TASSIE TOPS DEATH RATE

ONE suburb in Tasmania has a higher death rate than any other community in Australia.

Mornington-Warrane has the highest standardised death rate in Australia, almost triple the national average at 13.6 deaths for every 1000 residents. The sobering statistic is contained in the latest ABS figures on death rates across the nation, which also shows that six Tasmanian communities feature in the top 20 with the highest death rates.

Australia’s standardised death rate is 5.3 per 1000 people and four other Tasmanian places fall well below that rate.

THE Tasmanian community of Mornington-Warrane has the highest death rate in Australia, almost triple the national average at 13.6 deaths for every 1000 residents.

New Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show five other small Tasmanian communities have a death rate among the top 20 in the country. West Ulverstone (11.5), Old Beach-Otago (11.4), WaverleySt Leonards (11.1), Smithton (10.5), and South Launceston (10.4) were also in the top 20.

Australia’s standardised death rate is 5.3 per 1000, while the rate in Tasmania is 6.4.

The ABS data, referring to statistical area level two regions, does not offer any explanations as to the reason for a community’s death rate.

Mornington-Warrane has a population of 4747, and there were 95 deaths in the community in 2017.

The Eastern Shore community’s standardised death rate rose from 12.7 in 2016 to the nation-topping 13.6 last year.

Columbine Mullins, who owns her own medical practice at Rosny, said the statistics came as a shock.

“I knew that we’d be up there, but it’s surprising that it’s six [communities] out of 20 and it’s terrible news,” she said.

Dr Mullins said it was hard to pinpoint why the death rate was so high in any one community, but a number of factors would have contributed.

“There may be some areas in Tasmania where there’s generational poverty, and issues with housing [and] unemployment, combined with high smoking rates, obesity, chronic disease, and a lot of people find it hard to access health services,” she said.

Launceston had the state’s lowest standardised death rate in 2017, with 3.7 deaths for every 1000 residents.