Association of ethnicity with unintentional injury-related hospitalisation and mortality among older people residing in two regions of Aotearoa New Zealand

Abstract

Objectives: To characterise unintentional injury-related hospitalisation and mortality amongst older adults (aged 50+ years) in the Lakes and Bay of Plenty District Health Boards of Aotearoa New Zealand and to examine whether hospitalisation patterns differed by ethnicity.

Methods: This observational study analysed unintentional injury-related hospitalisations and deaths among older adults between 2014 and 2018. Routinely collected national data sets were used to calculate annualised, age-standardised injury rates. The independent variable of interest was ethnicity (Māori or non-Māori).

Results: There were 11,834 unintentional injury-related hospitalisations in the study period (n = 1444 for Māori). Overall, there was no significant difference in the age-standardised hospitalisation rate between Māori and non-Māori (Standardised Rate Ratio [SRR] = 0.96 [95% CI 0.90, 1.02]). Falls were the most common mechanism of injury among Māori and non-Māori overall (50% and 71%) and relative risks of falls increased with age. Non-Māori were 57% less likely to be hospitalised for unintentional poisoning than Māori (SRR = 0.43, [0.34, 0.59]).

Conclusions: The mechanisms of injury, and variation in unintentional injury-related hospitalisation rates between Māori and non-Māori, change throughout older age, and incidence increase0073 with age. Falls cause significant injury-related hospitalisations for older Māori and responsive injury prevention and rehabilitation efforts are warranted to achieve equitable health outcomes.