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Health and wellbeing of under-25 year olds in Canterbury and West Coast 2019
No full textIn this report the New Zealand Child and Youth Epidemiology Service (NZCYES) presents information to assist in the planning and funding of services that can collectively improve, promote and protect the health and wellbeing of children and young people aged under-25 years. This is the final of three age-based reports: indicators presented in 2017 had a focus on the first five years of life, and the 2018 report had a focus on the health and wellbeing of under-15 year olds.
Data for the indicators presented in this report were extracted in 2019 from a range of routinely collected national datasets. The report provides an analysis of the most recent data available for each indicator at the time of writing. Unadjusted rates should be interpreted in light of the differing patterns in age structure, ethnic composition, social and material deprivation in each DHB and in Aotearoa overall. Evidence for good practice is presented for each section, compiled from published scholarly literature and from publicly available guidelines, policies, and reports. Where possible, the evidence for good practice includes discussion of equity issues relevant to each indicator, to inform service planning and delivery.
The two review topics included in this report were selected by DHB representatives: Alcohol use in young people by Lee Smith and Promoting mental wellbeing in schools by Judith Adams and Georgia Richardson. These two sections of the report can inform strategies to promote health and wellbeing for all young people. Intervention and treatment services, supportive environments, and healthy cultural norms around drinking are some key components to addressing hazardous alcohol consumption in Aotearoa’s youngest generations. Through school-based initiatives, services can support the mental wellbeing of children and adolescents and thus invest in their long-term flourishing.
Navigating sexual and reproductive health is important to the lives of many young people. Information on reproductive planning and pregnancy rates can provide an indication about the accessibility of services and provide an indication about the future social and economic participation of this generation of young people and the sustainability of the overall population and economy.1 These indicators are presented in the section on Reproductive health.
The section on Mental Health presents information on the prevalence of selected mental health diagnoses in young people, the mental health services utilised by young people and the hospitalisations of young people that are associated with mental health issues.
Selected indicators about substance use and smoking, alcohol and drug service utilisation, and alcohol and drug hospitalisations are presented in the Substance use section. These indicators are important for overall wellbeing, growth, and long-term health of children and young people and inextricably linked to other wellbeing measures presented in the 2019 report.
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child establishes that every child is deserving of a state-level commitment towards the promotion of their social, spiritual and mental wellbeing, as well as towards their protection from all forms of violence and harm.2 The section on Safety and Security provides an overview of indicators relating to the protection of children and young people in Aotearoa, including information about assault and self-harm.
Supporting and adding value to the lives of children and young people with cancer is an important part of planning and funding decisions and is presented in the section on Cancer.
The report appendices describe the processes used in compiling information for these reports, including the methods used to develop evidence for good practice, and the statistical methods used in the data analyses. The appendices give further information about the data sources used for the indicators in the report, explanation about classification of ethnicity and social and material deprivation, and a list of the clinical codes relevant to each indicator.
In summary, the 2019 report on health and wellbeing of under-25 year olds presents data and interpretation on a set of relevant indicators extracted from national health datasets. The data used were the most recent available at the time of writing, and provide a snapshot of achievements and challenges in these areas. This report cannot address questions that require outpatient data, as these are not yet available at a national level. Developing systems that can provide a fuller picture of outpatient and primary health care data is important to inform child health service planning at national and DHB levels. The NZCYES is liaising with the Ministry of Health as they develop and roll out a patient flow system that will include primary care and outpatient data
Content Analysis of the ‘Clean Your Plate Campaign’ on Sina Weibo
No full textAt the beginning of 2013, a Beijing non-profit group launched a ‘Clean Your Plate Campaign’ on Sina Weibo, a Chinese Twitter-like microblogging site, with aims to reduce food waste. This paper examines social media users’ reactions during two periods of the first three years of the campaign. Upon examination of topic content, supporting participation was the most popular topic in January 2013 and showcasing individual achievement was the most frequently discussed topic in March 2016, with socialising as the common purpose for posting in both months. Users mentioning the campaign most in January 2013 belonged to private organisations, with posts from ordinary people becoming more predominant by March 2016. This study sheds light on the use of social media to raise public awareness regarding food waste in China. The findings will help campaigns aiming to promote food waste reductions or other social movements that use social media as a platform for citizen involvemen
Eliciting information from adults: quality, quantity, and their willingness to disclose to an avatar interviewer
No full textAvatars—digital representations of humans—may be a useful tool in a wide range of areas, such as education, advertising, communication, and health. The overarching goal of the present research was to examine the use of avatars in the context of evidential and clinical interviewing, in the hope that this novel technology could facilitate adults’ memory performance and enhance their disclosure of sensitive information. The first specific aim was to examine the effectiveness of an avatar interviewer on adults’ accounts of a witnessed event. In this context, adults were interviewed by either a digital-human avatar or a human face-to-face using both free- and directed-recall questions. Some participants also received post-event misinformation that was presented by either the digital-human avatar or the human interviewer. In addition, I examined the impact of several individual differences, including participants’ level of autism and personality traits, and their perception of the avatar’s operation. Finally, I investigated the effectiveness of avatar interviewers with varying degrees of anthropomorphism on adults’ accounts. The second specific aim was to explore the potential for avatar professionals in the context of the disclosure of sensitive information.
