Glossary

Biodiversity Indicating or involving life or living organisms. Flora/Fauna etc.

Dependency Ratio: Ratio of those aged less than 15 years and over 65 years to the total population.

Deprivation Scale: The Haase Index of Relative Affluence and Deprivaiton is a composite index based on the 1996 census of population. It shows the relative deprivation for each of the 3421 District Electoral devisions (DEDs) on a scale of 1 to 10 with a score of 10 indicating that a DED is among the most disadvantaged decile. The index utilises data measuring social class, education, unemployment, as well as the age dependency ratio and the proportion of small farmers in all occupations.

Functional Area: Functional areas are defined in the National Spatial Strategy. A total of twelve functional areas are defined. Kerry, together with parts of Limerick and Cork are defined as the South West functional area. Functional areas have characteristics in terms of the social and economic relationships such as patterns or journeys to work and catchment for shopping, social facilities and amenities or schools.

Gateway: The National Development Plan has identified Dublin, Cork, Limerick/Shannon, Galway and Waterford as existing gateways. The National Spatial Strategy proposes the development of a further three/four gateways. Gateways are seen as centres which have a strategic location relative to a surrounding area. They possess good social and economic infrastructure and support services and have the ability to energise their surrounding zones of influence through, for example, good transporting etc.

National Spatial Strategy: This is a Strategy being developed by Government which is about people and places/the places where people live, the places where they work, and how people move between one and the other. It is also about how we utilise, to best effect, the territory of the state and its land and sea resources.

Social Exclusion: This is a term to describe marginalisation from employment, income, social networks such as family, neighbourhood and community, decision making and from an adequate quality of life.

Spatial Development: This refers to the location of development activity, industrial, tourism, residential, retail, leisure etc. and the nature of transport connections between locations.

Standardised Mortality Rate Crude death rates for different populations cannot be properly compared because of different age profiles. One method used to allow for this is the use of direct methods of standardisation. Age specific mortality rates of a region are compared to the corresponding age groups in a standard. This yields the number of deaths that would occur in that standard population if it were subject to the mortality rates prevailing in each region. Usually the national population is used as the standard population. Comparison in direct standardised mortality rates (DSMR) can then be made more easily.

Standardised Mortality Ratio The standardised mortality ratio is the ratio of the number of
observed deaths in a study population to the number of expected deaths.

Strategy: A long-term plan, a vision for the future. It is a fundamental framework through which an organisation can assert its continuity, while at the same time adapting to a changing environment. The ultimate objective of a Strategy is to address stakeholders benefits.

Support Ratio: Ratio of those aged over 15 years and less than 65 years to the total population.

Sustainable Development: Sustainable Development is about a more inclusive society, which provides for better protection of the environment and use of natural resources, and shares the benefits of economic growth as widely as possible. It is about achieving a better quality of life.

Topics, settings and Population Group Approach: These terms are used to describe how health promotion is approached. Health promotion can take three approaches, topics, settings and population groups. Topics could include Physical Activity, Nutrition or Smoking. An example of setting are in schools, at work and in the community. Population groups could be youth, teenagers, middle aged older persons. A mixture of these three approaches are usually used in a promotional campaign. For example, the topic could be smoking, the setting work, targeted at the middle aged population group.