Public in denial about health, survey finds

IRISH people remain very positive about the state of their health despite more than one in three claiming to have a medical condition, new research shows.

The average Irish person gave their health a rating of almost eight out of 10.

Global drug firm Pfizer, which published the health index yesterday, also found that almost two-thirds of the 1,033 Irish people surveyed were not interested in making changes to their lifestyle to improve their health.

This year’s Pfizer Health Index included non-Irish residents and results show that they are even more upbeat about their health than the Irish with the average score just short of nine out of 10.

They also appear to be more pro-active about their health, with 42% of the 120 surveyed intent on changing their lifestyle to become more healthy, compared with 37% of Irish people.

When it comes to the prioritising of health issues, six out of 10 Irish people surveyed said they would provide more hospitals or hospital beds if they were minister for health.

Implementing public awareness campaigns was of less importance to Irish people with only between 1% and 5% saying it would be a top priority for them as minister.

Just 2% said they would tax cigarettes and alcohol more heavily and just 1% said they would tax food and drink that people should consume less of.

The study found Irish people are not bothered about learning more about health risks.

A third said they would not want information on conditions they were at risk of developing and another 30% would not be interested in more information on general health and wellbeing.

Foreigners living here were more interested in providing greater access to GPs than about hospital bed provision. They were also more interested in being reimbursed the cost of medicines and the provision of more medical cards.

Nearly three out of four Irish people with a medical condition worried about it worsening. Just under 30% said they were unconcerned.

And it was those most stuck for cash who worried most about their health at 56%.

People suffering from depression consider themselves to be the least healthy, followed by those with heart disease and those with cancer and diabetes. And while just 15% of non-Irish people suffer from a medical condition, this seems to be due to the younger age profile of this group.

National health promotion development manager, Maria Lordan Dunphy, warned that Ireland faced a growing set of problems in the coming years if emphasis was not placed on health.

Chairwoman of the Strategic Monitoring Group for the National Action Plan Against Racism Lucy Gaffney said foreigners had contributed significantly to Ireland’s economy and it was essential that their health was looked after appropriately.