IJPDS International Journal of Population Data Science

A new study from iNZight Analytics, New Zealand, revealed ethnic group differences in COVID-19 health outcomes. New Zealand’s Māori and Pacific populations were more likely to test positive for COVID-19 and be hospitalised or die following a positive test. The study also showed that socioeconomic factors, including household crowding, poor quality housing, and high residential mobility, were widely predictive of worse health outcomes, and accounting for these factors reduced the estimated ethnic group differences.

Preparation for future outbreaks and pandemics requires an understanding of who is most at risk of worse outcomes to inform actions to limit both the total impact on a population and unequal impacts within a population. To date the factors associated with inequitable outcomes have often been studied in isolation, or with small area and/or survey data that does not capture the full extent of disease outcomes in a whole population.

In this study, published in the International Journal of Population Data Science (IJPDS), authors Nicole Satherley and Andrew Sporle were able to use high quality, routinely collected New Zealand administrative data for the entire population during 2020 – 2023 to study COVID-19 health outcomes for the whole country. This included information on mandatory reporting of COVID-19 tests, vaccinations, hospitalisation, and deaths. By combining this range of data sources including the national Census, the study examined disparities in the odds of COVID-19 infection, hospitalisation and deaths based on ethnicity, household structure, and modifiable socioeconomic factors.

Lead author Nicole Satherley said, “The findings suggest that inequitable health impacts of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases are not inevitable. Improving key measures of living standards, including lowering household crowding and creating the conditions for healthy, stable housing arrangements may help lessen the impact of these diseases”.

The results of the study confirm what many had warned before the COVID-19 pandemic hit – that groups who have traditionally fared worse during past pandemics and disease outbreaks would be hardest hit by this latest pandemic. Despite performing relatively well in limiting the spread of COVID19, New Zealand was not immune to these inequitable impacts of the disease. The results highlight key factors associated with the inequity between populations in infectious disease outcomes. Addressing these issues directly or focusing pandemic responses on populations experiencing such issues could reduce inequities during future infectious disease outbreaks or pandemics.

 

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Dr Nicole Satherley, Senior Researcher, iNZight Analytics and Honorary Academic, University of Auckland

Satherley, N. and Sporle, A. (2025) “Individual, household structure, and socioeconomic predictors of COVID-19 testing and vaccination outcomes: a whole population linked data analysis”, International Journal of Population Data Science, 10(1). doi: 10.23889/ijpds.v10i1.2930.