Social » Healthy Community

Our physical and mental health is protected. Living and working environments are safe, and everyone has access to health care. Every opportunity is taken to recognise and encourage good health.

What is Healthy Community?

Good health is vital to well-being. Without good health, people are less able to enjoy their lives to the extent they might desire, their options may be limited and their general levels of quality of life and happiness may be reduced. Without good health and the ability to access healthcare, people are unable to actively participate in and contribute to the economic, social and cultural life of the region.

Healthy community is made up of 11 indicators that were selected to measure progress towards the healthy outcome definition (shown above). Please see below for the raw data available over the 2001 to 2010 study period for each of the healthy community indicators.

As with the social well-being GPI, the available indicator data that forms part of the healthy community outcome area was used to calculate individual index values for each indicator for each year over the 2001 to 2010 study period. The graph below shows the average of these individual index values, and represents the healthy community GPI for the Wellington region from 2001-2010.

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Healthy community GPI, 2001-2010

What this means

Over the 2001 to 2010 time period, the healthy community GPI was found to be highest in 2001 and lowest in 2007. The healthy community GPI decreased gradually from 2001 to 2007, but increases have been observed each year since this time. The observed increases over the last few years are encouraging but the healthy community GPI remains 2.7% lower in 2010 than 2001.  From 2001 to 2007 where the healthy community GPI decreased, only one healthy community indicator – amenable mortality rate per 1,000 people – increased with all other indicators remaining unchanged or having decreased.

Did you know?

Natural disasters (and the cost of cleaning up after them) actually create an increase in GDP, thus counting natural disasters as a benefit to our economy. From a GPI perspective, natural disasters would be a decline in our well-being

11 Indicators are being used to track Healthy Community in the Wellington region

Click on each indicator below to access further information

Obesity » Overview

The World Health Organisation has declared that obesity is a disease of pandemic significance, which threatens the developing world as well as developed countries. Obesity is associated with a long list of adult health conditions, including heart disease, high blood pressure and strokes, type 2 diabetes, various types of cancer, and psychological and social problems.

Prevalence of overweight and obesity, 2001-2010

Findings

  • In 2007, 63.2% of the Wellington region adult population were classified as overweight or obese.
  • The percentage of the Wellington region adults who are overweight or obese increased from 55.8% in 2003 to 63.2% in 2007.
  • An increase in the prevalence of overweight and obese adults was also observed for New Zealand adults overall, but this increase was not as large as that observed in the Wellington region.

Obesity » Technical Information

Indicator Definition

The age standardised percentage of people aged 15 years and over classified as overweight or obese according to the body mass index.

Data Source

Ministry of Health

Last updated 25 February 2010

While care has been taken in processing, analysing and extracting information, we cannot guarantee that the information is free from error and we shall not be liable for any loss suffered through the use, directly or indirectly, of any information, product or service.