Taking Australia's temperature

Aussies don’t live as long as people in Hong Kong, Singapore, Macau, Japan, San Marrino or Andorra but we’re doing way better than the Yanks, the poor regularly fall off the perch sooner than silvertails and swells, Aboriginal babies die often and early, living in the bush is a health hazard for many, there are more of us 'enjoying' a spell in hospital, we gobble down anti-depressants while a heck of a lot of us are obviously topping ourselves - but she’ll be right mate. Last year, after asking the nation to “Say Aarrh, stick out your tongue, turn your head and cough” the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare released its rather self-congratulatory bi-annual report card and here are the key points :

General

Life expectancy and death

• Australia’s life expectancy at birth continues to rise and is among the highest in the world—almost 84 years for females and 79 years for males.


• Death rates are falling for many of our major health problems such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma and injuries.


• Coronary heart disease causes the largest number of ‘lost years’ through death among males aged under 75 years, and breast cancer causes the most among females.

Diseases

• Cancer is Australia’s leading broad cause of disease burden (19% of the total), followed by cardiovascular disease (16%) and mental disorders (13%).


• The rate of heart attacks continues to fall, and survival from them continues to improve.


• Around 1 in 5 Australians aged 16–85 years has a mental disorder at some time in a 12-month period, including 1 in 4 of those aged 16–24 years.


• The burden of Type 2 diabetes is increasing and it is expected to become the leading cause of disease burden by 2023.


• The incidence of treated end-stage kidney disease is increasing, with diabetes as the main cause.

Health risks

• Risk factors contribute to over 30% of Australia’s total burden of death, disease and disability.


• Tobacco smoking is the single most preventable cause of ill health and death in Australia.


• However, Australia’s level of smoking continues to fall and is among the lowest for OECD countries, with a daily smoking rate of about 1 in 6 adults in 2007.


• Three in 5 adults (61%) were either overweight or obese in 2007–08.


• One in 4 children (25%) aged 5–17 years were overweight or obese in 2007–08.


• Of Australians aged 15–74 years in 2006–2007, less than half (41%) had an adequate or better level of health literacy.


• Rates of sexually transmissible infections continue to increase, particularly among young people.


• Use of illicit drugs has generally declined in Australia, including the use of methamphetamines (the drug group that includes ‘ice’).

Life stages

Mothers and babies

• The proportion of females having caesarean sections has continued to increase over the latest decade, from 21% in 1998 to 31% in 2007.


• The perinatal death rate of babies born to Indigenous mothers in 2007 was twice that of other babies.

Children and young Australians

• Death rates among children and young people halved in the two decades to 2007, largely due to fewer deaths from transport accidents.


• More children are being vaccinated against major preventable childhood diseases, with 91% (the target level) being fully vaccinated at 2 years of age—but only 82% of 5 year olds are covered.


• Land transport accidents and intentional self-harm accounted for 2 in every 5 deaths (42%) among young Australians (aged 15–24 years) in 2007.

People aged 25–64 years

• The main causes of death in this age group in 2007 were coronary heart disease for males (14% of their deaths) and breast cancer for females (12%).

Older Australians

• For older people, the main causes of death are heart disease, stroke and cancer.


• At age 65, Australian males can now expect to live a further 19 years to almost 84 years of age, and females a further 22 years to almost 87.

Groups of special interest

• People with disability are more likely than others to have poor physical and mental health, and higher rates of risk factors such as smoking and overweight.


• Compared with those who have social and economic advantages, disadvantaged Australians are more likely to have shorter lives.


• Indigenous people are generally less healthy than other Australians, die at much younger ages, and have more disability and a lower quality of life.


• People living in rural and remote areas tend to have higher levels of disease risk factors and illness than those in major cities.


• Compared with the general community, prisoners have significantly worse health, with generally higher levels of diseases, mental illness and illicit drug use than Australians overall.


• Most migrants enjoy health that is equal to or better than that of the Australian-born population—often with lower rates of death, mental illness and disease risk factors.


• Compared with those in the general community, Defence Force members have better health, although their work can place them at higher risk of injury.


• The veteran community is less likely than the general community to report being in very good or excellent health.

Health services

• In 2007–08, just over 2% of total health expenditure was for preventive services or health promotion.


• Between 1998–99 and 2008–09, there was an increase in general practitioners’ management of some chronic diseases, including hypertension, diabetes and depression.


• Ambulances attended 2.9 million incidents in 2008–09, of which 39% were emergencies.


• The number of hospital admissions rose by 37% in the decade to 2007–08.


• Over half of the hospital admissions (56%) in 2007–08 were same-day admissions, compared with 48% in 1998–99.


• In 2008–09, about 1 in 9 of all prescriptions under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and Repatriation Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme were for a mental health-related medication.

Health workforce

• Employment in health occupations is still growing—23% growth between 2003 and 2008, almost double that across all occupations (13%).


• Between 2002 and 2007, there was a 26% increase in people completing health occupation university courses.


• The mix of the medical workforce changed between 1997 and 2007


• the supply of primary care doctors (in ‘full-time equivalent’ numbers per 100,000 population) has decreased


• the supply of specialists, specialists-in-training and hospital-based non-specialists has increased.

Health expenditure

• Health expenditure during 2007–08 was $103.6 billion, exceeding $100 billion for the first time.


• Health expenditure in 2007–08 equaled 9.1% of gross domestic product (GDP).


• As a share of its GDP, Australia spent more than the United Kingdom in 2007–08 (8.4%), a similar amount to the OECD median (8.9%) and much less than the United States (16%).


