In 2004, the NSW Department of Health, in conjunction with the 8 area health services, completed the third year of the New South Wales Population Health Survey, an ongoing survey of the health of people of New South Wales using computer assisted telephone interviewing (CATI). The main aims of the survey are to provide detailed information on the health of the people of New South Wales, and to support the planning, implementation, and evaluation of health services and programs in New South Wales. This 2004 Report on Adult Health from the New South Wales Population Health Survey reports on the health of residents aged 16 years and over.

In 2004, male respondents were under-represented in the New South Wales Population Health Survey, making up 42.8 per cent of the survey sample compared with 49.8 per cent of the overall residential population of New South Wales. Conversely, female respondents were over-represented, making up 57.2 per cent of the survey sample compared with 50.2 per cent of the overall residential population of New South Wales. Males aged 54 years or younger and females aged 44 years and under were under-represented in the sample, while males aged 55 years or over and females aged 45 years and over were over-represented in the sample.

The survey instrument was developed by the Child Health Survey Technical Expert Group (CHSTEG), in consultation with area health services, relevant branches of the NSW Department of Health, and the NSW Health Survey Program Steering Committee (HSPSC).The CHSTEG was established in 1999, as an expert group on the technical aspects of measuring and reporting on child health and wellbeing.The CHSTEG consisted of community paediatricians, public health professionals, child and family health nurses, child health policy analysts, child mental health professionals, health promotion professionals, epidemiologists, and representatives of the NSW Department of Community Services and the Association for Welfare of Child Health (see Acknowledgements).The draft survey instrument was refined, following field-testing and piloting.