The Older Persons' Index of Multiple Deprivation: Measuring the deprivation circumstances of older populations in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Existing indices of multiple deprivation exclude indicators specifically relevant to the population aged ≥65 years. In this study we create a whole-of-population cohort of people aged ≥65 years living in private dwellings and who completed the 2013 New Zealand Census of Populations and Dwellings to create an Older Persons' Index of Multiple Deprivation (OPIMD). We combined 22 indicators representing 6 domains of deprivation (Income, Housing, Health, Assets, Connectedness and Geographic access) to establish this individual-level measure of deprivation. We used smoking data from the census to validate the OPIMD and describe the geography of the OPIMD by District Health Board, contrasting these patterns with a conventional area deprivation index. The OPIMD has the potential to inform policies concerning resource allocation for the older population. An accompanying website with an interactive atlas and an online OPIMD calculator is available for wider use of the data. Further research is required to explore associations between the OPIMD and other major health and social outcomes affecting this population.

Epidemiology of dog-related injuries within New Zealand.

AIM: To describe the epidemiology of DRIs in New Zealand. METHODS: A review of Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) new claims for DRIs that required medical attention, and publicly funded hospital discharges identified from the National Minimum Dataset (NMDS) for the period of 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2019. ACC cases were identified using the TE60 READ code and relevant diagnosis or external agency descriptions; NMDS cases with an ICD-10-AM external cause of injury code of W540, W541, or W548 were included. RESULTS: There were 108,324 new ACC claims for DRIs and 3,456 hospitalisations during the five-year review period. The majority of injuries were dog bites (51%, n=54,754 ACC claims; 89%, n=3,084 hospitalisations). The all-age incidence of ACC claims for all DRIs significantly increased by 1.75% per year (p<0.001) during the period reviewed, with a significant increase in claims for dog bite injuries of 1.64% per year (p<0.001), a significant increase in DRI hospitalisations (2.43% per year, p=0.046), and a non-significant annual increase (p=0.217) in dog bite injury hospitalisations. Children aged 0-9 years had similar rates to adults of ACC claims for dog bite injuries; however, children 0-9 years were more likely to be hospitalised. Maori had a higher incidence of ACC claims and hospitalisations for dog bite injuries than non-Maori. ACC claims and hospitalisations for dog bite injuries were more likely to occur in areas of greater deprivation, with substantial regional variation across the country. CONCLUSION: The incidence of injury from dogs in New Zealand is increasing. Inequity exists with substantial regional variation, in higher rates among those living in areas of greater deprivation, and with Maori in the setting of the ongoing effects of colonisation. Children aged 0-9 years are no more likely than other age groups to present for medical attention but are more likely to be hospitalised. Reasons for these disparities require further investigation.