About the project
Adults using mental health services in New Zealand are twice as likely to die before the age of 65 years as other New Zealanders, and the majority of this premature mortality is attributable to cardiovascular disease (CVD). This disparity may be being driven by, or at least influenced by, health system factors including an inadequate recognition of CVD risk and therefore underutilisation of preventive treatment. The increased burden of CVD experienced by people with serious mental illness is not adequately accounted for by existing CVD risk prediction tools. This project aims to examine cardiovascular risk factors, management and outcomes among people with and without a history of mental illness, and to use this information to determine the accuracy of current tools for predicting cardiovascular risk. If indicated, the information will be used to develop CVD risk prediction tools specific to this group.
The expected outcomes of this research are an improved understanding of cardiovascular risk in people using mental health services and a CVD risk prediction tool that performs reliably for those with experience of mental illness. This will be the first time that CVD risk factors and outcomes for people in contact with mental health services have been documented in NZ. Augmenting the current risk prediction tools with information about mental illness diagnosis or prescription is a simple intervention, which has the potential to significantly improve outcomes for this group.
Funders
This two year project commenced in January 2017 and is funded by the New Zealand Heart Foundation. It is a collaboration between the University of Otago Wellington and the University of Auckland. It builds on the work of Auckland based VIEW research programme.
Our People
University of Otago:
- Dr Ruth Cunningham – project lead
- Dr Debbie Peterson
- Dr Susanna Every-Palmer
University of Auckland:
- Professor Rod Jackson
- Dr Jeff Harrison
- Dr Katrina Poppe
- Dr Ian Soosay
CONTACT US
Department of Public Health
University of Otago, Wellington
PO Box 7343
Wellington South 6242
New Zealand
Tel 64 4 918 6725
Email ruth.cunningham@otago.ac.nz