Glossary

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
people who identify themselves as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin. See also Indigenous

age-specific rate
an estimate of the number of people experiencing a particular event in a specified age-group relative to the total number of people ‘at risk’ of that event in that age-group

age-specific death rate
the number of deaths of persons of a specific age-group in a calendar year per 1,000 persons of the same age-group. For the purposes of this report, the age-specific death rate is calculated per 100,000 persons of the same age-group so the rate can be expressed as a whole number

age-specific fertility rate
the number of live births to women in a specified age-group in one year per 1,000 women in the same age-group

age-standardisation
a method of removing the influence of age when comparing populations with different age structures. This is necessary because the rates of many diseases increase with age. The age structures of the different populations are converted to the same ‘standard’ structure; then the disease rates that would have occurred with that structure are calculated and compared. This method is used when making comparisons for different periods of time, different geographic areas and/or different population sub-groups (e.g. between one year and the next, and states and territories). They have been included for users to make comparisons that may not be available in this report

avoidable mortality (deaths)
a death that, theoretically, could have been avoided given an understanding of causation, the adoption of available disease prevention initiatives and the use of available health care

body mass index
a measure calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by height in metres squared, and which categorises a person as ranging from underweight to obese: underweight (BMI: less than 18.5); normal (BMI: 18.5-24.9); overweight (BMI: 25.0-29.9); obese (BMI: 30.0+)

burden of disease
the quantified impact of a disease or injury on a population using the disability-adjusted life year measure

cause of death
as entered on the medical certificate of cause of death – refers to all diseases, morbid conditions or injuries that either resulted in or contributed to death

child mortality rate
the number of deaths in a given period among children aged 0–14 years per 100,000 children of the same age. Can also be presented for specific age groups within this age range, such as for children aged 0–4 years

crude rate
the number of new cases (crude incidence rate) or deaths (crude death rate) due to a disease in the total population that could be affected, without considering age or other factors

disability-adjusted life year
a year of healthy life lost, either through premature death or living with a disability due to illness or injury

expectation of life
predicted number of years of life remaining to a person if the present pattern of mortality does not change. It is a statistical abstraction based on current age-specific death rates

fatal burden
the burden of dying prematurely from a disease or injury as measured by years of life lost. It offers a way to compare the impact of different diseases, conditions or injuries on a population. See non-fatal burden

fertility rate
see age-specific fertility rate and total fertility rate

hospital separation
an episode of care for an admitted patient, which can be a total hospital stay (from admission to discharge, transfer or death) or a portion of a hospital stay beginning or ending in a change of type of care (for example, from acute care to rehabilitation). Separation also means the process by which an admitted patient completes an episode of care either by being discharged, dying, transferring to another hospital or changing type of care

hospital separations
the total number of episodes of care (also hospitalisations) for admitted patients, which can be total hospital stays (from admission to discharge, transfer or death) or portions of hospital stays beginning or ending in a change of type of care (for example, from acute to rehabilitation) that cease during a reference period

hospital separation rate
the total number of episodes of care for admitted patients divided by the total number of persons in the population under study. Often presented as a rate per 1,000 or 100,000 members of a population. Rates may be crude or standardised

hospitalisation
an episode of admitted patient care, which can be either a patient’s total stay in hospital (from admission to discharge, transfer or death), or part of a patient’s stay in hospital that results in a change to the type of care (for example, from acute care to rehabilitation)

incidence
the number of instances of illness commencing, or of persons falling ill, during a given period in a specified population

incidence rate
the number of instances of illness commencing, or of persons falling ill, during a given period in a specified population divided by the population at risk

Indigenous
term used to refer collectively to the two Indigenous sub-populations within Australia – Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

infant mortality
the death of a live-born child who dies before reaching his/her first birthday

infant mortality rate
the number of deaths of children under one year of age in a specified period per 1,000 live births in the same period

International Classification of Diseases
WHO’s internationally accepted classification of death and disease

life expectancy
see expectation of life

maternal mortality
pregnancy-related deaths occurring to women during pregnancy or up to 42 days after delivery

maternal mortality ratio
number of maternal deaths divided by the number of confinements (expressed in 100,000s)

median age at death
the age above and below which 50% of deaths occurred

morbidity
state of being diseased or otherwise unwell

mortality
number of deaths in a population during a given time period

non-fatal burden
the burden from living with ill health, as measured by years lived with disability

non-Indigenous
a person who does not identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander

potentially preventable hospitalisations
hospital separations from a specified range of conditions where hospitalisation is considered to be largely preventable if timely and adequate care had been provided through population health services, primary care and outpatient services

prevalence
the number of instances of a given disease or other condition in a given population at a designated time

protective factors
health determinants that can influence health risks and/or outcomes in positive ways

rate
one number (the numerator) divided by another number (the denominator). The numerator is commonly the number of events in a specified time. The denominator is the population at risk of the event. Rates (crude, age-specific and age-standardised) are generally multiplied by a number such as 100,000 to create whole numbers

risk factor
an attribute or exposure that is associated with an increased probability of a specified outcome, such as the occurrence of a disease. A risk factor is not necessarily a causal factor

self-reported data
data based on how an individual perceives their own health. It relies on survey participants being aware, and accurately reporting, their health status and health conditions, which is not as accurate as data based on clinical records or measured data

standardised rate
the number of new cases (standardised incidence rate) or deaths (standardised death rate) due to a disease for a particular population after adjustment has been made for differences in the age structures of this population and a reference population. See age-standardisation

total fertility rate
the number of live births a woman would have if, throughout her reproductive years, she had children at the rates prevailing in the reference calendar year. It is the sum of the age-specific fertility rates for that calendar year

years lived with disability
measures the years of what could have been a healthy life that were instead spent in states of less than full health. Years lived with disability represent non-fatal burden

years of life lost measures years of life lost due to premature death, defined as dying before the ideal lifespan (based on the lowest observed death rates from multiple countries). Years of life lost represent fatal burden