New online snapshot of health

15 September 2010

At-a-glance health information has been published online today, showing levels of key infections and vaccine uptake for the Bournemouth and Poole and Dorset areas.

The information can be found in the new Health Protection Profiles, which look at 19 health categories or “indicators”, and compares your local area with others that are similar (based on key characteristics) and the national average for England. They can be found at: www.hpa.org.uk/healthprotectionprofiles

The profiles cover infections such as measles, TB, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), vaccine uptake for jabs such as MMR, HPV and seasonal influenza, food poisoning notifications and environmental hazards, such as high radon gas levels in homes.

People using the profiles can see whether their local area has a high rate of Chlamydia infection, good uptake of the MMR vaccine, a high percentage of establishments compliant with food safety, or low levels of tuberculosis.

For the Bournemouth and Poole and Dorset areas, there are a number of positive messages, especially relating to vaccine uptake.

• Bournemouth and Poole had the fourth highest uptake of MMR by five years of age in the country
• Bournemouth and Poole was the third highest in the country for the uptake of the pneumococcal vaccine in people aged 65 years and over with Dorset also being above the national average
• Bournemouth and Poole was the highest in the country for the uptake of all three doses of the HPV vaccine in girls aged 12-13 years in 2008/09.
• Dorset was among the lowest in the county for rates of measles cases for 2006/08
• Dorset was among the lowest areas in the country for the rate of people living with HIV in 2007. This may be a reflection of the local population, which may have a low percentage of persons in at risk groups
• Although the data itself has been published before, this interactive and user-friendly format is new and highly visual having been designed and developed following repeated road testing and discussions with members of the public.

Dr. Susan Bennett, Unit Director for Dorset and Somerset HPA, said: “This type of health data are critically important, but often in the past it’s not been easy for the public to find, understand and compare local areas. These new profiles signal a change in how we present this information, giving people an opportunity to become more aware of local health issues, understand their context a little more and know where to go to find out more.

Many people know of the risks to health and the steps that they can take to help protect themselves such as vaccinations and safe sex but these profiles help show these risks and protective measures in a new light, giving people a greater understanding of how these risks may affect them and what they can do about them.

Last reviewed: 1 October 2010