27.09.13
North-south divide on premature death
People living in the north of England lose more potential years of life due to non-fatal conditions than those in the south, new statistics show.
In 2012 in England, 1.1 million years of life were lost for all people registered with a GP. All geographical areas with a rate of fewer than 2,000 years lost per 100,000 registered with a GP were clustered in the south, apart from London.
The lowest rates were found in Surrey and Sussex, with the highest in Greater Manchester.
The Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) published data as part of the CCG Outcomes Indicator Set. The highest rate was found in Bradford City CCG, and the lowest in the Surrey Downs. The effect of premature deaths was also higher for men than for women, and the two biggest causes of years of life are heart disease and cancers.
HSCIC chair Kingsley Manning said: “This report provides an insight into premature deaths which is essential to those providing and planning health services across the country.
“It is striking that more than one million potential years of life were lost for people registered with GPs last year in England – the equivalent to just over one week for every single registered person in the country.
“This report makes an important contribution to understanding differences in health outcomes across the country alongside other HSCIC data, for instance on public health.”
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