Spatial Analysis of Dwelling Crowding and Disease in Sydney, Australia

The environment in which we live greatly influences our health. One particular factor that has been related to morbidity and mortality is dwelling crowding. This factor has been associated with a wide range of diseases and disorders, including respiratory diseases such as asthma. A range of mechanisms has been proposed as the link between dwelling crowding and disease, including increased exposures to allergens, respiratory irritants, and infectious agents in crowded dwellings. Some studies have used dwelling crowding as an indicator of socioeconomic status. While studies of dwelling crowding and health have been conducted in many locations around the world, this factor has received little attention in Australian health studies. Further, few studies in this area have used geographic information systems to visualise the spatial heterogeneity of dwelling crowding within a region. This project aims to examine the relationships between dwelling crowding and health in Sydney – using three case studies. The specific aims are i) to examine the geographic variability of the three diseases and dwelling crowding, and ii) to examine the association between the distribution of these diseases and dwelling crowding. The project examines disease and dwelling crowding at the Local Government Area (LGA) level within the Sydney Statistical Division. Dwelling and demographic data from the most recent Australian census (1996 Australian Bureau of Statistics) is examined, including dwelling type, number of bedrooms per dwelling, number of persons per dwelling, income, qualifications, occupation, and language spoken at home. Four socioeconomic indexes produced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics were also examined. Hospital inpatient data for th