667 Results

  • Cycling and walking in six NZ cities: Where are we at?

    …   Figure 1 On-road cycle lane Wellington. Photo credit: Jenny Ombler Active transport is important for health and sustainability. But no one has previously looked … in NZ. The number of city council staff working on cycling or walking issues ranges from 1.5 FTE/100,000 people …
    Briefing

  • Improving NZ Government communication about COVID-19: Five suggestions

    … NZ has done very well with its COVID-19 pandemic response and it is typically ranked in the top few performing countries. 1 2 NZ’s economic indicators, such as GDP impacts, also … have been involved in joint “War Cabinets” or similar bodies during World War Two in NZ, Australia and …
    Briefing

  • “Nudging” to improve QR scanning and mask wearing to protect us all during a pandemic

    … COVID-19 elimination strategy is the rapid identification and then management of any COVID-19 cases arising from border … in settings where scanning will likely remain voluntary. 1 Furthermore, although mask-wearing on public transport is … protect themselves and others by doing the “right thing”, or that provides new information about why these behaviours …
    Briefing

  • When the first barrier fails: Strengthening protection for drinking water sources

    … water is a foundation of public health. The first, and most significant, barrier against drinking water … barrier against drinking water contamination and illness”. 1  The case of the Waimate breach exposes weaknesses in … the risk of colorectal cancer and exposure to nitrites and/or nitrates, whether they are ingested via the consumption of …
    Briefing

  • The long shadow of Cyclone Gabrielle: Brief review at 12 months

    … A year ago Cyclone Gabrielle struck Aotearoa New Zealand and it became the most costly weather-related disaster in the … regions of the North Island. The cyclone killed 11 people, 1 displaced more than 10,500 , and caused a range of acute … followed by stress (24%), and feeling depressed, low, or down (16%).” As a result, an “overall mental wellbeing …
    Briefing

  • We need rapid progress on digital solutions to help eliminate COVID-19 from New Zealand

    … with contact tracing, border controls, early diagnosis and surveillance. These technologies present major benefits … for digital solutions to help tackle this global threat (1). Currently, NZ is considering several digital solutions to … enabled the identification of close contacts unknown to, or not recalled by, the case. They have also automated …
    Briefing

  • What the Pacific & Mexico can tell us about soft drink taxes and public health

    … taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) can be designed and implemented. These aspects can affect the likely impact … over and above the tax on other food and beverages (Figure 1). In April 2014 the Cook Islands adopted a NZ$9.80 tax per … of a clear health goal, using excise tax, taxing on volume or sugar content, taxing a broad range of SSBs, introducing …
    Briefing

  • Might a ‘Coasean’ social contract mitigate overall societal harm from COVID-19?

    … need to protect older people from high death rates and the desirability of maximising freedom from lock-downs … with the option of opt out either with no payment or an insurance surcharge reflecting risk until either a … bargain between the two could in principle be struck [1]. Reflecting different individual preferences there could …
    Briefing

  • How the tobacco industry targets young people to achieve a new generation of smokers

    … despite a new-found interest in ‘ unsmoking ’ the world, and moving smokers to “reduced harm” products, tobacco … selling tobacco products, should these be proved harmful.[1] Analysis of industry documents and arguments reveal … success, and without regard for the human tragedy or social costs that success exacted .”[5]   Globally, this …
    Briefing

  • The rise and rise of specialist vape stores: Time for the Government to act

    … to our concerns, though reporting of the VIANZ’s comments and our response focused largely on disagreements about appropriate SVR numbers and gave less prominence to shared concerns. In this … to youth, and regulatory responses in Appendix 1 . VIANZ’s position: Common ground Our letter documented …
    Briefing

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Public Health Expert Briefing (ISSN 2816-1203)