In the present thesis, I investigated the effects of two types of avatar interviewers: a more anthropomorphic, 2D cartoon-rendered digital-human avatar, and a less anthropomorphic, speech-wave avatar. The digital-human avatar resembled the appearance of the human interviewers who were also used in the present research, but the avatar’s movement was restricted to eye blinks and head tilts. The speech-wave avatar interviewer resembled Apple’s Siri. Both types of avatar were voiced and operated by a concealed human interviewer. The digital-human avatar’s lips moved in synchrony with the human’s speech; the speech-wave avatar moved up and down, also in synchrony with the human’s speech. The avatar was displayed on a computer monitor that was placed on a table directly in front of the participant. The interviews involving the human interviewer were conducted face-to-face.
Overall, differences in participants’ memory performance was not detected when they were interviewed only once by either a digital-human avatar or a human interviewer. When participants were interviewed twice, on the other hand, participants who were interviewed by the human interviewer were more talkative and provided more correct details than did participants who were interviewed by the digital-human avatar, but their reports were also less accurate during free recall. Still, the digital-human avatar did not protect the participants from the adverse effects of misleading information. Finally, relative to an interview with the digital-human avatar, participants’ memory performance was enhanced when the speech- wave avatar interviewed them. In addition to these group-level results, participants with low conscientiousness and autism traits, or who perceived the digital-human avatar as computer- operated, were more accurate in their accounts during free recall when a digital-human avatar interviewed them.
With respect to disclosure, overall, participants preferred to disclose information to a human professional face-to-face rather than to avatar professionals. When I compared the digital-human avatar to the speech-wave avatar, participants preferred to disclose more embarrassing information, particularly sex-related topics, and reported more coherent details about an embarrassing personal event to a speech-wave avatar. In terms of the avatar’s characteristics, participants indicated that they would be more comfortable disclosing embarrassing information to an avatar appearing as a female around 45- to 54-years of age.
Collectively, my findings provide initial insight of the potential value and pitfalls of using avatars in evidential and clinical interviewing. In this day and age, humans may have adapted to technology, treating non-human interviewers in much the same way as they treat human interviewers. Still, there is a place for avatars in specific populations, and in the context of disclosing stigmatising experiences. The results of the present research have important implications for designing and using avatars that might aid humans in performing specific tasks in help-seeking settings
Assessing wound measurement within a high-risk foot ulcer clinic for people with diabetes - clinical and patient perspectives
No full textIntroduction
Around a third of people with diabetes will develop a foot ulcer requiring specialist podiatry treatment during their lifetime. The formation of a foot ulcer for people with diabetes is a consequence of chronic hyperglycaemia, which causes poor wound healing and damage to nerves and blood vessels. This study has two aims. The first was to describe wound healing trajectories from baseline (Day 0), to wound closure, for wounds that had healed within six months. Our hypothesis was that a clinical marker exists, such as a certain time point along the wound healing trajectory, which is associated with subsequent rapid healing. The second aim was to understand patient perceptions associated with wound images and how discussion about images might optimise self-care, as few studies have explored this aspect of clinical care. Images undertaken as part of routine clinical care, enables patients to visualise their foot ulcers, maybe for the first time. Both patient and podiatrist can jointly view the current foot ulcer image on a computer screen and compare this with an earlier electronic image, to gauge wound healing progression. These images thus have the potential to provide a communication medium for facilitating patient self-management discussions.
Methods
This study consisted of two parts. Part 1 included an exploratory retrospective analysis of wound healing as measured by surface area metrics, from 103 individual patients who had attended the high-risk foot ulcer clinic over the previous three years.
Part 2 focused on descriptive qualitative research of semi-structured interviews of patients attending the high-risk foot ulcer clinic, studying their perceptions of wound imaging, including clinical utility, during routine clinic appointments. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed, thereby allowing thematic analysis of participant responses and identification of themes.
Results and findings
Part 1 results determined wound healing trajectories for the 103 individual patient wounds, showed no identifiable time point, after which there would be no deterioration in wound healing. A greater than 50% reduction in wound surface area at four weeks has previously been described as a marker of wound healing success, however only 61.2% of healed wounds in this study met this parameter.
