Associate Professor Nick Wilson, Department of Public Health, Our people, University of Otago, Wellington, University of Otago, New Zealand

nick wilson photo

MB ChB, DIH, MPH

Professor (Public Health), and Director BODE³ Programme

Contact details
Research interests and activities
Publications

Contact details

Tel +64 4 918 6469
Mob +64 21 204 5523
Email nick.wilson@otago.ac.nz
Blog blogs.otago.ac.nz/pubhealthexpert

Research interests and activities

Nick is a medical doctor who subsequently specialised as a public health physician and then moved into university-based research. He has over 450 Medline-indexed publications in peer-reviewed journals. His research interests include:

The health economics of primary prevention of chronic diseases (see the BODE³ Programme)
Tobacco use epidemiology and control (see also the ITC project website and other tobacco control work)
Infectious disease epidemiology and control (particularly pandemic influenza but also other infectious diseases)
Prevention of existential risks such as climate disruption and nuclear war (Existential Risks)
Background Documents and forms – for research projects which Nick is involved with

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Publications

Blakely, T., Cleghorn, C., Petrović-van der Deen, F., Cobiac, L. J., Mizdrak, A., Mackenbach, J. P., … Wilson, N. (2020). Prospective impact of tobacco eradication and overweight and obesity eradication on future morbidity and health-adjusted life expectancy: simulation study. Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1136/jech-2019-213091

Wilson, N., Te Morenga, L., Mackay, S., Gerritsen, S., Cleghorn, C., Jones, A. C., & Swinburn, B. (2020). Food taxes and subsidies to protect health: Relevance to Aotearoa New Zealand. New Zealand Medical Journal, 133(1511), 71-85. Retrieved from https://www.nzma.org.nz/journal

Wilson, N., Kvalsvig, A., Telfar Barnard, L., & Baker, M. G. (2020). Estimating the case fatality risk of COVID-19 using cases from outside China. medRxiv. doi: 10.1101/2020.02.15.20023499

Cleghorn, C., Blakely, T., Ni Mhurchu, C., Wilson, N., Neal, B., & Eyles, H. (2019). Estimating the health benefits and cost-savings of a cap on the size of single serve sugar-sweetened beverages. Preventive Medicine. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2019.01.009

Petrović-van der Deen, F. S., Wilson, N., Crothers, A., Cleghorn, C. L., Gartner, C., & Blakely, T. (2019). Potential country-level health and cost impacts of legalizing domestic sale of vaporized nicotine products. Epidemiology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1097/ede.0000000000000975

Chapter in Book - Research
Journal - Research Article

Chapter in Book - Research

Thomson, G., & Wilson, N. (2017). Global tobacco industry. In S. R. Quah & W. Cockerham (Eds.), The International encyclopedia of public health (Vol. 3). (2nd ed.) (pp. 292-300). Oxford, UK: Academic Press. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-803678-5.00463-X

Thomson, G., & Wilson, N. (2015). The global tobacco industry. In M. J. Caplan (Ed.), Reference module in biomedical sciences. Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-801238-3.03201-3

Wilson, N., Howden-Chapman, P., Wickens, K., & Crane, J. (2009). Indoor mould exposure and health. In P. Howden-Chapman, J. Bennett & R. Siebers (Eds.), Do damp and mould matter? Health impacts of leaky homes. (pp. 19-23). Wellington, New Zealand: Steele Roberts.

Thomson, G., Wilson, N., & Crane, J. (2008). Rethinking the regulatory framework for tobacco control in New Zealand. In A. Ghose (Ed.), Impact of government policies on marketing strategies. (pp. 179-188). Hyderabad, India: Icfai University Press.

Thomson, G., & Wilson, N. (2008). The tobacco industry. In K. Heggenhougen & S. Quah (Eds.), International encyclopedia of public health (Vol. 6). (pp. 331-337). San Diego, USA: Academic Press.

