Suppression and non-published results
To manage confidentiality, all data for an area were suppressed and marked as ‘n.p.’ (not published), if the number of ED presentations was between 1 and 4, or the ERP of the area for the relevant cohort (age group, sex or total population) was less than 300. Consequential suppression was applied. This is the process of suppressing information which, whilst not necessarily confidential, may be used to derive confidential data.
- Rates based on low numbers of events and/or very small populations are more susceptible to random fluctuations and therefore may not provide a reliable representation of activity in that area. For this reason, results for some areas were suppressed and marks as ‘n.p.’ to manage volatility. Rates were not reported if the number of ED presentations was fewer than 20 or the relevant population was less than 1,000.
- Rates for SA3 areas classified as Remote and very remote were not reported and marked as ‘n.p.’. A large proportion of emergency or urgent care in these areas do not meet the criteria for inclusion in the NNAPEDCD and as such, rates of ED use by remote populations are not considered comparable to other areas (see Table T3).
Reason for suppression | Numerator | Denominator |
|---|---|---|
To maintain confidentiality (all data) | Between 1 and 4 | Fewer than 300 |
Volatility of data (all rates) | Fewer than 20 | Fewer than 1,000 |
Representativeness of data (all rates) | SA3 Areas classified at Remote or Very remote | Not applicable |
Results are flagged with ‘Interpret with caution’ for:
- areas assessed as Inner regional, Outer regional or Remote and very remote using the ABS remoteness area classification.
- age-standardised rates if the population of an area is fewer than 30 in any of the standard age groups.