By Michael Morrah
New figures released today show there has been a dramatic jump in the number of infectious diseases.
The research team said it was taken aback by the figures and has brought calls for urgent action.
The main reason for the jump is what scientists call ‘socio-economic factors’ – and others simply call ‘poverty’.
Hospital admissions for infectious diseases like rheumatic fever and measles have been increasing nationwide and experts say in a developed country like New Zealand it is shocking.
“I think it’s a disgrace that New Zealand still has high rates of rheumatic fever,” says research head Michael Baker. “Most countries have stopped counting this disease because it has essentially vanished.”
Mr Baker’s research was carried out over a 20-year period, based on 5 million overnight admissions to hospitals.
During that time, admissions went up 51 percent – in part, due to poverty.
“To deal with this we have to move beyond the health sector,” says Mr Baker. “We need to think about income distribution, housing and access to primary care.”
Household overcrowding and lack of immunisation is also part of the reason New Zealand rates so poorly.
The Government says it hasn’t failed – but rather that it is trying to address the issue.
“I think the important thing is looking at the here and now and what we are doing about the problems, rather than reiterating the past,” says Chief Medical Health Officer Dr Don Mackie.
The Ministry of Health says it is tackling the problem with immunisation programmes, including plans to protect more than 19,000 children from rheumatic fever.
Despite those efforts, the results of the research are grim and researchers say it should come as a wakeup to all Government departments.
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