Better Sooner More Convenient Primary Care - New Zealand Doctor

A 2007 Ministry of Health report[2][2] suggested that tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption,
oral health status and avoidable hospitalisation are among the key health issues for the West
Coast DHB as these rates are high compared with New Zealand as a whole. The West Coast
cryptosporidiosis rate is also high compared with New Zealand as a whole but this may not be as
serious. Notifiable disease rates vary due to factors other than disease prevalence, such as
variations in the extent to which these conditions come to the attention of medical
professionals and variations in the completeness of reporting. With these data limitations
noted it is still possible that the high cryptosporidiosis notification rate indicates that there is
a water quality issue in the West Coast DHB area that may affect population health.
Population Profile
The West Coast occupies 8.5% of New Zealand‟s total landmass and is home to a growing
population of 32,200 people[3][3]. The population is distributed across three Territorial Local
Authority (TLA) areas: Buller, Grey and Westland Districts. The West Coast DHB is the most
sparsely populated DHB in the country with a population density of 1.3 people per square
kilometre, less than 10% of the New Zealand average. A total of 57.7% of the West Coast DHB
population live in urban areas, the main population centres being Greymouth, Westport and
Hokitika. Between 2001 and 2006 the West Coast DHB population increased by 3.4%, with
Westland seeing the fastest growth rate (8.1%). Some Census Area Units had growth rates of
over 25% between 2001 and 2006 including Waiho, Totara River, Arnold Valley, Otira, Fox
Glacier, Coal Creek, Hokitika Rural and Greymouth Rural.
Notwithstanding, the long term population projections indicate that the West Coast region as a
whole will observe declining population numbers but with a growing older population. Population
estimates suggest that the child and youth populations decreased slightly between 2001 and
2006 but during the same time period there was significant growth among the older adult
population (40-64) and older people (65+). The West Coast DHB population has a slightly older
age structure compared with New Zealand as a whole, with a higher proportion of people aged
65 years or more compared with the national average. The Māori population on the West Coast
shows a different age structure and growth pattern however; nearly one in ten of the West
Coast population is Māori and there are more Māori aged under 45 years. Subsequently this will
be reflected in the expected future increase for all Māori age groups over 25 years of age.
More detailed ethnicity data analysis of the West Coast population shows that over 300 people
identified as being of Asian ethnicity, nearly 200 were Pacific Island people and nearly 70
identified as Middle Eastern/Latin American/African (MELAA). Overall 9.3% of the population
identify as Māori, Pacific people make up less than 1% (0.9%) of the region's population, with
the balance falling into other ethnicity groups
[2][2] “An indication of New Zealanders Health” (Ministry of Health, 2007)
[3][3] Statistics NZ Quarterly Regional Updates, March 2008. This number indicates a growth of 0.5% since the
2006 census count.
* A Portrait of Health. Key Results of the 2006/07 New Zealand Health Survey, 2008.
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