The UK HDA - Health Development Agency dedicated to improving people’s health and reducing health inequalities - issued in December 2004 a self assessment tool for local councils. This instrument aims at helping councils evaluate whether there are gaps in their capacity to tackle local public health issues.
It is framed in recommendations and 5 checklists with different questions councils must answer to improve their action at local level :
What’s the level of understanding about health inequalities and the council’s role in tackling them ?
What’s the local pattern of health inequalities and where are the knowledge gaps ?
What’s already going on locally and is it working ?
What’s the current capability for delivering on health inequalities ?
Where are the gaps and what needs to be done ?
This self assessment tool is designed as the first stage of action. The results of evaluation should bring forward an adequate action to tackle identified gaps.
This practical guidance for action is embedded in a comprehensive assessment projects with other shared priorities such as improving quality of life for older people; safer and stronger communities; children and young people; sustainable communities and transport. The Shared Priority Project’s goals are to reduce health inequalities by taking into account public health and social gaps in the long-run.
For more information, the Self assessment tool - “Promoting healthier communities and narrowing health inequalities : a selft-assessment tool for local authorities” - can be downloaded from HDA website.
