Welcome to Your Quarterly Newsletter from RSPH

A Very Happy New Year from RSPH Training Solutions

Welcome back!  We hope that you enjoyed the break and are now feeling revitalised and ready for 2012.  This year will certainly be a busy one for public health, and not only will we be continuing all the good work we did last year, but we will also be looking forward to new challenges and new initiatives  to help you improve the nation’s health.

We have a number of programmes and workshops set to run in the coming months and we hope that you will be able to participate and share the good work.  Our aim is to work collectively, supporting you to achieve positive health changes for our communities. 

Health and Wellbeing Boards - An Introduction

“Very good course, highly recommended” Richard Tolson, Early intervention Development Manager, Action for the Blind

“Much better informed and able to advise partners and colleagues” Angus Robertson, Director, Proactive London

Due to popular demand and the success of the Health and Wellbeing Boards seminar we held last year, we will be running a second seminar on the 3rd February at our Head Office in London.

Course Information:

The Health and Social Care Bill introduces enormous change to the planning, commissioning and delivery of health related services. This includes the establishment of Health and Wellbeing Boards which will sit within Local Authorities. This half day RSPH seminar will examine the new policy changes and will provide a comprehensive brief on the newly proposed operating principles for the Health and Wellbeing Board, their core membership, and key statutory functions. This includes areas such as leading the local joint strategic needs assessment (the JSNA) and the new joint health and wellbeing strategy as well as promoting integrated working and pooled budgets.

Drawing on existing and emerging best practice as well as lessons learnt, the seminar will examine the key issues related to the new operating environment and by the end of the seminar, delegates will understand:

• Health and Wellbeing Board policy : a brief history of policy and overview of the new arrangements for Health and Wellbeing boards as set out in the Health and Social Care Bill;
• Health and Wellbeing Board mission: a summary of the key functions of the board, including a quality definition and best practice examples, and a look at working with wider partners and broader strategic partnerships to link with the wider determinants of health;
• Health and Wellbeing Board governance: a brief overview of early summary messages on governance arrangements and operating principles, as recently outlined by leading national Health organisations.

This content has been designed to provide a basic introduction for anyone with an interest in the new health and wellbeing delivery arrangements, as well as those wanting to learn more about the new roles and responsibilities of the Health and Wellbeing Board and its membership.

Date: 03.02.2012

Location: 59 Mansell Street, London, E1 8AN

Special Price: £50.00

For further information and to book a place please click here or contact Gina Mohajer by phone: 0207 265 7327

Planning for healthy communities: Joint Strategic Needs Assessment

The RSPH has been working with the NHS Confederation and Local Government Improvement and Development to develop the JSNA briefing document, so that all the parties involved in the new health and wellbeing boards will have a common understanding of how to identify their community’s needs

The JSNA pulls together all the relevant information about a community, including population data, behavioural determinants of health, epidemiology, housing quality and importantly, the views of its residents. This picture is then used to plan future provision, to ensure that the community has the health and social care services which it needs.  Download the  JSNA Briefing Document

The RSPH Training Solutions are offering a range of tailored seminars for health professionals and third sector organisations to support them as they develop their JSNAs.

Introduction to JSNA
29th February

Designing you local JSNA - Getting the right mission statement
28th March

Designing your local JSNA - JSNA Delivery
25th April

Making Every Contact Count - Free Event

On February 7th RSPH will be hosting a free half day seminar in London to support 'industrialisation' of behaviour change competence and confidence in our workforces.

Based on NICE guidance and the challenge to equip frontline staff with skills and develop 'standards' the Prevention and Lifestyle Behaviour Change: a competence framework is the basis for Yorkshire and the Humber's successful approach.

The application of the framework in the Yorkshire and the Humber region has been diverse reflecting both its simplicity and flexibility. It is being used within commissioning, NHS provider services including primary and secondary care, local authority, pharmacy, probation and fire prevention services. Thus, whatever your role and responsibilities the seminar will provide you with practical learning and a range of resources to support your own and your workforces development in this key area of public health.