Analysis of 31 patient interviews for Part 2 described participants’ positive reactions to being able to visualise and discuss their wound images. This visualisation and discussion led to valuable insights and enhanced understanding of clinical aspects of wound healing. Patient engagement increased with the self-care advice around wound healing, provided by the podiatrists and other specialist clinicians. Patients also considered that these discussions positively impacted on their health literacy.
Conclusion
The study showed that sharing and discussing wound images helps advance patient education and understanding. In doing so, the patient can feel more included in their care and more likely to participate in self-care. The study also shows that real-world wound healing trajectories do not provide the podiatrist or patient with certainty around length of time needed to complete wound healing, thus it can be difficult to answer the patient’s question “when will my wound fully heal”. In conclusion, in-clinic discussions of wound images can enhance wound healing opportunities
Māori women leading local sustainable food systems
No full textThe article explores how Māori women in Aotearoa (New Zealand) are defining their own food system and the values of the women at the heart of their community food initiatives. Using a blend of participatory and kaupapa Māori (Māori principles) research methodologies, the study took place over the course of 3years, involving four women or case studies who manage community food initiatives, with three located in the North Island and one in the South Island of New Zealand. The article discusses the benefits of community gardens and farms, noting how they are counteracting food poverty through promoting access to local food while bringing more attention to the essential role that Indigenous women play in addressing food security issues. The case studies exemplify how Māori women are leading the way within their own whānau (families) and communities, promoting local solutions to global food issues, solutions based on their own knowledge and Māori cultural values
Speed the plough : an historical geography of New Zealand farming before the introduction of refrigeration.
No full text[…] The present pattern of farming in New Zealand evolved through many changes which were in themselves
responses to the landscape found by the Europeans, based on the cultural background of the settlers, the
changing demands of markets both domestic and overseas, technological advances, and the development and
expansion of transportation facilities. The nineteenth century was one of experimentation and change in New
Zealand farming, whereas the present century, despite minor changes of emphasis, has been primarily a period of intensification of an already established basic pattern. What follows is an attempt to describe the geography of New Zealand farming - its characteristics, methods, and changes - from the time of Cook's arrival in 1769 until 1881, the year previous to the successful landing of frozen New Zealand meat and dairy produce in London. This thesis is an exercise in Historical Geography, a field which no longer needs to be defined, or a special plea made for its validity as part of the field of Geography. A word, however, may be noted about the element of change. Some geographers would suggest that changes in time belong only to history, but as Hartshorne notes the study of 'differences from
place to place changing through time' is validly part of historical geography. Thus the emphasis in respect to change in this thesis is where and why the changes took place. [Extract from Preface
Environmental geochemistry of mine waste and waters at Macraes gold mine, Otago
No full textThe mineralogy and geochemistry of mine waste can determine the mobility of elements into the wider environment. This research covers four phases of mine waste at Macraes, an active orogenic gold mine in Otago, New Zealand. It encompasses the generation of mine waste in pressure-oxidation autoclave processing, the evolution of tailings in storage, how water-rock interactions in waste-rock influence water chemistry, and treatment methods for high sulphate water affected by tailings and waste rock.
Arsenopyrite (FeAsS), pyrite (FeS2), and for a time stibnite (Sb2S3), were processed by a pressure oxidation autoclave at Macraes, which changes the nature of the waste to oxidised material. Handheld XRF and SEM-EDS analyses were used to characterise the scales formed in the autoclave, focusing on the mineralogy of arsenic (As) and antimony (Sb). Results show that Sb may form the insoluble oxide tripuhyite (FeSbO4) with co-precipitated As in the autoclave. This may explain why Sb concentrations did not increase in waters at Macraes when the mine was processing externally mined Sb rich ore.
The geochemistry and mineralogy of the tailings is studied to assess how the autoclave influences tailings mineralogy, attenuation and leaching processes over 10-20 years of burial. Most sulphides (arsenopyrite and pyrite) in 77 m deep tailings appear unaltered since deposition. More recent tailings (44 m depth and surface) have had most sulphides oxidised by the autoclave during processing. At these shallower depths arsenic was primarily associated with ferric oxides and some ferric arsenate but some arsenopyrite and pyrite was present, unoxidized by the autoclave.
Extensive water quality data from 20 years of water analysis has been used to assess the water-rock interactions occurring in the waste rock stacks and tailings. In waste rock stacks pyrite weathering produces sulphuric acid, which is neutralised by chlorite and calcite in the waste rock stacks, leaving high concentrations of sulphate (~2800 g/m3), magnesium (~800 g/m3) and bicarbonate (~700 g/m3) in solution.
Calcium:bicarbonate and magnesium:sulphate ratios have been identified as markers for identifying tailings influenced water from waste-rock influenced water at Macraes.
