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Aim: To examine associations of neighborhood greenery, air pollution and walkability with cardiometabolic disease in adults aged ≥45 years in the Frankston-Mornington Peninsula region, Victoria, Australia., Methods: A cross-sectional, ecological study design was used. We assessed mean annual neighborhood greenery using the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index; air pollution (fine particulate matter of diameter ≤2.5 μm [PM 2.5 ] and NO 2 ) using land-use regression models; and walkability using Walk Score (possible values 0-100). Medically diagnosed diabetes (~95% type-2), heart disease and stroke were self-reported in the Australian Census (2021). Multivariable regression was used to model associations between environmental exposures and area-level (neighborhood) cardiometabolic disease prevalence (age group ≥45 years), with socioeconomic status, age and sex as covariates. Air pollution was examined as a mediator of associations between greenery and disease prevalence., Results: Our sample comprised 699 neighborhoods with the following mean (SD) values: Normalized Difference Vegetation Index 0.47 (0.09), PM 2.5 , 8.5 (0.6) μg/m 3 and NO 2 , 5.2 (1.6) ppb. Disease prevalences were: heart disease, mean 8.9% (4.5%); diabetes, mean 10.3% (4.7%); and stroke, median 1.2% (range 0-10.9%). Greenery was negatively associated with diabetes (β = -5.85, 95% CI -9.53, -2.17) and stroke prevalence (β = -1.26, 95% CI -2.11, -0.42). PM 2.5 and NO 2 were positively associated with diabetes (β = 1.59, 95% CI 1.00, 2.18; β = 0.42, 95% CI 0.22, 0.62) and stroke prevalence (β = 0.15, 95% CI 0.01, 0.29; β = 0.06, 95% CI 0.01, 0.10). The association between greenery and diabetes was partially mediated by PM 2.5 (mediated effect -5.38, 95% CI -7.84, -3.03)., Conclusions: Greenery and air pollutants were associated with lower and higher prevalence, respectively, of self-reported diabetes and, to a lesser extent, stroke. These ecological findings require further exploration with stronger, longitudinal study designs to inform public health policy and directions. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2024; 24: 208-214., (© 2023 The Authors. Geriatrics & Gerontology International published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Japan Geriatrics Society.)

Problem: Currently <1% of Australian women give birth at home., Background: In Australia there are very few options for women to access public funded homebirth., Aim: We aimed to use geo-mapping to identify the number of women eligible for homebirth in Victoria, based on the criteria of uncomplicated pregnancies and residing within 15-25kms of suitable maternity services, to plan future maternity care options., Methods: Retrospective study of births between 2015 and 2017 in Victoria, Australia. All women who were identified as having a low risk pregnancy at the beginning of pregnancy were included. The number of women within 15 and 25km of a suitable Victorian public maternity hospital and catchment boundaries around each hospital were determined., Findings: Between 2015 and 2017, 126,830 low risk women gave birth in Victoria, of whom half live within 25km of seven Victorian hospitals. Currently, 2% of suitable women who live close to the current public homebirth models accessed them., Discussion: We present a method to inform the expansion of maternity service options using Victoria as an example. On the basis of the maximum number of low risk women living close by, we have also identified the Victorian maternity services that would be most suitable for creation of public homebirth or low risk continuity of midwifery models., Conclusion: This approach could can be used to plan other maternity care services., (Copyright © 2021 Australian College of Midwives. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objectives MePACS is a triage and support-based personal alarm emergency response system designed to assist older and/or disabled people to live safely in their homes. The aim of this study was to estimate avoidable ambulance attendances and transports to emergency departments and quantify the cost savings attributed to MePACS compared with a comparison cohort without a personal alarm system. Methods Alarm activation and demographic data for clients registered in the program from June 2016 to May 2017 and funded through the Personal Alert Victoria program were extracted from routinely collected MePACS electronic data. Information on alarm use, event outcomes and ambulance attendances was extracted. Using published Ambulance Victoria data, a comparison cohort was simulated to model the experience of a similar cohort without access to a personal alarm system who experienced a health emergency and called Australia's emergency call service number. The incremental management cost, incorporating the operation cost of MePACS and ambulance fees, was calculated to compare the potential cost savings of MePACS with the comparison cohort. Results Among 18421 eligible clients, there were 7856 emergency alarm activations due to falls or medical events from 4275 clients (79.5% female; 81.1% aged >75 years; 91.8% living alone). MePACS resulted in approximately one-third of ambulance attendances being avoided. Potential annual cost savings of A$1414732.8 (A$76.8 per person per year; 95% confidence interval A$60.0-93.6 per person per year; P<0.001) were attributed to avoidable ambulance utilisations for 18421 MePACS clients. Conclusion Triage-based personal alarm systems, such as MePACS, provide a cost-saving strategy because of fewer ambulance attendances and transports to emergency departments for older and/or disabled people living in the community. What is known about the topic? Personal alarm systems, either a safety alarm, a panic alarm or a medical alarm, have been widely used to support older people and at-risk groups to live independently. The health effects of personal alarm systems are well documented. There is limited information published on the potential economic benefits of these interventions. What does this paper add? We identified the potential economic benefits associated with the MePACS triage-based personal alarm system operating within Victoria, Australia. Personal alarm systems that are triage based and use the support of family members and carers may provide financial benefits not provided by alarm systems that do not provide this type of service. What are the implications for practitioners? The management of older people and at-risk groups living alone is a health care priority. Alternative models to calling emergency services, such as triage-based personal emergency response systems, may provide a low-cost, effective approach.

Background and Purpose: There is great interest in how endovascular clot retrieval hubs provide services to a population. We applied a computational method to objectively generate service boundaries for such endovascular clot retrieval hubs, defined by traveling time to hub., Methods: Stroke incidence data merged with population census to estimate numbers of stroke in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia. Traveling time from randomly generated addresses to 4 endovascular clot retrieval-capable hubs (Royal Melbourne Hospital [RMH], Monash Medical Center [MMC], Alfred Hospital [ALF], and Austin Hospital [AUS]) estimated using Google Map application program interface. Boundary maps generated based on traveling time at various times of day for combinations of hubs., Results: In a 2-hub model, catchment was best distributed when RMH was paired with MMC (model 1a, RMH 1765 km 2 and MMC 1164 km 2 ) or with AUS (model 1c, RMH 1244 km 2 and AUS 1685 km 2 ), with no statistical difference between models ( P =0.20). Catchment was poorly distributed when RMH was paired with ALF (model 1b, RMH 2252 km 2 and ALF 676 km 2 ), significantly different from both models 1a and 1c (both P <0.05). Model 1a had the greatest proportion of patients arriving within ideal time of 30 minutes followed by model 1c ( P <0.001). In a 3-hub model, the combination of RMH, MMC, and AUS was superior to that of RMH, MMC, and ALF in catchment distribution and travel time. The method was also successfully applied to the city of Adelaide demonstrating wider applicability., Conclusions: We provide proof of concept for a novel computational method to objectively designate service boundaries for endovascular clot retrieval hubs., (© 2017 American Heart Association, Inc.)