Blakely, T. A., Hales, S., Kieft, C. E., Wilson, N., & Woodward, A. (2004). Distribution of risk factors by poverty. In M. Ezzati, A. D. Lopez, A. Rodgers & C. J. L. Murray (Eds.), Comparative quantification of health risks: Volume 2: Global and regional burden of disease attributable to selected major risk factors. (pp. 1941-2127). Geneva: World Health Organization.

Thomson, G. W., & Wilson, N. (2001). Tobacco control policy. In P. Davis & T. Ashton (Eds.), Health and public policy in New Zealand. (pp. 237-254). Melbourne, Australia: Oxford University Press.

Howden-Chapman, P. L., & Wilson, N. (2000). Housing and Health. In P. Howden-Chapman & M. Tobias (Eds.), Social Inequalities and Health: New Zealand 1999. (pp. 133-146). Wellington: Ministry of Health.

Howden-Chapman, P., Wilson, N., & Blakely, T. (2000). Summary and conclusion. In Social inequalities in health: New Zealand 1999. (pp. 147-167). Wellington, New Zealand: Ministry of Health.

Howden-Chapman, P. L., Wilson, N., & Blakely, T. A. (2000). Introduction. In P. Howden-Chapman & M. Tobias (Eds.), Social Inequalities and Health in New Zealand: New Zealand 1999. (pp. 1-7). Wellington: Ministry of Health.

Howden-Chapman, P., Wilson, N., & Blakely, T. (2000). Introduction. In Social inequalities in health: New Zealand 1999. (pp. 1-7). Wellington, New Zealand: Ministry of Health.

Howden-Chapman, P. L., Wilson, N., & Blakely, T. A. (2000). Summary and conclusions. In P. Howden-Chapman & M. Tobias (Eds.), Social Inequalities and Health in New Zealand: New Zealand 1999. (pp. 147-168). Wellington: Ministry of Health.

Wilson, N. (2000). Labour force status and health. In Social inequalities in health: New Zealand 1999. (pp. 119-132). Wellington, New Zealand: Ministry of Health.

Wilson, N. (2000). Education and health. In Social inequalities in health: New Zealand 1999. (pp. 87-101). Wellington, New Zealand: Ministry of Health.

Wilson, N. (2000). Occupational class and health. In Social inequalities in health: New Zealand 1999. (pp. 103-118). Wellington, New Zealand: Ministry of Health.

Howden-Chapman, P., & Wilson, N. (2000). Housing and health. In Social inequalities in health: New Zealand 1999. (pp. 133-145). Wellington, New Zealand: Ministry of Health.

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Journal - Research Article

Nghiem, N., Leung, W., Cleghorn, C., Blakely, T., & Wilson, N. (2019). Mass media promotion of a smartphone smoking cessation app: Modelled health and cost-saving impacts. BMC Public Health, 19(1), 283. doi: 10.1186/s12889-019-6605-8

Thomson, G., Nee-Nee, J., Sutherland, K., Holland, R., Wilson, M., & Wilson, N. (2019). Observed vaping and smoking in outdoor public places: Piloting objective data collection for policies on outdoor vaping. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 43(4), 401-402. doi: 10.1111/1753-6405.12907

Boyd, M., Kvizhinadze, G., Kho, A., Wilson, G., & Wilson, N. (2019). Cataract surgery for falls prevention and improving vision: Modelling the health gain, health system costs and cost-effectiveness in a high-income country. Injury Prevention. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1136/injuryprev-2019-043184

Cleghorn, C. L., Wilson, N., Nair, N., Kvizhinadze, G., Nghiem, N., McLeod, M., & Blakely, T. (2019). Health benefits and costs of weight-loss dietary counselling by nurses in primary care: A cost-effectiveness analysis. Public Health Nutrition. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1017/s1368980019002945

Gage, R., Wilson, N., Signal, L., & Thomson, G. (2019). Shade in playgrounds: Findings from a nationwide survey and implications for urban health policy. Journal of Public Health, 27(5), 669-674. doi: 10.1007/s10389-018-0990-9