• Governments funded almost 70% of health expenditure in 2007–08.


• For Indigenous Australians in 2006–07, spending per person on health and high-level residential aged care was 25% higher than for other Australians.

When a Christian church decides that direct access to government funding allows it to disregard the basic tenets of public education

In this case it was the Living Waters (Uniting) Church which decided that it knew best and appears to have misunderstood and then exceeded its role in the National School Chaplaincy Program famously instigated by former Prime Minister John Howard and continued to this day by the Gillard Government.

A 2010 investigation by the Northern Territory Ombudsman revealed that:

· There was insufficient consultation with community before the chaplaincy services were implemented at specific NT rural public schools and, in at least one school all students were automatically included in what should have been an opt-in voluntary chaplaincy service

· The National School Chaplaincy Code of Conduct was breached by at least one chaplain

· One chaplain allegedly attempted to contact the parents of children on the opt-out list of students who would not be accessing these services

· Inappropriate one-on-one counselling was undertaken by unqualified chaplains, with regard to students' behavioural and emotional problems amongst other matters

· Private and unsecured records of students were kept by at least one chaplain and, in one instance these same records were initially denied to a psychologist treating the student in question

· Conflicts of interest arose and there were perceived problems with duty of care on the part of chaplains

· Proselytising religious beliefs appears to have occurred at times

· In at least one instance there was failure to disclose to a relevant government authority

· There were allegations of improper payments being made to the chaplaincy services

· Chaplains had access to intimate personal information re certain students even when schools were in receipt of ‘no contact’ letters from parents

· In one instance there was defiance of a DET Executive directive in relation to the continued provision of services to one child

· Complaints concerning chaplaincy services or the conduct of specific chaplains were often inadequately handled by both schools and DET/ DEEWR

· The Church permanently housed a convicted paedophile (at least 20 counts of offences against minors recorded) within a building complex also used as emergency accommodation for families with children and in close proximity to a school and park

This is not an exclusive list of problems encountered in the National School Chaplaincy Program and, the fact that there was such a hasty national implementation of this school program and that funding flows directly to the religious organisation (by-passing state eduction authorities) has led to a service which is apparently wide open to abuse.

NT Ombudsman’s 2010 Investigation Report On The Operation of the Chaplaincy Service Within Five Government Rural Schools of the Northern Territory [162 page PDF file]

The road to a hardier banana

With half the Northern Rivers rigid with shock since the humble Aussie banana skyrocketed past $15 a kilo and then entered the stratosphere to become a diamond-studded luxury item in the wake of record breaking natural disasters across the country; the mind turns to how limp yet pricey nanas might be avoided in future. Perhaps Waitrose found an answer on 1 April 2010 when it published this advert?

Securing their future

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to visit a protected population of orang-utan in Sarawak. It was a fabulous experience quietly watching them as they went about feeding, grooming and playing. The ease with which they moved through the canopy, often with a baby clutching on, was truly an amazing sight. However, despite the good work of many people who work to protect these animals in these reserves, sadly the future of the orang-utan is threatened by loss of habitat as rainforests are cleared.

Closer to home the situation is not much better for our wildlife. Australia has one of the highest rates of mammal extinctions in the world. Also largely due to loss of habitat. Though our wildlife is often cryptic and many are nocturnal and so may not be considered as visually spectacular as the orang-utan, Australian native animals are unique. Many are found only in Australia and have evolved in isolation, giving them characteristics not seen in other animals of the world. They have developed alongside our native plants and so a distinctive Australian environment has been produced. However, as trees are lopped and vegetation cleared, the food and shelter essential to the survival of our native animals is lost.

Australia’s 2010 Biodiversity Conservation Strategy indicates that more than 1,700 species and ecological communities are known to be threatened and at risk of extinction. Now is the time for us to take steps to protect our unique wildlife. Attention was drawn to the plight of the orang-utan many years ago, but still their future is not secure. As a developed nation we are in a better position to ensure our Australian animals have a future in their native environment.

Imelda Jennings
Wildlife SOS

A tongue in cheek look at the ethics of found money

 

Jessica Irvine, journalist, in The Sydney Morning Herald 6 April 2011

There's an old economist joke: an economist is walking with a friend when they both notice a $100 note lying on the footpath. As the friend bends to pick it up, the economist shakes her head and says: ''Don't bother! If it were a real $100 note, someone would have picked it up already.''

Col Shephard, Yamba identity, in The Sydney Morning Herald 7 April 2011:

About that economist and the $100 note lying on the footpath: if the economist, in a fleeting moment of total irrationality, picked up the note and found it was genuine, he or she would immediately say there are only two things that can be done with it. Spend it or save it.
On the other hand, the economist's friend would look for its rightful owner.

Not so far from the secret wish of Tony Abbott and Fred Nile?

The Onion's video take on the Christian Right's approach to a woman's right to choose finds an echo in the Leader of the Christian Democratic Party in the NSW Upper House as quoted in The Daily Telegraph on 31 March 2011:

Mr Nile said he would raise abortion as a priority.
"I would like it to be banned, but that is like raising a red flag to a bull," he said.
"I would like to see abortion laws refined so either women will be shown an ultrasound of their foetus before the procedure, as they do in some parts of America, or they have to see a counsellor once they make the decision."

Left hand drive vehicles for sale in Grafton

Is this Grafton car dealer really selling left hand drive vehicles?

I

Its ad in the local paper would, at first glance, have its customers believe it is.

Hey, wait a minute! It's not all it seems to be.

Someone has reversed the images of the two cars on the right hand side of the ad.