In August 2022, Migraine Foundation Aotearoa New Zealand undertook the first online survey of people with migraine in NZ (the Migraine in Aotearoa New Zealand survey).
We did this because there was no information about what it was like to live with migraine in NZ, the range of treatments people were using or would like to try, the quality of care from different health professionals and the impact on work and other activities.
We received 530 responses to the survey and have used these in an application to Pharmac for funding of Emgality, in grant funding applications and in our advocacy work. We’ve also written 23 key insight reports that provide snapshot-type summaries and commentaries on key topics from the survey, including:
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Impact on work
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Access to health professionals
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Experiences of migraine stigma
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Use of medication and non-medication treatments
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Disability from migraine
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Family history of migraine
And many more.
Read all of our key insight reports here
These reports paint the richest picture of the experiences of migraine in NZ that we’ve ever had. Many thanks to all the respondents for sharing their time and stories.
We prioritised writing these reports so that the people who participated and all people with migraine in NZ would get the benefit of this information as soon as possible and to show that we value and are using these results. But we’re also working on ensuring these insights are more widely known. We’re giving presentations to health professionals and working on articles to publish in peer-reviewed academic journals, which is an important way to get this information out to clinicians, researchers and policy makers.
We hope these reports not only help people with migraine to better understand the disease and connect with others who have similar experiences, but to help people without migraine appreciate the complexity and burden of living with migraine.