Teng, A. M., Jones, A. C., Mizdrak, A., Signal, L., Genç, M., & Wilson, N. (2019). Impact of sugar-sweetened beverage taxes on purchases and dietary intake: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Obesity Reviews. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1111/obr.12868

Boyd, M., & Wilson, N. (2019). The prioritization of island nations as refuges from extreme pandemics. Risk Analysis. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1111/risa.13398

Nee-Nee, J., Sutherland, K., Holland, R., Wilson, M., Ackland, S., Bocock, C., Cartmell, A., Earp, J., Grove, C., Hewson, C., Jeffries, W., Keefe, L., Lockyer, J., Patel, S., Quintans, M., Robbie, M., Teape, L., Yang, J., Wilson, N., Hoek, J., & Thomson, G. (2019). Tobacco pack display at hospitality venues after the introduction of standardised tobacco packaging in New Zealand: A field observation study. BMJ Open, 9, e027868. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-027868

Waterlander, W. E., Jiang, Y., Nghiem, N., Eyles, H., Wilson, N., Cleghorn, C., Genç, M., … Blakely, T. (2019). The effect of food price changes on consumer purchases: A randomised experiment. Lancet Public Health, 4(8), e394-e405. doi: 10.1016/S2468-2667(19)30105-7

Wilson, N., Turner, N., & Baker, M. G. (2019). One hundred years ago in 1919: New Zealand's birth reduction shock associated with an influenza pandemic. New Zealand Medical Journal, 132(1507), 57-62. Retrieved from https://www.nzma.org.nz/journal

Wilson, N., Cleghorn, C. L., Cobiac, L. J., Mizdrak, A., & Nghiem, N. (2019). Achieving healthy and sustainable diets: A review of the results of recent mathematical optimization studies. Advances in Nutrition, 10(Suppl. 4), S389-S403. doi: 10.1093/advances/nmz037

Deverall, E., Kvizhinadze, G., Pega, F., Blakely, T., & Wilson, N. (2019). Exercise programmes to prevent falls among older adults: Modelling health gain, cost-utility and equity impacts. Injury Prevention, 25(4), 258-263. doi: 10.1136/injuryprev-2016-042309

Cleghorn, C., Wilson, N., Nair, N., Kvizhinadze, G., Nghiem, N., McLeod, M., & Blakely, T. (2019). Health benefits and cost-effectiveness from promoting smartphone apps for weight loss: Multistate life table modeling. JMIR mHealth & uHealth, 7(1), e11118. doi: 10.2196/11118

Clement, C., Abeling, S., Deely, J., Teng, A., Thomson, G., Johnston, D., & Wilson, N. (2019). Descriptive epidemiology of New Zealand's highest mortality earthquake: Hawke's Bay in 1931. Scientific Reports, 9, 4914. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-41432-6

Gurram, N., Thomson, G., Wilson, N., & Hoek, J. (2019). Electronic cigarette online marketing by New Zealand vendors. New Zealand Medical Journal, 132(1506), 20-33. Retrieved from https://www.nzma.org.nz/journal

Nghiem, N., Knight, J., Mizdrak, A., Blakely, T., & Wilson, N. (2019). Preventive pharmacotherapy for cardiovascular disease: A modelling study considering health gain, costs, and cost-effectiveness when stratifying by absolute risk. Scientific Reports, 9, 19562. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-55372-8

Nghiem, N., Cleghorn, C. L., Leung, W., Nair, N., van der Deen, F. S., Blakely, T., & Wilson, N. (2018). A national quitline service and its promotion in the mass media: Modelling the health gain, health equity and cost-utility. Tobacco Control, 27(4), 434-441. doi: 10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2017-053660

Tinawi, G., Gray, T., Knight, T., Glass, C., Domanski, N., Wilson, N., Hoek, J., & Thomson, G. (2018). Highly deficient alcohol health warning labels in a high-income country with a voluntary system. Drug & Alcohol Review, 37(5), 616-626. doi: 10.1111/dar.12814

