Falls In Indigenous Infant Mortality Rates, But Wide Disparities Still
Exist: ABS & AIHW
A joint report released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) shows that there have been some
improvements in the health and welfare of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
peoples.
There were significant falls in mortality rates for Indigenous babies between 1991 and
2005 in Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory, the only
jurisdictions for which data were available for the full period and of sufficient quality
to report. There were also falls in the mortality rates of all Indigenous people in
Western Australia over the same period.
The report also found improvements in the socio-economic status of Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander people including:
An increase in Year 12 completion rates from 20% in 2001 to 23% in 2006
A decrease in the unemployment rate from 20% in 2001 to 16% in 2006
An increase in the rates of home ownership for Indigenous households from
31% in 2001 to 34% in 2006.
Despite these gains, the health status of Indigenous Australians has shown little
improvement in recent years, and remains considerably below that of non-Indigenous
Australians:
Indigenous adults are twice as likely as non-Indigenous adults to report their
health as fair or poor.
Hospitalisation rates are higher for Indigenous Australians, particularly for
conditions that are potentially preventable such as diabetes and kidney disease.
The mortality rates of Indigenous people in 2001-2005 were almost three
times the rate for non-Indigenous people in Queensland, Western Australia,
South Australia and the Northern Territory, the only jurisdictions for which
coverage of Indigenous deaths was deemed sufficient to report.
Other findings from the report include:
Indigenous people were half as likely to complete Year 12 as non-Indigenous
people.
Indigenous adults were more than twice as likely as non-Indigenous adults to
smoke regularly.
More than half of Indigenous people were overweight or obese.
Indigenous people face barriers in accessing health services, in particular
primary health care.
Further details are in The Health and Welfare of Australia's Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander Peoples, 2008 (ABS cat. no. 4704.0) available for free download from
NEWS 
