New report highlights health priorities for the Cotswold District
30.07.2009
The annual report of the Director of Public Health published today highlights how NHS Gloucestershire is planning its services to meet the health challenges facing the county, now and in the future.
The report features six district level briefings, which provide information on the key health issues and priorities for action at a local level.
The district briefings are based on the outcomes of the county’s first Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA), and the launch of the eJSNA, a new online planning tool - containing the latest available data on the population, its health and lifestyle.
The report shows that ‘overall health in Gloucestershire is good’, but there are variations in health between and within districts, and a strong association between deprivation and poor health.
Overall residents in the Cotswold district enjoy good general health. Early deaths from major diseases, including heart disease and cancer are below the England average, and falling.
However some residents, particularly in parts of Cirencester and Tetbury, experience poorer health than those living in other parts of the district. The report emphasises the importance of targeted action in these communities to break the link between deprivation and poor health, and close the gap in health outcomes between neighbourhoods.
The Cotswold district is projected to see a sharp increase in people aged over 65 in the next 17 years, and the report showcases the positive work being carried out by NHS Gloucestershire and Cotswold District Council to address the challenges of caring for an aging population.
Falls prevention services, and ‘Active and Able’ mobility classes for older residents, are available across the district; and the development of stroke services, services for people with dementia, and additional support for those providing unpaid care, are identified as priorities for 09/10.
The report also highlights the impact that healthy lifestyle choices, such as stopping smoking, increasing physical activity and healthier eating would make to improving health outcomes for all local residents, particularly those living in more deprived parts of the district.
Key initiatives highlighted in the report, include:
- The appointment of a dedicated Health improvement Facilitator for the Cotswold district, to focus specifically on reducing health inequalities in Cirencester and Tetbury
- The Look Good Feel Good programme aimed at supporting the health and wellbeing of parents in the North Cotswolds
- The North Cotswold Patient Transport service, which provides a minibus shuttle service between Moreton-in the Marsh and Burton on the Water Hospitals for patients and carers
- `The Indigo project’ – a confidential young people friendly service aimed at making health care accessible to young people in Cirencester.
Welcoming the report Dr Shona Arora, Director of Public Health said:
‘More than ever, healthy lifestyle choices matter, but choices can be influenced by wider factors such as income, unemployment and housing. Our job is to make healthy choices as easy as possible for people in the Cotswold district and across the county as a whole’.
The JSNA is at the heart of improving health outcomes in Gloucestershire. Understanding what health challenges we face now and in the future at the district level helps ensure that resources and services are targeted where they are most needed.
NHS Gloucestershire is working closely with Cotswold District Council to implement the new Cotswold Sustainable Community Strategy, and today’s report gives us a platform on which to build future actions to address the health needs of local residents’.
