The Bachelor Report

CONTEMPORARY DEATH IN AUSTRALIA
Philip Bachelor has researched major community values of Australian cemeteries. His doctoral thesis explored social and cultural values of cemeteries within contexts of grief. This article is one of a series in which he discusses bereavement and cemetery use.
By Dr Philip Bachelor

Currently, around one hundred and thirty-four thousand deaths occur in Australia each year. Based on the mean age of seventy-seven years (A.B.S., Deaths Australia, 3302.0), and each decedent having twenty-five close relatives (including surviving spouse, siblings, nephews and nieces, children and grandchildren), it is estimated that around 3.3 million Australians (i.e. around 1 in 6) suffer the loss of a close family member each year. Many more will experience the death of a less close relative, friend or associate.

When we die
More males than females die at all ages under eighty years of age, as shown in Figure 1. The average male attains around seventy-six years of age. More females than males die over eighty years, with the average female attaining around eighty-two years of age. During the twenty to thirty-nine year-old period, the male to female death ratio is 2.7:1. Factors involved include higher risk activities of young males, including motor accidents (2.2:1) and the significantly higher incidence of male suicide (3.8:1).

Why we die
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (1996: 3303.0) ‘the male death rate is higher than that of females for most causes of death’. However, ‘for some leading causes, the number of female deaths exceeds the number of male deaths. These are cerebrovascular disease (stroke), senile dementia, and hereditary and degenerative diseases of the central nervous system, all usually associated with older age groups in which females predominate’ (Death by cause & sex).

Accidents are the leading cause of death for those under forty-five years of age (Australian Bureau of Statistics (1996: 3303.0). ‘Malignant neoplasms (cancers) are the second leading cause among this group except for those aged fifteen to twenty-four, where it is suicide. For those aged forty-five years and over, neoplasms and heart disease are the leading causes.’
All other causes include diseases of other organs, infectious and parasitic diseases, perinatal deaths, poisonings, violence, and ill-defined conditions.

Where we die
Numerous authors on death and bereavement remark on the institutionalisation of death, through an historical shift from the most common place of death being the traditional home bed, to death more typically occurring in a hospital or similar institution. Some writers, including Walter 1994, Ata 1994, Deveson 1997, and Griffin & Tobin 1997, have postulated figures ranging from ‘over half’ to ‘ninety percent’ of contemporary deaths occurring in hospitals and other institutions. Unfortunately though, none of these reports appears to be validated by any specific data.

The Victorian Application for Cremation form requires the place of death to be specified. A review of all applications for cremation for 1990 and 2000, conducted at Fawkner Crematorium & Memorial Park, is summarised in Table 1 and graphically illustrated in Figure 3. The sample data indicate that around 56% of Victorians, at least (and, by implication, possibly of all Australians), currently die in a hospital. In total, at least 78% of the sample deaths occurred in some institution.

There appears no reason why persons who are buried would die in different places to those who are cremated, nor why these proportions would be at all unique to Fawkner. The previously reported trend away from traditional home deaths (22% down to 18%) is apparent over this ten-year period. This directly correlates to an increase in hospital deaths (51% up to 56%) and all known institutionalised deaths (72% up to 78%) for the same period. Published ACCA NEWS Autumn 2002, pp. 8-10

Death By Cause & Sex

In Australia During 1999

Death By Age & Sex

In Australia During 1999

References

• Ata, A. W. (1994) Bereavement & health in Australia: Gender, psychological, religious and cross-cultural issues, David Lovell, Melbourne.

• Australian Bureau of Statistics (2000) Deaths Australia 1999, Cat. No. 3302.0, ABS Canberra.

• Australian Bureau of Statistics (1999) Causes of death Australia 1997, Cat. No. 3303.0, ABS Canberra.

• Australian Bureau of Statistics (2000) Causes of death Australia 1999, Cat. No. 3303.0, ABS Canberra.

• Deveson, A. (1997) ‘Everyone a customer’ in The Penguin book of death, eds. Carey, G. & Sorenson, R., Penguin, Melbourne.

• Griffin, G. M. & Tobin, D. (1997) In the midst of life ...: The Australian response to death (edn. 2), Melbourne University Press, Melbourne.

• Walter, J. A. (1994) The revival of death, Routledge, London.