The seminar will be lead by Karen Payne, NHS Yorkshire and the Humber, Clare de Normanville, Sheffield Hallam University. It will illustrate how to make the Prevention and Lifestyle behaviour Change competence framework work for you, your workforces, your communities and populations.

To register your interest please contact Gina Mohajer

Helping People Lead Healthier Lives Through Behaviour Change

Prevention has always been better than cure, and never more so than now.  Worrying health trends mean the financial burden of preventable ill health on the NHS and on our wider society is running at unsustainable levels. Simply put, many people continue to damage their health through poor diet, smoking, alcohol misuse and lack of exercise.
This results in an economic cost to the taxpayer of over £60 billion through lost income tax revenue, increased expenditure on state benefits and the cost to the NHS.  Click on the  Behaviour Change  article to read more on the critical role healthcare professionals can play to bring about positive changes in peoples lives.  

Youth Health Champions Qualification

We are pleased to announce that the development of the Youth Health Champion Qualification is now underway. 

Following on from the May 2011 seminar, about the vital role that youth champions can play in improving health, many of you have been eager to see how the scheme could be rolled out nationally.  The RSPH Qualifications Team are currently in the early stages of developing a qualification suitable for youth health champions.  The Qualifications Team are currently exploring what programmes are already in existence or being planned in this field so that the qualification meets all the requirements.

The Qualifications department will then prepare drafts of the qualification for consultation.  If you would like to be a part of the consultation process, please send your contact details to Richard Burton, Head of Qualifications Development.

Download the report from the Youth Health Champion seminar Briefing Report - Youth Health Champion

Are Our Children Health Literate?

The Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) with support from a broad range of experts from the health and education sectors, has published a report on health literacy in primary schools.

The concept of health literacy can be interpreted in different ways, from the ability to read health information and comply with instructions, through to gaining an understanding which enables people to make judgements and change their behaviour.

Key topics in health education such as obesity, are increasingly included in the Science and PSHE curriculums. However, although children are often aware of specific health messages, these messages are not always promoted in a broader context. Consequently children are not equipped with the skills needed to evaluate health and lifestyle choices effectively, or to assess the risks associated with new experiences.

In response to this the RSPH invited more than 20 experts in health and education to contribute to the debate on health literacy in primary schools, assess the current situation, look at case studies and make recommendations on how to move forward.

The report concludes that the priority should be to develop a coherent methodology for teaching health literacy, and to provide training for teachers to enable them to implement that methodology. There are excellent case studies that can be used to demonstrate strategies that work, and most importantly young people should be involved in the process. 

Download Health Literacy Report If you would like more information about the Health Literacy project, please visit www.rsph.org.uk or contact Heather Davison.   

Clearing the Fog: a closer look at what the changing policy landscape means for public health improvement, education and learning
(Research Report Coming Soon)

Achieving effective education and learning for public health improvement is complex. There is no single solution. The political context, the language and organisational complexity, together with the current economic climate are dramatically altering the landscape within which public health is commissioned, led and delivered, setting a challenging agenda.

The Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) have been working to determine the implications of the changing policy landscape for future education and learning for public health improvement. In this short study we have followed the policy journey as it unfolds, building on earlier research. We have engaged in a series of focussed discussions with over twenty-five specialists in a wide range of public health roles in both practice and learning settings; local authorities, NHS, third and the independent sectors.

The learning from this study provides a snapshot of the changing landscape bringing together multiple perspectives. It highlights emerging themes and considerations to inform future education and learning in the light of the anticipated passing of the Health and Social Care Bill and the forthcoming Public Health Workforce Strategy.

RSPH wants to share the learning from this work with practitioners and policy makers to stimulate, inform and shape on-going discussions that bridge the gap between the policy and practice.

For further information please contact Heather Davison