A new report released today by the Australian Institute of
Health and Welfare (AIHW) uses data combined from hospital and
non-hospital sources to provide a picture of induced abortion in
Australia, as well as providing a basis for regular reporting in
the future.
The Institute's 2003 report, Reproductive Health Indicators
in Australia 2002, included an indicator on induced abortions
in Australia; however, the indicator was incomplete because data on
induced abortion were not available on a routine basis
Australia-wide.
Dr Elizabeth Sullivan, Director of the National Perinatal
Statistics Unit, a collaborating unit of the AIHW based at the
University of New South Wales, said the lack of data on induced
abortion in Australia represented a gap in health statistics.
'This report, Use of Routinely Collected National Data Sets
for Reporting on Induced Abortion in Australia, helps fill
that gap. It does not include any analysis of the legal, social or
moral issues often raised in discussion of abortion,' she
added.
The report uses data from the AIHW National Hospital Morbidity
Database combined with Medicare data to estimate the number of
induced abortions in Australia in 2003.
Overall, the estimated number of induced abortions in Australia
in 2003 was 84,218.
For women aged 15-44 years, there were an estimated 19.7 induced
abortions per 1,000 women.
The number of induced abortions per 1,000 women was highest for
the 20-24 year age group at 32.7 per 1,000 and lowest for the 40-44
year age group at 6.7 per 1,000.
Of the estimated 84,218 induced abortions in Australia in 2003,
50,314 (59.7%) were reported to the AIHW National Hospital
Morbidity Database.
14 December 2005
Further information: Ron Forrester, AIHW Media
Unit Head, tel. 02 6244 1025 or 0412 402 939.
For media copies of the report: Publications
Officer, AIHW, tel 61 2 6244 1032.
Availability: Check the AIHW Publications
Catalogue for availability of the Use of Routinely
Collected National Data Sets for Reporting on Induced Abortion in
Australia report