Category: Health Policy

A healthy foundation for the future: The final report of the young people’s future health inquiry –

The Health Foundation, October 2019

A healthy foundation for the future: the final report of the young people’s future health inquiry from the Health Foundation summarises the work of a two-year inquiry into young people’s future health. It urges the government to overhaul policies across housing, transport and education and adopt a whole government approach to secure the future health of today’s young people. Key recommendations include:

• a government review of the impact of the exam system and the ‘teach to test’ culture on the mental health of young people.

• significant reforms to the private rental sector including developing minimum standards for landlords and greater support for ‘build to rent’ schemes so that young people can put down roots and feel a sense of ‘home’.

• ending the postcode lottery in access to discounted and free transport for students and young people seeking employment.

Click here to view the report.

Healthy, prosperous lives for all: the European health equity status report –

World Health Organization Europe, September 2019

This report reveals that health inequities in many of the 53 countries in the WHO European Region remain either the same or have worsened despite governments’ attempts to address them. The report identifies five key risk factors that are holding many children, young people, women and men back from achieving good health and leading safe and decent lives. Key findings on current health status and trends across the Region show a significant health divide.

• While average life expectancy across the Region increased to 82.0 years for women and 76.2 years for men by 2016, there are still significant health inequities between social groups: a woman’s life expectancy is cut by up to 7 years and a man’s by up to 15 years if they are in the most disadvantaged groups.

• Almost twice as many women and men in the least affluent 20% of the population report illnesses that limit their freedom to carry out daily activities, compared to those in the most affluent 20%.

• In 45 of 48 countries providing data, women with the fewest years of education report higher rates of poor or fair health compared to women with the most years of education; the pattern is the same for men in 47 of the 48 countries.

• Where you live influences how long and how well you are able to live: trends show that in almost 75% of countries surveyed, the differences in life expectancy between the most and least advantaged regions have not changed in over a decade, and in some cases have worsened.

• In the most deprived areas, 4% more babies do not survive their first year compared to babies born in more affluent areas.

• Health gaps between socioeconomic groups widen as people age: 6% more girls and 5% more boys report poor health in the least affluent households compared to those in the most affluent households. This gap rises to 19% more women and 17% more men during working age, and peaks among those aged 65 and over with 22% more women and 21% more men reporting poor health in the least affluent households compared to the most affluent households.

• The accumulated poor health of those with fewer economic and social resources when entering later life predicts their higher risk of poverty and social exclusion, loss of independent living and more rapidly declining health.

Click here to view the full report.

How does UK healthcare spending compare with other countries?

Office for National Statistics, August 2019

This is an analysis of UK healthcare spending relative to comparable countries, using data produced to the international definitions of the System of Health Accounts.  It shows that in 2017, the UK spent £2,989 per person on healthcare, which was around the median for members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Click here to view the briefing.

Navigating the uncharted waters: population ageing in the UK –

International Longevity Centre: UK, August 2019

International Longevity Centre – UK report that argues that the UK’s unprecedented population ageing poses a set of daunting, yet not insurmountable, challenges for policymakers, institutions and health care providers to design better solutions fit for an ageing society. It calls for health policy reforms that focus on preventing, rather than curing disease to enable people to stay active and healthy for longer. It also calls for programmes to enable older workers to remain in the labour market for longer through retraining opportunities and more flexible working patterns, and highlights the pivotal role innovation could play, including, for instance, robotics to help fill production demands for manual labour, or better housing and transport design to facilitate independence and continued employment for older people.

Click here to view the full report.

Exploring dementia and agitation: how public policy needs to respond

International Longevity Centre UK, March 2019
The MARQUE (Managing Agitation and Raising Quality of Life in Dementia) project is the largest ever study involving people living in care homes.  The study examined critical issues for people living with dementia and their paid and unpaid carers, particularly around the challenges of agitation. This report summarises a number of key findings from the study and makes recommendations for how public policy should respond.
Click here to view the full report.

Mental Health and the Armed Forces, Part Two: The Provision of Care

House of Commons Defence Committee, February 2019
This report calls on the government to establish a “world-class centre for the treatment of mental injuries” suffered by Service personnel the next 12-18 months, so that veterans and their families receive the provision and support promised in the Armed Forces Covenant.
Click here to view the full report.

Impact of social media and screen-use on young people’s health

The House of Commons Select Science and Technology Committee, January 2019
This report provides the findings of an inquiry examining whether the growing use of social media, and screens, among children is healthy or harmful.  It looks at the evidence base for such claims, and whether any new measures or controls are required.  The report highlights the benefits of social media, while also revealing the potential risks children face when accessing social media, and suggests what can be done to protect young users when they are online.
Click here to view the full report.

UK 20-year vision for antimicrobial resistance

Department of Health and Social Care, January 2019
This report sets out how the UK will contribute to containing and controlling antimicrobial resistance (AMR) by 2040.  The vision and plan were developed across the government, its agencies and administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, with support from a range of stakeholders.  It is supported by the UK 5-year action plan for antimicrobial resistance 2019 to 2024.
Click here to view the report.