Release of the Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health survey: first results, Australia, 2012-13

Current topic
Published in the HealthBulletin
Posted on:
2 December, 2013
Issue
Vol 13 No 4, October 2013 - December 2013
Related topics
Alcohol use Cardiovascular health Current topics Diabetes Ear health Eye health Health Kidney health Nutrition Overweight and obesity Physical activity Population Respiratory health Social and emotional wellbeing Tobacco use

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has released the Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health survey: first results, Australia, 2012-13. The survey provides a platform for a range of new research into health determinants and patterns, supporting critical assessment of progress in ‘closing the gap’ in health outcomes between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and non-Indigenous people.

The survey focuses on long-term health conditions, health risk factors, selected social and emotional wellbeing indicators, health measurements and health-related actions, and includes Indigenous people living in both remote and non-remote areas.

The survey expands on the information collected in previous Indigenous health surveys conducted by the ABS, and includes:

  • estimates of the prevalence of certain chronic diseases, conditions, and selected behavioural risk factors (including physical activity)
  • objective measures of selected chronic diseases, nutrition status and other risk factors which can be combined with self-reported data about health status and conditions (e.g. diabetes)
  • health risk factors and outcomes for different population groups of interest, such as different age-groups and people living in remote and non-remote areas.

Some of the key findings of the survey include:

  • after age-adjustment, Indigenous people aged 15 years and over were around half as likely as non-Indigenous people to report excellent or very good health (rate ratio of 0.6)
  • in 2012-13, one-in-six (18%) Indigenous people reported having asthma
  • in 2012-13, around one-in-eight (12%) Indigenous people reported diseases of the ear and/or hearing problems
  • rates for diabetes/high sugar were between three and five times higher for Indigenous people as those for non-Indigenous people in all age-groups from 25 years and over
  • in 2012-13, 41% of Indigenous people reported daily smoking, which was lower than the levels reported in 2008 (45%) and 2002 (51%)
  • in 2012-13, 60% of Indigenous men aged 18 years and over had a waist circumference that put them at an increased risk of developing chronic diseases, while 81% of Indigenous women had an increased level of risk
  • between 2001 and 2012-13, consultation rates for general practice/specialist and dental professionals have remained largely unchanged.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics

 

 

Contact us

Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet
Edith Cowan University
2 Bradford Street
Mt Lawley WA 6050
+61 8 9370 6336

View our Disclaimer and Privacy statement

Helping to close the gap by providing the evidence base to inform practice and policy in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health

The Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the lands and waters of Australia and the Torres Strait.

We respect all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people—their customs and their beliefs. We also pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging, with particular acknowledgement to the Whadjuk people of the Noongar nation, the Traditional Owners of the lands where our offices are located.

This product, excluding the Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet logo, artwork, and any material owned by a third party or protected by a trademark, has been released under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0) licence. Excluded material owned by third parties may include, for example, design and layout, images obtained under licence from third parties and signatures.