All Our Health
All Our Health is a multi-professional call for action for healthcare professionals to embed and extend prevention, health protection and promotion of wellbeing and resilience into everyday practice. All Our Heath is led by the Chief Nurse Directorate and aims to enhance the social movement for improved health and wellbeing. It consists of a number of free online resources, which bring together priority topics to help address the major factors driving premature death, ill health and health inequalities. Available on the UK Department of Health website, it includes tools and resources to support healthcare professionals, with quick links to evidence, impact measures and top tips on what works. There are currently 22 topics in total; including homelessness, childhood obesity, smoking and tobacco, alcohol and antimicrobial resistance.
Preventable diseases represent a heavy burden for the UK’s healthcare system. It is estimated that around two thirds of premature deaths could be prevented by addressing key public health issues such as a poor diet and obesity, smoking, high blood pressure as well as wider environmental factors. It is also estimated that UK£ 30 billion could be saved if the public more effectively managed their health and engaged in prevention activities.
As a response, Public Health England, an executive agency to the Department of Health, have called for a greater focus on prevention by the over one million healthcare professionals working across the system.
The estimated 363,000 nurses, midwives and health visitors can act as a powerful force for change. Nurses are especially well positioned within the healthcare system as they have interaction with individuals, families and communities and throughout the life course and across all settings. They can drive health promoting practices to make a difference to health outcomes and health inequalities. Collectively, the profession makes a significant positive impact on health outcomes and in reducing health inequalities but their contributions could be further enhanced.
Nurses are finding the All Our Health tools valuable in in identifying the topics for which they can strengthen their contribution to improving health and wellbeing and reducing health inequalities. With the strong consumer insight of the audience, the tools and resources meet their needs and result in engagement and implementation. Success is also ensured by working with professional leaders to support adoption and engagement.
By taking a multi-professional approach, there is a wider reach and impact. This also supports a multi-disciplinary approach to care which is now common in most healthcare environments.