnaire covering sociodemographic information, recognition of depression in a vignette, stigma towards a depressed peer, help-seeking intentions, information from teachers, and student mental health. The results suggested that depression stigma is a multidimensional construct with different factors predicting different aspects of stigma. Increased recognition of depression was associated with an increased belief in depression as a sickness rather than a weakness, but also with an increased belief that those with depression are dangerous and unpredictable. It is likely that multifaceted stigma-reduction interventions are needed, with emphasis on reducing the associations between depression and danger and targeting those of non-English-speaking backgrounds. The results of this study may be viewed in this journal article in Youth Studies Australia.

Single dose oral analgesics for acute post operative pain in adults

All analgesic drugs (painkillers) are tested in standardised clinical studies of people with established pain following surgery, and often after removal of third molar (wisdom) teeth. In all these studies the participants have to have at least moderate pain in order for there to be a sensitive measure of pain-relieving properties. The Cochrane Library has 35 reviews of oral analgesic interventions, with 38 different drugs, at various doses involving 45,000 participants in about 350 studies. This overview sought to bring all this information together, and to report the results for those drugs with reliable evidence about how well they work or any harm they may do in single oral doses.
Click here to find out more about this important overview

Parental mental health and families eLearning program

The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) has launched a new, free-of-charge Parental mental health and families eLearning program, which provides online resources to help guide mental health and social care professionals in the delivery of appropriate and timely support.

One Day at a Time

One Day at a Time is a new and innovative resource that includes information about child development and ideas to help parents and early childhood professionals match activities with each child’s developmental levels.

For Kids' Sake

This report, "For Kids’ Sake: Repairing the Social Environment for Australian Children and Young People" examines trends in child and youth wellbeing across Australia, and finds that there has been a rise in child abuse and neglect and deterioration in psychological wellbeing for many children. The report offers hope to Governments and communities searching for answers to the crisis affecting our nation’s troubled children. The author Patrick Parkinson AM is a Professor of Law at the University of Sydney. Read or download the report here.

Preventing Multiple Risky Behaviors among Adolescents: Seven Strategies

This Research Brief brings together findings from developmental science and from rigorous program evaluations to identify seven actionable, feasible strategies and relevant programs that have been found to affect two or more risky behaviors in adolescents.

Access to Eye Health Services Among Indigenous Australians

This paper, accessible here, explores Indigenous people's access to eye health services at a community level. This project examined equity of access to eye health services at a community level by examining the relationship between the percentage of Indigenous people living in an area, socioeconomic status and remoteness and access to ophthalmic and optometric services and the professionals that provide them. This was done in three stages:
1. Mapping the location of eye health professionals,
2. Mapping the distribution of eye health services and the relationship between different types of service provision and
3. Examining the relationship between the provisions of eye services and health outcomes.

The authors of this paper are: Margaret Kelaher, Angeline Ferdinand, Samantha Ngo, Nilofer Tambuwla, Hugh R Taylor

Dementia Across Australia 2011-2050

Without a significant medical breakthrough, the number of Australians with dementia is expected to soar from an estimated 267,000 in 2011 to almost one million people by 2050. Deloitte Access Economics was commissioned by Alzheimer’s Australia to provide updated dementia prevalence estimates and projections for Australia. Specifically, this report estimates the number of people with dementia in Australia in 2011, and predicts the number of people who will be living with dementia in Australia in the future, from 2012 until 2050. Click here to access this report.

Investing in Mental Health: The Great Push.

In recognition of World Mental Health Day (October 10th), sponsored by the United Nations' World Health Organization, Wiley is presenting a selection of free scholarly and professional research and practice on the 2011 World Mental Health Day theme, Investing in Mental Health: The Great Push.

Dialogue: latest issue

The latest isue of Dialogue, the journal of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia, has been released with the bulk of the issue is devoted to health issues relating to "A healthy society - How to get it? How to keep it?" The contents include:
Designing the health system for the 21st century - Jane Hall
Mental health care reform: more, please - Alan Rosen
Directions for ageing well in a healthy Australia - Hal Kendig and Colette Browning
Landmark moment in ehealth for Australia - Mukesh Haikerwal
Healing, empowerment and resilience across the lifespan: views from an academic unit - Lisa R Jackson Pulver, Melissa R Haswell and Sally A Fitzpatrick
Economics informed policy can drive better health; but there will be few gains without structural change - Leonie Segal, Kim Dalziel and Ron Donato
Subjective wellbeing as a key to a healthy society - Robert A. Cummins

Anne Manne on Disabliltiy

Listen to this riveting talk at Lunchbox/Soapbox by Anne Manne on Australia's desperate need for more genuine engagement with ability issues. She asks us to look at the care and support we provide to the differently-abled.
Lunchbox/Soapbox is a simple idea: an old-fashioned Speakers’ Corner in the middle of the city, in the middle of the day made possible by the Wheeler Centre in Melbourne.

Anne Manne is a Melbourne writer, essayist and social philosopher and has been a regular columnist for The Australian and The Age.
Download or watch the video here.

Maternity data in Australia: a review of sources and gaps

A new bulletin from AIHW presents the results of a review of the depth and breadth of maternal data capture in Australia. Gaps in national data were identified, as well as opportunities for future improvements, A key output of the review is the Maternity Information Matrix, an electronic inventory of maternity data collections and data items.
Read or download the publication here.

Essentials of Care

Essentials of Care is a framework to support the development and ongoing evaluation of nursing and midwifery practice and patient care. Using transformational practice development methodologies healthcare teams are engaged in the evaluation and development of the clinical care provided.
The aims of the project are to improve patient safety and outcomes through the implementation of a NSW state-wide framework that focuses on the essentials of clinical care, and to enhance the experiences of patients, families and carers as well as staff involved in the delivery of care. You can watch the introductory video on EOC or read about the structure or facilitation of the program.

