How the NHS and the whole of society must act on social determinants of health for a healthier future
In a new BMJ Commission report, Dr Lucinda Hiam and colleagues describe how health is deteriorating from the cradle to the grave in all four nations of the UK, linked to over a decade of austerity and a failure of government to provide enough money for people to live healthily, and provides solutions on how to address it.
However, improving the NHS alone is inadequate, they say, and their recommendations include tackling poverty so that individuals and families can lead healthy lives, investing in sustainable housing compatible with good health, and prioritising children and young people, giving every child the best start in life.
Action focused solutions include:
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increasing child benefit and extending free school meals for lower income families, ensuring the national minimum wage and national living wage are sufficient to lead a healthy life,
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increasing the supply of affordable, good quality, sustainable housing,
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and reversing the deterioration in mental and physical health of children and young people.
To achieve these goals, they say urgent measures are needed to restore, revitalise and prioritise the public health system in the UK, particularly in England and Northern Ireland, which “is now arguably weaker than at any point in history.”
And they refute criticisms of a nanny state, arguing that asking individuals to make choices that their circumstances do not allow almost guarantees persisting health inequalities.
“Improving the health of the population and reducing avoidable health inequalities must be a national priority,” they write. “A common response is that we cannot afford such action—we argue, we cannot afford inaction.”
“We call on all political leaders to acknowledge the problem and the urgent need for action on the social determinants of health. This action can be a story of hope: we can change the direction of health in the UK if we use the robust, broad evidence on how to act,” they conclude.
How the NHS and the whole of society must act on social determinants of health for a healthier future
In a new BMJ Commission report, Dr Lucinda Hiam and colleagues describe how health is deteriorating from the cradle to the grave in all four nations of the UK, linked to over a decade of austerity and a failure of government to provide enough money for people to live healthily, and provides solutions on how to address it.
