Scottish Health Survey, 2008

The <i>Scottish Health Survey, 2008</i> was designed to provide data at a national level about the population living in private households in Scotland. The sample for the 2008 survey, as in previous years, was drawn from the Postcode Address File (PAF). An initial sample of 9,906 addresses were selected and grouped into 492 interviewer batches, with around 45 batches covered each month between February and December 2008. The 9,906 addresses were comprised of three sample types: <ul><li>6,945 formed the main sample, at which adults and children were eligible to be selected for interview</li><li>2,301 addresses formed an additional child boost sample at which only households containing children aged 0-15 were eligible to participate</li><li>660 addresses (220 in each of Grampian, Fife and Borders) formed the Health Board boost sample, at which only adults were eligible for interview</li></ul>For the third edition (January 2016), a new version of the individual file was deposited. Changes have been made to the variable winewu (units of wine per week) and seven derived variables that rely on it. The household file remains unchanged. <br>
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The <I>Scottish Health Survey</I> (SHeS) series was established in 1995. Commissioned by the Scottish Government Health Directorates, the series provides regular information on aspects of the public's health and factors related to health which cannot be obtained from other sources. The SHeS series was designed to:<ul><li>estimate the prevalence of particular health conditions in Scotland;</li><li>estimate the prevalence of certain risk factors associated with these health conditions and to document the pattern of related health behaviours;</li><li>look at differences between regions and between subgroups of the population in the extent of their having these particular health conditions or risk factors, and to make comparisons with other national statistics for Scotland and England;</li><li>monitor trends in the population's health over time;</li><li>make a major contribution to monitoring progress towards health targets.</li></ul>Each survey in the series includes a set of core questions and measurements (height and weight and, if applicable, blood pressure, waist circumference, urine and saliva samples), plus modules of questions on specific health conditions that vary from year to year. Each year the core sample has also been augmented by an additional boosted sample for children. Since 2008 NHS Health Boards have also had the opportunity to boost the number of adult interviews carried out in their area. <br>
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The Scottish Government <a href="http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Health/scottish-health-survey" title="Scottish Health Survey">Scottish Health Survey</a> webpages contain further information about the series, including latest news and publications. <br>
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