Gage, R., Wilson, N., Signal, L., Barr, M., Reeder, A., & Thomson, G. (2018). Using Google Earth to assess shade for sun protection in urban recreation spaces: Methods and results. Journal of Health Communication, 43, 1061-1068. doi: 10.1007/s10900-018-0522-0

Boyd, M., & Wilson, N. (2018). Just ask Siri? A pilot study comparing smartphone digital assistants and laptop Google searches for smoking cessation advice. PLoS ONE, 13(3), e0194811. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0194811

Wilson, N., Signal, L., & Thomson, G. (2018). Surveying all public drinking water fountains in a city: Outdoor field observations and Google Street View. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 42(1), 83-85. doi: 10.1111/1753-6405.12730

Boyd, M., Mansoor, O. D., Baker, M. G., & Wilson, N. (2018). Economic evaluation of border closure for a generic severe pandemic threat using New Zealand Treasury methods. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Public Health. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1111/1753-6405.12818

Blakely, T., Disney, G., Valeri, L., Atkinson, J., Teng, A., Wilson, N., & Gurrin, L. (2018). Socioeconomic and tobacco mediation of ethnic inequalities in mortality over time: Repeated census-mortality cohort studies, 1981 to 2011. Epidemiology, 29(4), 506-516. doi: 10.1097/ede.0000000000000842

Cleghorn, C. L., Blakely, T., Kvizhinadze, G., van der Deen, F. S., Nghiem, N., Cobiac, L. J., & Wilson, N. (2018). Impact of increasing tobacco taxes on working-age adults: Short-term health gain, health equity and cost savings. Tobacco Control, 27(e2), e167-e170. doi: 10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2017-053914

Rzotkiewicz, A., Pearson, A. L., Dougherty, B. V., Shortbridge, A., & Wilson, N. (2018). Systematic review of the use of Google Street View in health research: Major themes, strengths, weaknesses and possibilities for future research. Health & Place, 52, 240-246. doi: 10.1016/j.healthplace.2018.07.001

Wilson, N., Petrović-van der Deen, F. S., Edwards, R., Waa, A., & Blakely, T. (2018). Modelling the number of quitters needed to achieve New Zealand's Smokefree 2025 goal for Māori and non-Māori. New Zealand Medical Journal, 131(1487), 30-37. Retrieved from https://www.nzma.org.nz/journal

Summers, J. A., Baker, M. G., & Wilson, N. (2018). New Zealand's experience of the 1918-9 influenza pandemic: A systematic review after 100 years. New Zealand Medical Journal, 131(1487), 54-69. Retrieved from https://www.nzma.org.nz/journal

Petrović-van der Deen, F. S., Blakely, T., Kvizhinadze, G., Cleghorn, C. L., Cobiac, L. J., & Wilson, N. (2018). Restricting tobacco sales to only pharmacies combined with cessation advice: A modelling study of the future smoking prevalence, health and cost impacts. Tobacco Control. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2018-054600

Cobiac, L. J., Mizdrak, A., & Wilson, N. (2018). Cost-effectiveness of raising alcohol excise taxes to reduce the injury burden of road traffic crashes. Injury Prevention. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1136/injuryprev-2018-042914

van der Deen, F. S., Wilson, N., Cleghorn, C. L., Kvizhinadze, G., Cobiac, L. J., Nghiem, N., & Blakely, T. (2018). Impact of five tobacco endgame strategies on future smoking prevalence, population health and health system costs: Two modelling studies to inform the tobacco endgame. Tobacco Control, 27(3), 278-286. doi: 10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2016-053585

Wilson, N., McIntyre, M., Blaschke, P., Muellner, P., Mansoor, O. D., & Baker, M. G. (2018). Potential public health benefits from eradicating rats in New Zealand cities and a tentative research agenda. Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand, 84(4), 280-290. doi: 10.1080/03036758.2017.1343193

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