NHS Health Scotland – improving health and reducing health inequalities

1. NHS Health Scotland – improving health and reducing health inequalities Wilma Reid Head of Learning & Workforce Development

2. NHS Health Scotland’s purpose To play a significant role in improving the health of the whole of Scotland’s population, while also reducing inequalities in health. How to achieve improvement in health for the most disadvantaged and those who experience discrimination in society? By influencing change in the way that services are delivered and the environment for service delivery

3. NHS Health Scotland Functions • Provide specialist advice to support Scottish Government policy-making • Review, disseminate and explain health improvement and health inequalities evidence, learning and good practice • Evaluate aspects of Scotland’s public health improvement and health inequalities national programmes and to support local evaluation of local activity where needed.

4. NHS Health Scotland Functions • Support marketing linked to local health improvement services and to facilitate the integration of local marketing approaches with the national strategy • Build the skills and support networks of staff in all sectors in Scotland whose roles incorporate public health improvement and tackling health inequalities.

5. NHS HS Priorities • Supporting HEAT targets • Supporting SG’s broader HI and health inequalities strategies • Strengthening the health improvement infrastructure

6. Supporting HEAT targets • Child oral health • Child healthy weight • Alcohol brief interventions • Suicide prevention • Smoking cessation • Breastfeeding • Cardiovascular disease (with a focus on inequalities in health outcomes)

7. Supporting SG’s broader HI and health inequalities strategies • Policies and strategies around a range of health improvement priorities such as alcohol, smoking and mental health • Policies and strategies designed to empower and enable Scotland’s working age population to live healthier lives • Policies, strategies and legislation designed to eliminate discrimination and deliver measurable change in the fairness of health service provision

8. Strengthening the infrastructure • Providing a clearer picture of the health of the Scottish population and the factors that affect it • Promoting clear messages to encourage cultural change in the way that people think about health and the broader things that impact on health • Building networks and partnerships, bringing people together to share learning and develop effective practice

9. Strengthening the infrastructure • Improving the quality and effectiveness of health improvement outcomes through support for planning and performance management • Sharing our information base, national overview and analysis of performance to inform effective planning and practice at local level • Bolstering links and learning in health improvement and health inequalities on an international scale.

10. An NHS Scotland key ambition ‘All staff will be ambassadors for health improvement, safety and quality, using every interaction with individuals, communities and populations, and every patient care episode to maximise their public health and education role’ A Force for Improvement: the Workforce Response to Better Health Better Care (2009)

11. Support for SBC – next steps Complete the Matrix – clarify the contribution NHS HS makes to the 8 improvement areas: • Learning & culture change • Anticipatory care • Equality & diversity • Work with the Third Sector – developing partnerships