Posted on: 14 December 2020
West Yorkshire and Harrogate Health and Care Partnership (WY&H HCP) has published the first Annual Report from its Improving Population Health Programme.
2020 has been an unprecedented and challenging year for people’s health and wellbeing. The pandemic has brought a sharper focus on inequalities in our society and a demand for work at scale and at pace to improve the lives of the most disadvantaged. The West Yorkshire and Harrogate Health and Care Partnership Improving Population Health Programme has been in the vanguard of a collaborative movement between health, social care, local authority and voluntary and community services in the region to identify opportunities and mobilise projects that will make a real and lasting difference.
The Annual Report provides a digest of the year’s work, case studies and a look ahead to what’s planned for FY21/22.
Robin Tuddenham, CEO for Calderdale Council; Accountable Officer for NHS Calderdale Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), and Co-Chair of the WY&H HCP Improving Population Health Programme said:
“We started the year with big ambitions to address inequalities, prevent ill health and to look at the wider factors which impact on people’s lives, including housing, climate change and violence reduction. These factors have been brought into sharper focus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
All of the work highlighted in this report has been underpinned by the strength and tenacity of the people living within our communities including voluntary sector organisations and community champions. We have worked closely with them this year to understand the needs of local people and to provide resource to target those who were most impacted by the pandemic alongside existing health inequalities.”
Dr James Thomas, Chair of NHS Bradford District and Craven Clinical Commissioning Group, who is also the Co-Chair for the Improving Population Health Programme said:
“Loneliness and isolation, poverty, food security and safe access to health and care are real worries for far too many people living across our area with many understandably struggling to cope, not only during the pandemic but also in more normal times. Our work as a Partnership is focused on the health and wellbeing of the 2.7million people who live in West Yorkshire and Harrogate and the collective will of our partners to work together gives us the strength in depth to design and deliver sustainable projects that will help those people lead healthy lives.”
Sarah Smith, Programme Director for the Improving Population Health Programme said:
“Improved population health comes about as a result of collective action. Our Health Inequalities Academy will be a community that sparks curiosity, embeds understanding and accelerates our collective response across the health and care system in West Yorkshire.”
More information can be found here.