Preventative action to tackle health inequalities can improve health and prevents the need for more intensive and costly treatment, according to a report by NHS Highland’s Director of Public Health.
In his third annual report to the NHS Highland Board, Dr Tim Allison highlights that prevention is better than cure and underlines that preventative work can successfully impact on poor health outcomes while supporting sustainable health and social care services.
Dr Tim Allison said: “Prevention is about taking actions that are needed to stop people becoming ill or to reduce the severity of illnesses.
“This not only reduces health inequalities but also helps us to sustain and strengthen the services we provide across health and social care. This report aims to make the case for how important prevention can be and highlight how cost-effective prevention can transform our health and social care services.”
The report includes information showing the decline in cancer and coronary heart disease rates across Highland, Argyll and Bute. Prevention initiatives have played a major part in tackling these leading causes of death. Activity has included cancer screening and work to reduce rates of smoking.
Dr Allison continued: “Preventative action to control tobacco use and reduce smoking, as well as reduced high blood cholesterol and high blood pressure have contributed to a decline in the number of deaths from cardiovascular disease.
“Priority should continue to be given to preventing cardiovascular disease and smoking related conditions and there must be continued efforts to improve early diagnosis for effective treatment.
“The report also demonstrates how wider issues, such as environment, housing, education and employment influence the health of the population and how we can deliver improvement by prioritising preventative work.
“There are many examples which have already helped achieve major improvements in population health, such as improved social conditions, vaccination against communicable disease and national screening programmes.
“We also have a number of preventative interventions that provide a return on investment and deliver savings to the NHS in the short and longer term. Therefore it is important that we consider prevention at the heart of all future service planning.
“It is vital that we learn from these improvements and continue to develop preventative work in Highland which delivers sustained positive health outcomes.”
The annual Director of Public Health Report this year focuses upon prevention as a way to improve health and wellbeing and ensure the future sustainability of health and care services.
Investment in preventative measures which promote, protect and improve health and wellbeing is essential to ensure the future sustainability of the health and care system and protecting and improving our populations’ quality of life.
The report provides examples of how prevention protects and improves health outcomes and provides a return on investment as well as having potential to deliver long and short term savings.
A number of case studies are provided to showcase the excellent local examples of how prevention can deliver savings and improve health outcomes, making the case to prevention.
The report will be released on the 31st January at the NHS Highland Board meeting.