Kaitiaki Nursing New Zealand May 25, 2022 It was surprising that Finance Minister Grant Robertson, in a pre-Budget speech, said that he thought the current health system was “incredibly inefficient”. Of course there are some inefficiencies in health-care delivery, just as there are in private enterprise: mistakes happen, some treatments could have been managed better…
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Prologue This arises from an invitation by Head and Neck Cancer Support Aotearoa to set down my recent experiences. A writer always asks, who am I writing for? It would be pointless to write for those who have already had treatment; most will have had far more rugged experiences than I had. So I am…
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Presentation to the 2021 Conference of Theatre Managers & Educators, Dunedin 5-7 May. Today I am going to discuss the governments plans for the health system. Let me begin with an admission about my perspective. Many New Zealanders are more centralist in their view of the governance of society than I am. I come from…
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Presentation to the 2021 Conference of Theatre Managers & Educators, Dunedin 5-7 May. A few weeks ago, the government announced the next health sector redisorganisation. So I have scrapped the presentations I promised, in favour of an account of what is happening and where we might be going. Today’s presentation is centred on a history…
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I have been gripped by the World Oddometer’s daily reports tracking the covid statistics. In a way it was a rejection of Stalin’s ‘one death is a tragedy; a million is a statistic’; I have watched with agony the paths of various countries. But this statistician knew that the data reflected reported deaths from covid,…
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I was writing almost weekly about the Covid Crisis during its peak of between March and June 2020. Not that I had any technical expertise in the area (in the following please allow for that) but its impact on economics areas where I had some expertise was great. Here is a list of the Pundit…
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This note is written in response to a request about the details of how to do a social cost study on alcohol (misuse). It is written by an economist who has long been involved in the area both theoretically and practically. [1] The point of this note is that it is important to understand that…
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The following are various columns on my Pundit website which involve health economics. What is the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder? (7 November 2014) The Cost of Demanding More Health Care (10 November, 2014) Prolongation of Life and the Quality of Life (28 November, 2014) Thrive: The Power of Psychological Therapy (November 2, 2015) Are we spending enough…
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Wellington School of Medicine Summer School 22 February, 2019. But, first, you may well ask, why should anyone – especially a health practitioner – care about health economics? When I was teaching health economics to sixth-year medical students, I wrote on the board so that it was there during the entire session: EITHER HEALTH PROFESSIONALS…
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FASD Policy and Research Forum, 9 September, 2016, as a part of the observance of International FASD Awareness Day.
How economists think about valuing life when allocating resources for healthcare purposes. Pundit: 28 November, 2014 Keywords: Health; A couple of comments to an earlier column asked questions about the quality of life versus the prolongation of life. It might be useful to set out an economic perspective on the broad issue, while acknowledging the…
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As times goes on the government will spend more on healthcare. That means higher taxes. Is there an alternative? Pundit: 10 November, 2014. Keywords: Health; I was on the Treasury external panel which advised on its last Long Term Fiscal Projections. The great challenges arise from rising demand for government funded services and the aging…
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Every year around 600 New Zealanders are born with a horrible condition because their mothers drank while they were pregnant. Pundit: 10 November, 2014 Keywords: Health; The terms Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) and its more extreme form Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) have appeared recently in two news items. In a hearing…
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Health Promotion Hui: Cancer Society of New Zealand, 23 October, 2014 Keywords: Health; I have been asked to talk about how economic evaluation is used to determine the social costs of diseases and other health conditions. I could give a learned and technical lecture on the topic, but it strikes me that even…
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Miriam J Laugesen and Robin Gauld; Otago University Press, $40.00. ISBN 978 1 877578 27 4. (Review) New Zealand Books: 5 December, 2013. Keywords: Health; I have long puzzled over the point of local democracy in the highly centralised state of New Zealand. If you dont like what your local representatives decide…
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Wellington School of Medicine Seminar Series: 22 November, 2013. [1] Keywords: Governance; Health; The Public Finance Act requires the Treasury to produce a statement on the Crown’s Long Term Fiscal Position every four years. It involves projecting 40 and more years out based on current policy assumptions with some alternative policy assumptions to assist…
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Presentation to the Wellington School of Medicine: 23 March 2012 Keywords: Health; Regulation & Taxation; This presentation was based upon the paper to the Global Alcohol Policy Conference, 14-16 February. It is at http://www.eastonbh.ac.nz/?p=1633
Global Alcohol Policy Conference: Thailand, 14-16 February as Honorary Research Fellow at SHORE, Massey University. Keywords: Health; Regulation & Taxation; Social Policy; The theme of this presentation is that alcohol is no ordinary commodity; economic policy has to think about it differently. The alcoholic beverages industry, of course, produces jobs and profits for investors, just like any…
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For my evidence see http://www.eastonbh.ac.nz/?p=1393. Keywords: Health; Social Policy; One of the ways I earn my crust is as a consultant. Although it often involves very satisfying economics, I rarely use the experience directly in my public writings (and if I do I tell you). Another rule is dont get too involved in the case….
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Keywords: Health; Time and Money Spent Gambling and the Relationship with Quality-of-life Measures: A National Study of New Zealanders (July 2010) Journal of Gambling Issues http://www.eastonbh.ac.nz/?p=1336 Measuring the Impact of Gambling (February 2009) Paper to Wellington Statistical Group http://www.eastonbh.ac.nz/?p=938 Assessment of the Social Impacts of Gambling in New Zealand (January 2009) Report to the Mnistry…
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