Celebrating diversity and meeting the health needs of a changing population

How public health innovations, research and practice meet the diverse needs of our population will be the focus of the Public Health Agency’s (PHA) Annual Scientific Conference, taking place today [16 June].

Some people find it more difficult to enjoy their full health and minority groups can experience poorer health outcomes and have significantly lower access to services, so understanding the distribution of determinants of health within these groups is essential to reduce health inequalities.

The event at Riddel Hall, Stranmillis, will also see the launch of the fifth Director of Public Health Annual Report, which this year celebrates diversity in our population.

Dr Carolyn Harper, Director of Public Health, said: “Diversity is about people and how we value and appreciate those who are not like us. People differ in all sorts of ways which may not always be obvious or visible. These differences might include race and ethnicity, culture and belief, gender and sexuality, age and social status, ability, and use of health and social care services.

"My report recognises the opportunities and challenges posed by population diversity and highlights some of the key programmes introduced to meet these needs. The main purpose of public health is to protect and improve health and social wellbeing and to tackle health inequalities through strong partnership with individuals, communities, and other key public, private and voluntary organisations.

“Central to our ambition is to place the patients and the public at the heart of everything we do.”

Public health programmes aim to prevent ill health, address health inequalities, detect and treat diseases early and improve the health and wellbeing of the whole population.

Dr Harper concluded: “The Public Health Agency’s challenge is to increase awareness of the significance of health diversity, highlight the impact of health diversity on the population as a whole, lead on the actions necessary to improve health outcomes and broaden leadership for addressing health inequalities at all levels.

“By making sure that we all focus on reducing health inequalities and put working programmes in place, we can make a real difference to people’s lives.”