Friday 11 April 2014
HSSD's Public Health Directorate has published its second health profile, providing a range of public health statistics relating to the people of Guernsey and Alderney. The Profile covers the period 2010 to 2012. The first local profile covered the period 2006-8.
Jenny Cataroche, the Public Health Analyst and Epidemiologist for HSSD explains:
"The Health Profile is constructed of a number of health 'indicators', each of which describes a different aspect of population health. The indicators cover a diverse selection of Public Health topics from birth rate and breastfeeding prevalence, to tooth decay, life expectancy, place and causes of death, sexual and mental health, to smoking and drinking levels and much more. The aim has been to include indicators that give a balance of useful information across a range of important areas. Together these provide a snapshot of the overall health of our population."
Medical Officer of Health, Dr Stephen Bridgman said:
"This report highlights some good news, with improvements in stillbirth rates, infant mortality rates and low birth weight babies over the last few decades. Also of note are good childhood immunisation uptake rates, the achievements of some schools in the Healthy Schools Programme, and the improvement of life expectancy over the last 15-20 years so that we now have some of the highest in Europe."
"However, the report also highlights challenges to be faced in improving public health and enabling all of us to achieve our health potential. At the start of life breast-feeding rates are globally low, a significant number of mothers continue to smoke in pregnancy. Teenage pregnancy rates are lower than in England but are higher than those in Jersey. Smoking, obesity and alcohol consumption continue to be very important causes of premature death, with a third of cancers, a third or respiratory deaths and a tenth of cardiovascular deaths attributable to smoking alone. New analyses of years of working life lost (YWLL) illustrate the importance of alcohol related ill health not only as an important cause of premature death but an important drain on our economy."
Minister of Health, Deputy Mark Dorey, said;
"One of the HSSD Board's key responsibilities is the health of the public. The Guernsey and Alderney Health Profile helps us to understand better the health of our population, prioritise areas for further action, and monitor health improvement."
"This report will be of interest to a wide range of people and organisations. It will also inform a range of States strategies such as Sexual Health, Tobacco Control, Obesity and Drug and Alcohol. Close working between public health staff in Guernsey and Jersey has allowed simultaneous publication with the Jersey Health Profile."
-ENDS-
Further information
Data for 2009 was not included in any Health Profile Report. The reporting period 2010 - 2012 was chosen firstly to avoid the effects of a change in patient administration system in 2009 which continued to impact on three-year rolling average rates up to and including 2011. It also reflects the availability of national and international comparison data for which a time lag to publication of eighteen months is not uncommon.
