Australian and New Zealand journal of public health
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Aust N Z J Public Health · Apr 2006
Risk factors for preterm, low birth weight and small for gestational age birth in urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women in Townsville.
To assess the characteristics of Indigenous births and to examine the risk factors for preterm (<37 weeks), low birth weight (<2,500 g) and small for gestational age (SGA) births in a remote urban setting. ⋯ The prevalence of demographic and clinical risk factors is high in this group of urban Indigenous women. Strategies addressing potentially modifiable risk factors should be an important focus of antenatal care delivery to Indigenous women and may represent an opportunity to improve perinatal outcome in Indigenous communities in Australia.
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Aust N Z J Public Health · Apr 2006
Improving access to medicines among clients of remote area Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Services.
Despite unequivocally worse health, expenditure on Indigenous people through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) is considerably less than for other Australians. We report on the effectiveness of a program to supply PBS medicines to remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Services (ATSIHSs) under section 100 (s. 100) of the National Health Act 1953. ⋯ Overall, the SPBSAs have been very successful and demonstrates an effective model for the development of Indigenous health policy.
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Aust N Z J Public Health · Apr 2005
ReviewClandestine drug laboratories in Australia and the potential for harm.
The emphasis in the literature regarding illicit drugs has been overwhelmingly on the subject of harm caused by their ingestion. Little has been reported on the potential and real harm associated with the illicit manufacture of drugs. This paper describes the increasing prevalence of clandestine drug laboratories in Australia, overwhelmingly devoted to the manufacture of methamphetamine. ⋯ Legislatures without a clandestine drug laboratory registry should establish one. Where it doesn't exist, legislation should be sought to curb the spread of this unwanted phenomenon. Significant opportunities exist for further research into the harm caused to first responders, the community, and the environment by clandestine laboratories.
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Aust N Z J Public Health · Apr 2005
Comparative StudyCancer incidence and survival for indigenous Australians in the Northern Territory.
To compare cancer incidence and survival for the Northern Territory (NT) Indigenous population with that of other Australians, and to assess NT Indigenous incidence time trends. ⋯ Cancer has a greater impact on NT Indigenous people than other Australians. Well-established cancer risk factors should be more effectively tackled in Indigenous people and known effective screening programs more effectively implemented. Research is urgently required into the reasons why survival from cancer in NT Indigenous people is so much lower than in other Australians.