NSW Health Survey Program - Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch, NSW Health Department

Presented by Deborah Baker

Background

• Health Survey Program (HSP) established 1996, first survey in 1997
• Managed by Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch
• Series of annual population health surveys
• Core questions repeated yearly
• Flexible to address emerging issues
• Funded jointly by local Area Health Services and Head Office

Objectives

• Provide local and state-wide information to inform service planning and policy development on:
• self-reported health status
• risk factors
• health service use and satisfaction
• Collect information that is not available from other sources
• Ensure that information collected is high quality, timely and cost-effective
• Respond to emerging data needs

Development

• Steering Committee

  • Identify topic areas for inclusion
  • Ensure that information addresses State and local priorities

• Technical Group and experts in health priority areas

  • Develop survey methods
  • Adopt, adapt, develop new questions

Questionnaire - 1997 and 1998 Surveys

• Focus on:

  • Cardiovascular disease
  • Cancer
  • Injury
  • Mental Health
  • Diabetes
  • Asthma

 

• Plus health service use and satisfaction, adult immunisation, health status, pain, oral health

• Area-specific modules

• Translated into 5 languages

Methods - 1997 and 1998 Surveys

• In house Computer-Assisted Telephone Interview (CATI) system

• Stratified 2-stage cluster sample

  • Sample size 17,000 (1,000 per Area Health Service)
  • Sampling frames comprising lists of all active telephone numbers for each Area Health Service (listed and unlisted)
  • 1 person aged 16+ years selected per household

• Callback protocol completed for all numbers dialled

Data use

• Monitoring health indicators in Area Health Services

• Monitoring progress towards state and national goals and targets

• Determining priorities for intervention

  • health issues
  • target groups

• Input into local needs assessments/epidemiological profiles

Future plans

• In 1999, surveys focusing on:

  • children (0-12 years)
  • older people (65+ years)

• Further develop sampling to deal with changes in telephone technology

  • mobile telephone as sole household telephone
  • multiple telephone service providers
• Ongoing quality improvement

Authorised by: Executive Officer, NPHP
Contact: Darryl Kosch, nphp@dhs.vic.gov.au
Date of publication: 1999
Page last updated: 27 November, 2003

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