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Delivering a Healthy WA
Office of Population Health Genomics  

Epidemiology and Health Economics

The Epidemiology and Health Economics Section monitors and evaluates genetic health services.

Current projects include:

  • A study of the cost of genetic disease to the health system. This includes diseases caused by mutations in one gene (eg cystic fibrosis) and those caused by large changes in DNA (eg Down syndrome). Knowing about today’s health needs and costs helps plan for the future.
  • A survey of pre-natal testing in Western Australia. We have collected data about prenatal screening to assess the quality of current programs and find out what needs to be improved. This will help us to provide the best information to the public and health care workers.
  • Finding out about folate levels in Western Australians. After September 2009 all bread making flour in Australia will be fortified with folate. Adding folate to bread making flour aims to increase folate levels. This is important for women who fall pregnant, to help reduce the number of babies that develop neural tube defects. To see if adding folate is effective, we will monitor folate levels in the community before and after the addition of folate to bread. More information about this study can be found on the Folate Study page.

For recent papers from the Epidemiology and Health Economics Section refer to Publications.