Smoking (PI09 and PI10)

Indicators related to smoking in the national Key Performance Indicators (nKPI) collection are:

  • smoking status recorded (PI09): the proportion of First Nations regular clients aged 11 and over whose smoking status was recorded within the previous 24 months
  • smoking status result (PI10): the proportion of First Nations regular clients aged 11 and over whose smoking status recorded within the previous 24 months was current smoker, ex-smoker or never smoked.

PI09 and PI10 are collected for males and females in age groups:

  • 11–14
  • 15–24
  • 25–34
  • 35–44
  • 45–54
  • 55–64
  • 65 and over.

There have been changes to the specifications of these indicators over time. For more information see Interpreting nKPI data.

An indicator related to smoking during pregnancy is also collected, with data presented under the Maternal and child health domain.

Why not smoking is important

Tobacco smoking is the smoking of tobacco products, including packet cigarettes, roll-your-own cigarettes, cigars or pipes.

It is an important cause of preventable ill health and death in Australia and is a leading risk factor for the development of many chronic health conditions and premature death. Health conditions often affected by tobacco smoking include many types of cancer, respiratory disease and heart disease.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ 2018–19 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey show that the proportion of First Nations adults who smoke has decreased over time. First Nations adults, however, are more likely to smoke than non-Indigenous adults (AIHW 2023).

Smoking status recorded (PI09)

At June 2023, 71% (or around 212,000) of First Nations regular clients aged 11 and over had their smoking status recorded within the previous 24 months (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Smoking status recorded by reporting period

Smoking status recorded by reporting period

This Tableau visualisation shows the percentage of First Nations regular clients aged 11 and over who had their smoking status recorded in the last 2 years for either:

  • type of organisation (ACCHO, non-ACCHO)
  • remoteness area (Major cities, Inner regional, Outer regional, Remote, Very remote)
  • state/territory (NSW/ACT, Vic, Qld, WA, SA, Tas, NT)
  • age/sex (male, female with age group 11–14, 15–24, 25–34, 35–44, 45–54, 55–64, 65+).

There are two different time periods:

  • June 2021 to June 2023
  • June 2017 to December 2020.

Data supporting this visualisation are available in Excel supplementary data tables at Data.

Notes

  1. In June 2021, specifications changed for this indicator and data from that point on cannot be compared with previous periods. For more information see Interpreting nKPI data.
  2. For more information, including on interpreting changes over time, see Technical notes.

Smoking status result (PI10)

At June 2023, 47% (or around 100,000) of First Nations regular clients aged 11 and over were current smokers, 38% (80,300) had never smoked and 15% (31,900) were ex-smokers (Figure 2).

Figure 2: Smoking status result by reporting period

Smoking status result by reporting period

This Tableau visualisation shows the percentage of First Nations regular clients aged 11 and over who had their smoking status recorded in the last 2 years by smoking status result (select for both ex-smoker and never smoked, current smoker, ex-smoker, or never smoked) for either:

  • type of organisation (ACCHO, non-ACCHO)
  • remoteness area (Major cities, Inner regional, Outer regional, Remote, Very remote)
  • state/territory (NSW/ACT, Vic, Qld, WA, SA, Tas, NT)
  • age/sex (male, female with age group 11–14, 15–24, 25–34, 35–44, 45–54, 55–64, 65+).

There are two different time periods:

  • June 2021 to June 2023
  • June 2017 to December 2020.

Data supporting this visualisation are available in Excel supplementary data tables at Data.

Notes

  1. In June 2021, specifications changed for this indicator and data from that point on cannot be compared with previous periods for all ages or the total. For more information see Interpreting nKPI data.
  2. For more information, including on interpreting changes over time, see Technical notes.

For more information on smoking status see Data.

Reference

AIHW (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare) (2023) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Performance Framework: tobacco use, AIHW, Australian Government, accessed 11 December 2023.