Injury-relatedHealthLoss-MinistryofHealth.docVIP

Injury-related Health Loss A report from the New Zealand Burden of Diseases, Injuries and Risk Factors Study2006–2016 Citation: Ministry of Health and Accident Compensation Corporation. 2013.Injury-related Health Loss: A report from the New?Zealand Burden of Diseases,Injuries and Risk Factors Study 2006–2016.Wellington: Ministry of Health. Published in August 2013by the Ministry of HealthPO Box 5013, Wellington 6145, New Zealand ISBN 978-0-478-40296-4 (online)HP 5687 This document is available at t.nz and www.acc.co.nz Foreword We are pleased to present this joint report on Injury-related Health Loss from the Ministry of Health and the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC). Injury is an important cause of premature death and disability in New Zealand, but it can be difficult to quantify the scale of injury-related health loss. This report estimates both the total health loss caused by injury, as well as health loss from specific causes such as transport injuries and falls. For the first time we have been able to look at injury-related health loss from two perspectives: the external cause of the injury (eg, interpersonal violence) and the nature of the injury (eg, traumatic brain injury). This approach provides us with a more in-depth understanding of the mechanism of injury, critical for injury prevention, and of the health consequences of injury, important for effective injury management. Age, sex and ethnic disparities are also reported, with a separate section focusing on injury in Māori. The report also provides important insight into the contribution of different risk factors for injury, such as osteoporosis, alcohol misuse and mental illness. These results re-emphasise the strong association between injury and disease and the need for collaborative efforts to reduce injury-related health loss at a population level. The injury project demonstrates what can be achieved by linking data and sharing expertise across organisations. Analytical staff fro