Visit the NSW Health EOC site.

HIV/AIDS, hepatitis and sexually transmissible infections in Australia: Annual report of trends in behaviour 2011

This National Centre for HIV Research 2011 report reviews social and behavioural research on HIV, viral hepatitis and sexually transmitted infections. Stigma remains a major issue for people affected by HIV, hepatitis C or drug dependence. The report is freely available online.

2011 Strategic roadmap for Australian research infrastructure: final report

Outlining the priority areas for national, collaborative research infrastructure over the next five to ten years, the elements outlined in the 2011 Roadmap are an important element in strengthening Australia's innovation system. Research infrastructure is a prime determinant of Australia’s ability to undertake excellent and world‑leading research. A strong and thriving research sector is a fundamental component of an advanced innovation system. Many ideas that inspire transformative innovation are born from research.
Download the full Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research here.

Physical Activity in Australia: A Snapshot, 2007-08

This publication provides an overview of the physical activity levels of adults in Australia, including information on a range of factors which may influence these levels and the long-term health risks associated with physical inactivity. Read or download the Australian Bureau of Statistics publication: 4835.0.55.001 - Physical Activity in Australia: A Snapshot, 2007-08

Clinical Obesity

Clinical Obesity is a journal publishing translational and clinical research papers and reviews focusing on obesity and its co-morbidities. As a newly launched journal, all content published in 2011 will be FREE online to all.

Ben Goldacre - How the media influences people's perceptions of health & why it's important to unpick dodgy claims.

The public and patients perception of health is influenced dramatically through media reporting. Dr. Ben Goldacre explores the role of the media and the importance of “unpicking” bad science and dodgy scientific claims. Ben Goldacre is an award-winning writer, broadcaster, and medical doctor who authored the book “Bad Science”. Watch the online video here of his presentation at the 2010 Evidence Live conference.

Evidence Live is a leading conference on understanding and using evidence in the delivery and implementation of effective and affordable healthcare presented by BMJ, Oxford University and the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine.

Nature of Association Between Rural Background and Practice Location

An article has recently been published in the journal BMC Health Services Research titled "Nature of association between rural background and practice location: a comparison of general practitioners and specialists". This paper aims to investigate in detail the nature of the association between rural background and practice location of Australian general practitioners (GPs) and specialists. It elucidates the association between rural background and rural practice for both GPs and specialists. It follows that increased take-up of rural practice by new graduates requires an increased selection of students with strong rural backgrounds. However, given the considerable under-representation of rural background students in medical schools and the reluctance of females to practise in rural areas, the selection of rural background students is only part of the solution to increasing the supply of rural doctors.

Chronic Kidney Disease in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People 2011

This report presents the first detailed analysis of chronic kidney disease in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and how it compares to non-Indigenous Australians. Indigenous Australians have a greater burden of disease for many health conditions, and chronic kidney disease is no exception. Indigenous Australians were found to be more likely to have end-stage kidney disease, and be hospitalised or die with chronic kidney disease than non-Indigenous Australians.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a serious and increasingly common health problem in Australia. People with CKD, particularly those with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD), suffer poor health outcomes and a decreased quality of life. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, especially those who live in remote communities, are at a greater risk of developing CKD, and have substantially poorer health outcomes than other Australians.

NSW Health and Medical Research Strategic Review: Issues Paper

This Issues Paper presents a preliminary framework for a 10-year health and medical research strategy for NSW. It identifies a series of options to address the issues facing health and medical research in NSW. The purpose of presenting options at this early stage in the strategy development process is to allow stakeholders an opportunity to critique the emerging ideas, identify areas for further analysis and provide additional information to support this analysis, thus contributing to the development of robust, evidence-based recommendations for implementation.

The Issues Paper presents:■ the background to the NSW Health and Medical Research Strategic Review■ an overview of NSW’s current performance in health and medical research■ emergent themes from the extensive consultations undertaken to date■ a preliminary strategy framework for health and medical research in NSW■ a series of options for action and potential outcomes for health and medical research in NSW. The Draft Interim Report will be released on 24 October 2011 - With further Stakeholder Group submissions from 24 October - 14 November

A Prospective Study of Diet Quality and Mental Health in Adolescents

An unhealthy diet can be the cause of mental health problems in adolescents, a new study has found. The results of this study have been published in the PLoS. Three quarters of lifetime psychiatric disorders will emerge in adolescence or early adulthood. The National Comorbidity Survey Replication recently reported that more than 22% of adolescents aged 13 to 18 yrs had already experienced a clinically significant mental health problem, with ages of onset ranging from 6 yrs for anxiety disorders, to 13 years for mood disorders. In the last 18 months there have been a number of published studies identifying an inverse associations between diet quality and the common mental disorders, depression and anxiety, in adults and two prospective studies suggesting that diet quality influences the risk for depressive illness in adults over time.

While two recent studies have also demonstrated cross-sectional associations between diet quality and emotional and behavioural problems and depression in adolescents, there are no existing studies that examine this association in adolescents prospectively, limiting inferences regarding possible causal relationships. In this study the authors aimed to investigate relationships between measures of diet quality and adolescent mental health, both cross-sectionally and prospectively, and to examine the temporal relationships between diet quality and mental health and the associations between change in diet quality and change in psychological symptoms. (The Authors are: Felice N. Jacka, Peter J. Kremer, Michael Beark, Andrea M. de Silva-Sanigorski, Marjoire Moodie, Eva R. Leslie, Julie A. Pasco, Boyd A. Swinburn)