Tuesday, March 18, 2008

[EQ] Tackling health inequalities: 2007 Status Report

Tackling health inequalities: 2007 Status Report on the Programme for Action

 

Available online PDF [111p.] at:
http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/DH_083471?IdcService=GET_FILE&dID=137120&Rendition=Web

 

Website: http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/DH_083471

 

“……If evidence-based policy making were to be honoured in the observance rather than the breech what might it look like? A simple description might be: review the evidence and make recommendations; use these recommendations as a base to formulate policies; monitor their effects.

By this description, action on inequalities in health in England conforms rather well to evidence-based policy making. The Independent Inquiry into Inequalities in Health (the Acheson Inquiry) reviewed the scientific evidence on health inequalities.

 

It made 39 recommendations. Importantly, Acheson took a social model of health. Thirty-six of it’s (our) recommendations ranged across the whole spectrum of

government policy that influences health inequalities. Only three were specifically aimed at the health service. It was then appropriate that a cross-cutting review on health inequalities was conducted by the Treasury with the participation of 18 government departments and agencies.

 

The result was a national Programme for Action. Government Departments entered into 82 commitments aimed at tackling health inequalities. Targets on reduction of health inequalities, for infant mortality and life expectancy were set. A key part of the Programme for Action was to monitor health inequalities and a few key determinants and components. The overseeing of this monitoring task was assumed by the Scientific Reference Group on Health Inequalities.

In our first Status Report, 2005, we suggested that time was too short to see any effect of policy changes. Now, two years later, that is still a major issue. It is simply too early to say if too little has been done or the right actions were not taken.

 

Whatever actions were taken between 2003 and 2006 there would be little short-term impact on health inequalities. Nevertheless it is important to keep close watch on what has been happening both to important policy areas such as housing, child poverty and education, as well as to health inequalities. ….”  Preface by Professor Sir Michael Marmot

 

Content:

Foreword by Rt Hon Dawn Primarolo MP, Minister for Public Health

Preface by Professor Sir Michael Marmot

Executive summary

Chapter 1: Introduction

Chapter 2: Some issues in tackling health inequalities

Chapter 3: Developments against the targets

Chapter 4: Lessons for delivery

Chapter 5: Conclusion

Glossary

Annex 1: The scientific reference group on health inequalities

Annex 2: List of spearhead areas

Annex 3: Spearhead Group Local Authority Performance Against Contribution to National Life Expectancy Target for Males and Females,

2004–06/2003–05/2002–04 (three-year rolling average)

Annex 4: Absolute and relative inequalities

Annex 5: Changes in definitions of social class

 

Press release:  http://www.gnn.gov.uk/environment/fullDetail.asp?ReleaseID=360272&NewsAreaID=2&NavigatedFromDepartment=False

 

Word file: http://www.gnn.gov.uk/environment/mediaDetail.asp?MediaDetailsID=236697&NewsAreaID=2&ClientID=46&LocaleID=2

 

Health inequality gap 'widening' http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7293846.stm

 

 

 

 

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