745 Results

  • Increasing whooping cough cases put pēpi at risk. What can be done about it?

    … pēpi (infants) are the most vulnerable to severe illness and death.  We recommend two key priority areas to reduce the … evidence-based patient-facing immunisation information; and enabling Lead Maternity Carers (LMCs) to deliver … pertussis under the age of 12 months are hospitalised. 1 2 Unimmunised pēpi  are the most vulnerable to severe …
    Briefing

  • Taxes on fizzy drinks in NZ: preventing premature deaths and raising funds for health

    … the health impact of interventions that are upstream and are political.  In the food environment, we strongly … Indeed, much international research supports this (e.g. [ 1 ]).  Today some of us have published research in the NZ … but also the consumption of foods that are complements or substitutes.[ 2 3 ] Thus there is some level of …
    Briefing

  • The draft NZ Health Strategy: Will it enable New Zealanders to “live well, stay well and get well”?

    … Strategy is strong on strengthening the health care system and has some strong population health aspects, at least … stay well and get well”. The draft NZ Health Strategy (1) has a strong focus on strengthening the health care … word “alcohol”. But there are no population health goals or substantive primary prevention plans outlined for these …
    Briefing

  • Unsafe waters: The hidden Campylobacter infection risk in rural New Zealand

    … Summary While urban areas benefit from treated and regulated public water supplies, rural communities often … water sources, leading to fecal-oral transmission. 1   Waterborne disease outbreaks can occur due to various factors, such as heavy rainfall or spring runoff, improper disposal of manure, sewage, or …
    Briefing

  • Daily aspirin for preventing cancer and heart disease – where to from here in NZ?

    … published review has quantified the estimated benefits and harms of taking regular aspirin for disease prevention. … aspirin for 20 years from age 55 (using the data in Figure 1). If these lives are typically saved half way through this … for money given the cost of aspirin (typically 15 cents or less per tablet at the supermarket) – which equates to …
    Briefing

  • The humility of being second to Australia in cancer mortality

    … nothing like being second to Australia to galvanize angst and consternation among Kiwis. Today Alafeishat and colleagues have published a paper in the NZ Medical … in our health sector. This blog we canvass how bad (or good) the situation really is, the problems and possible …
    Briefing

  • Advising men on prostate cancer screening – is the cart before the horse in terms of evidence?

    … (PSA) was published in the last week in the journal JAMA .[1] This blog considers the key recent evidence relating to … vs harms.  It is not reasonable to ask individual men and clinicians to make decisions regarding PSA-based … more people there are who believe they owe their health, or even their life, to the [screening] programme ”.[3] What …
    Briefing

  • Covid-19 Case-Fatality Risk & Infection-Fatality Risk – important measures to help guide the pandemic response

    … two useful mortality indicators: Case-Fatality Risk (CFR) and Infection-Fatality Risk (IFR). We estimate the cumulative … risk (CFR; also incorrectly referred to as a rate or ratio) and infection-fatality risk (IFR). The Covid-19 CFR … based on the reported deaths and reported cases. Figure 1 shows the CFR in NZ by age group up to 4 May 2022 and …
    Briefing

  • Aotearoa’s first case of highly pathogenic avian influenza: Heightened awareness and surveillance essential for early detection

    … restricting the movement of birds, poultry products, feed and equipment. This highly pathogenic subtype likely evolved … birds. While humans can be infected with H7 subtypes, and they can cause high mortality, human infection is rare … by the NZ  Ministry for Primary Industries in 2004. 1,2 While H7 subtypes have been detected through this …
    Briefing

  • New government document on hazards: Good progress but gaps remain

    … Draft Long-term Insights Briefing (LTIB) is a timely and well-argued call to shift hazard management from reactive … that could arise from nuclear winter scenarios or large volcanic eruptions such as the “year without a … Insights Briefings (see also our previous commentary here: 1 ). This new Draft LTIB 2 from the National Hazards Board, …
    Briefing

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Public Health Expert Briefing (ISSN 2816-1203)