Improving ethnocultural data to inform public health responses to communicable diseases in Australia

Authors

  • Emma Quinn New South Wales Public Health Officer Training Program, New South Wales Ministry of Health, Australia; School of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of New South Wales, Australia
  • Peter Massey Population Health, Hunter New England Local Health District, New South Wales, Australia
  • Alexander Rosewell Communicable Diseases Branch, Health Protection, New South Wales Ministry of Health, North Sydney, Australia
  • Mitchell Smith New South Wales Refugee Health Service, Sydney, Australia
  • David Durrheim Population Health, Hunter New England Local Health District, New South Wales, Australia; Hunter Medical Research Institute, Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5365/wpsar.2014.5.1.011

Abstract

The ethnicity of migrants is associated with a differential risk of infectious diseases, including measles, hepatitis B and tuberculosis, in Australia and other western countries.  In Australia, there is no national strategy to support standardised collection of priority ethnocultural communicable disease data. We explore the utility of existing surveillance data to describe ethnocultural groups and the potential for including new variables to improve disease prevention and control in New South Wales (NSW), Australia for high priority diseases. Currently there is a lack of ethnocultural data to help identify and describe the risk of communicable diseases for second and third generation Australians. The collection of data on “ethnicity/ancestry” in NSW on an ad-hoc basis has recently improved disease control activity for second and third generation Australians and should be considered for routine inclusion in notifiable disease surveillance in NSW within a national framework.

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Published

19-05-2014

How to Cite

1.
Quinn E, Massey P, Rosewell A, Smith M, Durrheim D. Improving ethnocultural data to inform public health responses to communicable diseases in Australia. Western Pac Surveill Response J [Internet]. 2014 May 19 [cited 2026 Mar. 22];5(2). Available from: https://ojs.wpro.who.int/ojs/index.php/wpsar/article/view/251

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 2 (2014): April – June

Section

Perspective

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