Child and Youth Policy Research Support Service
The Child and Youth Policy Research Support Service (CYPRSS) is a consortium formed by three research units in the Department of Women's and Children's Health:
- New Zealand Mortality Review Data Group (NZMRDG)
- New Zealand Paediatric Surveillance Unit (NZPSU)
- New Zealand Child and Youth Epidemiology Service (NZCYES)
New Zealand Mortality Review Data Group (NZMRDG)
The New Zealand Mortality Review Data Group—Te Rōpū Kohi Pitopito Mōhiotanga mō te Taka Mate—was established in 2003 to support the national Child and Youth Mortality Review Committee (CYMRC). We now also support the Perinatal and Maternal Mortality (established 2006) and Perioperative Mortality (since 2016) Review Committees. We have a contract with the Health Quality & Safety Commission to receive and store data, manage a database, and provide data and research support for the above committees. We are also heavily involved in the CYMRC research programme. Having been involved from the inception of the first still-existing national mortality review committee in 2002, we have a wealth of experience and expertise in this area.
The group receives information from a variety of sources,such as health, coronial, transport, water safety, and child protection data, as well as data gained from the process of local review of each death, which is stored in a comprehensive database. This is a valuable resource that is being used increasingly to research areas of interest and importance.
Our expertise is in mortality research, the process of mortality review, and the development of IT systems to support the above. Our team is made up of data and IT experts, research analysts, and a clinical epidemiologist.
Find out more about the New Zealand Mortality Review Data Group
New Zealand Paediatric Surveillance Unit (NZPSU)
The New Zealand Paediatric Surveillance Unit (NZPSU) was established in the Department in 1997 through funding from the Ministry of Health to undertake surveillance of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) for the Ministry of Health's National Certification Committee for the Eradication of Poliomyelitis (NCCEP).
The opportunity has also been taken to use this network to study other uncommon high impact conditions. Most of these have been undertaken by paediatricians with research interests in the conditions. Since 2008 there have been a total of 13 conditions studied.
New Zealand Child and Youth Epidemiology Service (NZCYES)
The New Zealand Child and Youth Epidemiology Service (NZCYES) was established by the Paediatric Society of New Zealand in 2004, in response to the perceived need for a single national entity to select, collate and disseminate timely and accurate information on the health of children and young people in Aotearoa (New Zealand). Initially hosted by the University of Auckland, it has been hosted by the University of Otago since March 2009.
Clinical and Molecular Genetics
The Clinical and Molecular Genetics Group is led by Professor Stephen Robertson and was established through the Leading Thinkers Campaign and Curekids. The major research theme is developing an understanding of childhood disorders characterised by congenital malformations. The team consists of two research fellows, one postdoctoral fellow, one assistant research fellow, and three PhD candidates. Research funding over the last six years totals over NZ$4 million. Significant outputs include more than 80 publications, including five papers in Nature Genetics.