A proposal to manage high sulphate waters at the site through irrigation to force precipitation of sulphate minerals such as gypsum is investigated. The composition of the precipitates formed in a waste-rock stack affected waterway were found to be primarily aragonite, but geochemical models showed that with enough evaporation, gypsum would precipitate. A laboratory irrigation trial found that gypsum did precipitate in soil, but sulphate concentrations regained near-original levels in drainage after 8 weeks of irrigation.
The arsenic and antimony in the tailings appear geochemically stable, with any aqueous components being adsorbed to the abundant ferric oxyhydroxides produced in the autoclave, but high sulphate water from waste rock and tailings is a remaining issue at the site
Linking Personal Values to Energy-Efficient Behaviors in the Home
No full textLaddering techniques are used to identify personal values underlying a range of 21 potential energy-saving behaviors or purchases. At an individual level, ladders (or means-end chains) are quite simple; when aggregated, however, they are complex and show many different paths between underlying values and behaviors. The values identified can promote energy-efficient behaviors or act as obstacles to change. The value “pleasure,” for example, was found to influence energy-efficient behavior, such as hanging the laundry on the line, and inefficient behavior, such as taking long showers. Results show that values relating to “achievement” are most influential on the way people use energy in the home. Thus, social marketing campaigns promoting energy efficiency and conservation should tap into achievement values such as capability and intelligence because these campaigns are more likely to be effective than those that use other types of appeal
Revealing the lifestyles of local food consumers
No full textChanging consumption patterns have led to a number of transformations throughout the food cycle, and understanding how and why people purchase local food is important. This paper aims to examine the characteristics of the people leading this phenomenon: those that prefer to buy locally produced food. In order to explore the characteristics of local food purchasers, a single item question, “I try to buy a lot of locally produced food”, was included in the food section of a New Zealand consumer lifestyles survey for which 3,556 responses were collected. The full survey included 600 questions across the full attitude, interest and opinion schedule. For people who express a strong intention to purchase local food, this behaviour is linked to the types of food they eat (e.g. unprocessed foods), where they buy it (e.g. at speciality stores), and how they cook it (e.g. follow recipes). A range of personality and other personal characteristics differ between local and non-local food buyers, with the former segment being more liberal, interested in quality, and frugal. Consumers who express an interest in purchasing local food are a demanding segment of the population whose interest in food makes them critical judges of produce. Local food must thus be fresh and value for money. Growing this sector requires making local food more accessible through mainstream retail outlets. While something is known about why people buy local food, less is known about other aspects of local food consumers, the range of attitudes they hold towards food or their food-related behaviours
The lost kelp forest: a multi-disciplinary approach to understand change of Macrocystis pyrifera habitat in Otago, New Zealand
No full textMacrocystis pyrifera (M. pyrifera) is an ecosystem engineer. It modifies the environment providing the foundation, food, resources, and habitat provisions for many other organisms. Globally, kelp forests have been declining due to multiple-stressor impacts. Anecdotally, M. pyrifera has declined in Otago, New Zealand however no research has yet assessed this. The aim of this study was to determine changes in extent of M. pyrifera along coastal Otago to understand if there has been a change in living memory of local knowledge holders. The research then aimed to validate evidence given by interviewees and investigate what habitat remains for the potential of future regeneration of the kelp forests in this area. During 19 semi-structured interviews, local knowledge holders reported a complete loss of M. pyrifera forests along the southern coastline north of Taieri Island that occurred between approximately 1970’s – 1980’s. This stretch of coastline is still referred to as “The Kelp”, even by interviewees who never observed M. pyrifera here. The area indicated by interviewees at the entrance of the Taieri River was investigated further. A multibeam survey located the presence of two reef structures (0.2 km2 and 0.9 km2) in the location indicated by interviewees. The two reef structures appeared to have hard substrate in a depth range (9 – 21 m) that could support M. pyrifera, if other environmental conditions were congruent. A drop camera survey of the two reef structures was done to investigate the substrate and biological compositions of the reef structures. This was compared to a previous survey that had been completed in the East Otago Taiāpure where it is known that there is still M. pyrifera. The camera analysis supported the multibeam survey, that there was sufficient hard substrate to support M. pyrifera. Assessment of the algal composition showed a homogenous mix of coralline, C. brownii and mixed red algae when compared to the heterogeneous canopy and understory composition of the East Otago Taiāpure. Along both the northern and southern coastlines there was an agreement amongst interviewees that runoff from the land, in particular sedimentation, was a key driver behind the changes observed. This fits both with the increases in fine sediment from land use observed around Otago as well as the presence of sediment resilient species of algae. To further understand the implications of the loss of kelp forests along this coastline it would be essential to quantify the stressors that have caused the loss of kelp along this coastline and if these stressors are still present in this environment. In a changing global environment, it is important to understand the changes that have, and will continue to occur in order to do valuable ecosystem-based management