Data issues
The principal sources of public health information include the national Compendium of Clinical and Health Indicators , The Information Centre for health and social care , National Statistics (including the 2001 Census), and the North West Public Health Observatory .
The Compendium of Clinical and Health Indicators can be accessed by both general and NHS Net users, although those with access to NHS Net will be able to obtain more detailed information (the links used in this report direct users to the general site).
Mapping
For anyone interested in health mapping, both the Compendium of Clinical and Health Indicators and the North West Public Health Observatory have interactive mapping facilities to display a wide selection of comparative data.
Rates and standardisation
There are a number of ways to describe the frequency with which an event occurs within a population.
Rates of death and sickness within a population are usually standardised to take into account variations in the age structure of the population.
The directly age-standardised rate is the number of events that would occur in a standard population if that population had the age-specific rates of a given area. The rates are standardised to the European Standard population. Directly standardised rates can be compared across areas and time periods.
Structure of the site
Most pages contain one or two graphs and tables to view as well as some text giving some general background on the topic and picking out some key local messages from the data presented. There are also hyperlinks to other sites referred to on the page.
We have also included for download –
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a few more detailed tables
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some key reports that may not be so easy to find on their host site
A major limitation of this site is the lack of reliable, up-to-date information on ethnicity, since most routine NHS data sources do not systematically record this information. Given the ethnic diversity of our population, this information is vital for the identification of inequalities and for shaping local service provision. It is hoped that future health-related research within the Borough will address this.
