Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Role Of Area-Level Access To Primary Care On The Geographic Variation Of Cardiometabolic Risk Factor Distribution: A Multilevel Analysis Of The Adult Residents In The Illawarra—Shoalhaven Region Of Nsw, Australia, Renin Melkias Baby Selvi Toms, Xiaoqi Feng, Darren J. Mayne, Andrew D. Bonney

Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute

Background: Access to primary care is important for the identification, control and management of cardiometabolic risk factors (CMRFs). This study investigated whether differences in geographic access to primary care explained area-level variation in CMRFs. Methods: Multilevel logistic regression models were used to derive the association between area-level access to primary care and seven discrete CMRFs after adjusting for individual and area-level co-variates. Two-step floating catchment area method was used to calculate the geographic access to primary care for the small areas within the study region. Results: Geographic access to primary care was inversely associated with low high density lipoprotein (OR …

Geographic Variation In Cardiometabolic Risk Distribution: A Cross-Sectional Study Of 256,525 Adult Residents In The Illawarra-Shoalhaven Region Of The Nsw, Australia, Renin Toms, Darren J. Mayne, Xiaoqi Feng, Andrew D. Bonney

Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute

Introduction Metabolic risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) warrant significant public health concern globally. This study aims to utilise the regional database of a major laboratory network to describe the geographic distribution pattern of eight different cardiometabolic risk factors (CMRFs), which in turn can potentially generate hypotheses for future research into locality specific preventive approaches. Method A cross-sectional design utilising de-identified laboratory data on eight CMRFs including fasting blood sugar level (FBSL); glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c); total cholesterol (TC); high density lipoprotein (HDL); albumin creatinine ratio (ACR); estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR); body mass index (BMI); and diabetes mellitus (DM) status …

Exploring The Geography Of Serious Mental Illness And Type 2 Diabetes Comorbidity In Illawarra-Shoalhaven, Australia (2010 -2017), Ramya Walsan, Darren J. Mayne, Nagesh B. Pai, Xiaoqi Feng, Andrew D. Bonney

Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute

Objectives The primary aim of this study was to describe the geography of serious mental illness (SMI)-type 2 diabetes comorbidity (T2D) in the Illawarra-Shoalhaven region of NSW, Australia. The Secondary objective was to determine the geographic concordance if any, between the comorbidity and the single diagnosis of SMI and diabetes. Methods Spatial analytical techniques were applied to clinical data to explore the above objectives. The geographic variation in comorbidity was determined by Moran's I at the global level and the local clusters of significance were determined by Local Moran's I and spatial scan statistic. Choropleth hotspot maps and spatial scan …

Reciprocity As Deliberative Capacity: Lessons From A Citizens Deliberation On Carbon Pricing Mechanisms In Australia, Alex Y. Lo, Kim S. Alexander, Wendy Proctor, Anthony Ryan

Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute

Australia has seen a deep division in opinion in search of a carbon pricing mechanism. While concepts of carbon taxation and emission trading have comparable public support, climate scepticism is influencing the debates in political and public spheres in downplaying the need for carbon pricing. Public deliberation is a possible engagement option to address the conflict inherent in climate policy preferences. This research explores the way that a deliberative forum involving twenty-four Australians promoted effective communication between participants through which conflict between policy preferences became more tangible. While the forum did not eliminate disagreement in preferences in the choice of …

An Objective Index Of Walkability For Research And Planning In The Sydney Metropolitan Region Of New South Wales, Australia: An Ecological Study, Darren J. Mayne, Geoffrey Morgan, Alan Willmore, Nectarios Rose, Bin Jalaludin, Hilary Bambrick, Adrian Bauman

Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute

Background: Walkability describes the capacity of the built environment to support walking for various purposes. This paper describes the construction and validation of two objective walkability indexes for Sydney, Australia.

Methods: Walkability indexes using residential density, intersection density, land use mix, with and without retail floor area ratio were calculated for 5,858 Sydney Census Collection Districts in a geographical information system. Associations between variables were evaluated using Spearman’s rho (ρ). Internal consistency and factor structure of indexes were estimated with Cronbach’s alpha and principal components analysis; convergent and predictive validity were measured using weighted kappa (κw) and by comparison with …

Ascertaining Invasive Breast Cancer Cases; The Validity Of Administrative And Self-Reported Data Sources In Australia, Anna Kemp, David B. Preen, Christobel Saunders, C D'Arcy J. Holman, Max Bulsara, Kris Rogers, Elizabeth E. Roughead

Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute

Background: Statutory State-based cancer registries are considered the ‘gold standard’ for researchers identifying cancer cases in Australia, but research using self-report or administrative health datasets (e.g. hospital records) may not have linkage to a Cancer Registry and need to identify cases. This study investigated the validity of administrative and self-reported data compared with records in a State-wide Cancer Registry in identifying invasive breast cancer cases. Methods: Cases of invasive breast cancer recorded on the New South Wales (NSW) Cancer Registry between July 2004 and December 2008 (the study period) were identified for women in the 45 and Up Study. Registry …

An Audit Of Vending Machines In Public Places In Regional Nsw, Australia, V Flood, A Carrad, A Alshukri, J Louie, B Kelly, H Yeatman, L Tapsell

Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute

Abstract of paper that presented at 20th International Congress of Nutrition, Granada, September 2013.

Using A Social Functionalist Framework To Understand Responses To Projected Sea Level Rise And Managed Retreat Policies In Australia, Kim Alexander, Anthony Ryan

Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute

Managed retreat is one of the few policy options available to the Australian government to mitigate the risk of sea level rise for coastal communities. A structured withdrawal from areas inundated by rising sea levels may be the only viable option for some jurisdictions and in many cases may be the most cost effective defensive approach. At present, little is known about community opinions on managed retreat options. The authors present a social functionalist framework to analyse the range of personal concerns and understand more about how people may respond to predicted changes to coastal shorelines. The meta-theoretical social functionalist …