Australian Health Performance Framework: PI 3.1.6–Proportion of babies born with low birthweight, 2019

Collection and usage attributes

Low birthweight is defined as less than 2,500 grams.

Excludes multiple births, stillbirths and births of less than 20 weeks gestation.

Analysis by state/territory, remoteness, Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA) Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage (IRSD) and Primary Health Network (PHN) is based on the usual residence of the mother.

Data excludes Australian non-residents, residents of external territories and records where state/territory of usual residence was not stated.

Presented as a:

• number, and
• percentage.

100 × (Numerator ÷ Denominator)

Number of low birthweight live born singleton babies.

Number of live born singleton babies.

2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017—National and state/territory, by:

• Indigenous status of the baby (not reported)
• Indigenous status of the mother
• remoteness (Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) 2016 Remoteness Structure)
• 2016 Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA) Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage (IRSD) quintiles.

2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017—Primary Health Network (PHN).

Note that data collection methods for Indigenous status of the mother and baby may vary between states and territories.

Some disaggregations may result in numbers too small for publication.

Most recent data available for 2019 Australian Health Performance Framework reporting: 2017 (calendar year data).

Information is included in the National Perinatal Data Collection (NPDC) for both live births and stillbirths, where gestational age is at least 20 weeks or birthweight is at least 400 grams, except in Victoria and Western Australia, where births are included if gestational age is at least 20 weeks or, if gestation is unknown, birthweight is at least 400 grams. Data for this indicator may therefore include live born terminations of pregnancy of at least 20 weeks gestation.

The term ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’ is preferred when referring to the separate Indigenous peoples of Australia. However, the term ‘Indigenous’ is used interchangeably with ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander’ in this indicator to assist readability.

Representational attributes

N[NN].N

Indicator conceptual framework

Data source attributes

Accountability attributes

Australian Health Performance Framework

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare

Source and reference attributes

Relational attributes