Hoy W E, Norman R J, Hayhurst B G, Pugsley D J
Menzies School of Health Research, Darwin, NT.
Aust N Z J Public Health. 1997 Apr;21(2):121-6. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-842x.1997.tb01670.x.
We conducted a brief health survey of adults in an isolated Northern Territory Aboriginal community, whose standardised mortality rates are the second highest in Australia. The screen revealed high rates of smoking and excessive drinking, of preventable infections and their sequelae, and of hypertension, insulin resistance, diabetes and renal disease. The infectious morbidities were more pronounced and the life-style morbidities almost entirely new since a health screen in 1957. Most morbidities were strongly associated with identifiable risk factors, such as overweight, smoking, excessive drinking, skin sores and scabies, all of which which are amenable to modification. Problems with food supply and pricing, poor food choices and diversion of money to cigarettes, beer and gambling all contributed to poor nutrition. Low birthweight probably compounds the risk for serious adult disease associated with these environmental influences. This profile highlights the failure of current systems to deal with health needs. Improvements in infrastructure, education and employment, and reinvigoration of preventive and primary health care programs, assumption of responsibility for health by the community and by individuals themselves, and better management of existing morbidities are essential to rectifying this shameful situation.
我们对澳大利亚北领地一个偏远的原住民社区的成年人进行了一次简短的健康调查，该社区的标准化死亡率在澳大利亚位居第二。筛查发现，吸烟和过度饮酒、可预防感染及其后遗症、高血压、胰岛素抵抗、糖尿病和肾病的发生率很高。自1957年进行健康筛查以来，传染性疾病更为明显，而生活方式相关疾病几乎全是新出现的。大多数疾病都与可识别的风险因素密切相关，如超重、吸烟、过度饮酒、皮肤溃疡和疥疮，所有这些都是可以改变的。食物供应和定价问题、不良的食物选择以及把钱用于购买香烟、啤酒和赌博，都导致了营养不良。低出生体重可能会增加与这些环境影响相关的严重成人疾病的风险。这一情况凸显了当前体系在应对健康需求方面的失败。改善基础设施、教育和就业状况，重振预防和初级卫生保健项目，让社区和个人自己承担起健康责任，以及更好地管理现有疾病，对于纠正这种可耻的状况至关重要。
