Measuring COPD in New Brunswick
Author: NB-IRDT Staff
Posted on Mar 2, 2021
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is among the most common chronic diseases in New Brunswick, impacting a person’s ability to breathe and, as a result, their participation in daily social, work, and school activities.
COPD has been estimated to affect 24,800-57,000 New Brunswickers over age 35 – and while this large range of numbers indicates just how widespread the disease is, it also poses a problem for healthcare planners and policy makers. After all, strategies to care for 24,800 New Brunswickers with COPD differ from strategies to care for 57,000. More precise estimates are key to better healthcare planning and higher quality of life, but what is the best way to accurately measure COPD in New Brunswick?
A recently released NB-IRDT report examines the utility of Statistics Canada survey data in describing COPD in the province, with future work to examine other data sources.