Social and Economic determinants of gender equity: Strategies for a prosperous future for women in Wales

The Welsh Health Equity Status Report initiative (WHESRi) has published a spotlight feature blog to commemorate International Women’s Day. This spotlight feature focuses on gender equity in Wales, emphasizing the social and economic determinants impacting women’s well-being. It highlights persistent gender inequalities across various spheres, including health, employment, and violence, exacerbated by factors like race, disability, and economic status. To address Addressing these challenges requires gender-responsive policies, gender-inclusive budgeting, and an Economy of Well-being framework to promote positive outcomes and empower women towards a healthier and more prosperous future in Wales.

Authors: Zuwaira Hashim, Jo Peden

Identifying and Applying Behaviour Change Techniques

A practical, interactive tool that introduces Behaviour Change Techniques, considered to be the ‘active ingredients’ of behaviour change interventions. The tool walks you through how to identify and deliver Behaviour Change Techniques, drawing on the COM-B model and Behaviour Change Wheel.

Authors: Alice Cline, Nicky Knowles+ 2 more
, Jonathan West, Ashley Gould

Evaluating Behaviour Change Interventions

Written in collaboration with the Central Evaluation Team and Public Health Wales, this is a practical and interactive tool that identifies key points to take into consideration when you’re planning how to test and evaluate your behaviour change intervention.

Authors: Alice Cline, Nicky Knowles+ 5 more
, Jonathan West, Lucia Homolova, Dr Charlotte Grey, Dr Esther Mugweni, Ashley Gould

Self-administered sexual health testing in an open prison setting in Wales: A Health Impact Assessment and Social Return on Investment analysis

This report outlines findings from a study that aims to understand the health impacts and social return on investment of a self-sampling service for Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) in an open prison setting in Wales. The study applies an innovative approach by using a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) lens and approach, in combination with the Social Return on Investment (SROI) framework.

Authors: Kathryn Ashton, Aimee Challenger+ 4 more
, Andrew Cotter-Roberts, Christie Craddock, Jordan Williams, Liz Green
International Horizon Scanning and Learning Report: Impact of Poverty on Babies Children and Young People Report 48

International Horizon Scanning and Learning Report: Impact of Poverty on Babies Children and Young People Report 48

The International Horizon Scanning and Learning reports were initiated as part of the COVID-19 public health response, to support dynamic response and recovery measures and planning in Wales. In spring 2022, the scope of the reports was expanded to cover priority public health topics, including in the areas of health improvement and promotion, health protection, and health care public health.
In focus: Impact of Poverty on Babies, Children and Young People

Authors: Leah Silva, Lauren Couzens (née Ellis)+ 6 more
, Daniela Stewart, Rachel Bennett, Zuwaira Hashim, Rhiannon Griffiths, Jo Peden, Mariana Dyakova

Time to Talk Public Health: December 2023 Panel Survey Findings

Time to Talk Public Health is a national panel of Welsh residents aged 16+ years established by Public Health Wales enabling regular public engagement to inform public health policy and practice. The panel is designed to be broadly representative of the Welsh population by age, sex, deprivation, ethnicity and health board. This report presents findings from the December 2023 survey covering: Flu and COVID-19 vaccines, Vaccination and pregnancy, NHS 111 Wales Service, and Primary Care Clusters.

Authors: Catherine Sharp, Karen Hughes+ 1 more
, Lewis Brace
Influencing the Health Gap: Multi-Country Perspectives

Influencing the Health Gap: Multi-Country Perspectives

The Welsh Health Equity Status Report initiative (WHESRi) has updated a spotlight feature blog on the innovative decomposition analysis methodology. This now includes the addition on a summary report on a multi-country webinar, with insights from Wales, Italy and Slovenia. The webinar was a solutions-focused session which explored how the application of the decomposition analysis methodology has generated insights into the drivers of health inequalities.

A key finding of the webinar was the need to strengthen the case for investing in well-being and health equity in Wales and beyond through policies and solution-based actions that were identified throughout the webinar.

Authors: Lauren Couzens (née Ellis), Sara Cooklin-Urbano+ 2 more
, Mariana Dyakova, Jo Peden

Affordable homes for health and well-being

People’s homes can have a significant impact on their health and well-being.

This briefing follows our summary briefing ‘Homes for health and well-being’ on what a future of healthy homes in Wales should look like. It focuses on the importance of affordable homes for health and well-being.

We hope that by highlighting the links between housing affordability and health, and by sharing examples of what ‘good’ looks like, this briefing will help stakeholders in the housing system make progress towards a future where affordable homes help to protect and improve the health and well-being of everyone in Wales.

Authors: Manon Roberts, Louisa Petchey

Understanding the burden and costs of unintentional injuries and violence to European health systems

Injuries and violence are a major public health problem in the WHO European Region. Violence is a leading cause of death and with injury, is a major contributor to health care costs. Identifying the burden and costs of injuries and violence to the health care system can be a useful starting point for demonstrating the ‘size of the problem’ to policy makers and in influencing decision-making. This project aimed to estimate the costs of injuries and violence to the health care systems across the WHO European Region. The objectives were to review costing approaches used in the existing literature, identify data to enable robust estimates of the costs of injury and violence and to develop an analytical framework that can be applied uniformly across WHO European Region countries.

Authors: Lisa Jones, Zoe Bell+ 3 more
, Zara Quigg, Karen Hughes, Mark Bellis
The Social Return on Investment of Physical Activity and Nutrition Interventions - a Scoping Review

The Social Return on Investment of Physical Activity and Nutrition Interventions – a Scoping Review

Scarcity of resources for public health and mounting pressures on health systems such as the Covid-19 pandemic, make it vital to evaluate public health interventions and move away from traditional evaluation methods. This is important to understand not just the financial value of public health interventions, but also the wider social, environmental and economic value. This review aims to present the existing evidence base on the Social Return on Investment of physical activity and nutrition interventions, demonstrating the wider social and environmental benefits of these interventions.

Authors: Anna Stielke, Kathryn Ashton+ 2 more
, Andrew Cotter-Roberts, Mariana Dyakova
International Horizon Scanning and Learning Report: Embedding Prevention in Primary and Community Care Report 47

International Horizon Scanning and Learning Report: Embedding Prevention in Primary and Community Care Report 47

The International Horizon Scanning and Learning reports were initiated as part of the COVID-19 public health response, to support dynamic response and recovery measures and planning in Wales. In spring 2022, the scope of the reports was expanded to cover priority public health topics, including in the areas of health improvement and promotion, health protection, and health care public health.
In focus: Embedding Prevention in Primary and Community Care

Authors: Leah Silva, Daniela Stewart+ 5 more
, Rachel Bennett, Zuwaira Hashim, Sara Cooklin-Urbano, Lauren Couzens (née Ellis), Mariana Dyakova

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Women, Employment and Health Inequalities

The infographic summarises the findings, looking at the Population Groups and Determinants of Health impacted, along with the key statistics, mitigating actions and potential areas of future research. The Explanatory Note goes into further detail on the above, giving a breakdown of the evidence that informed our positive and negative findings on women, employment and health inequalities. It also offers readers the chance to see the HIA methodology that was used by the team.

Authors: Michael Fletcher, Laura Evans+ 3 more
, Lee Parry-Williams, Kathryn Ashton, Liz Green
Journal article first page: Advancing the Social Return on Investment Framework to Capture the Social Value of Public Health Interventions: Semistructured Interviews and a Review of Scoping Reviews

Advancing the Social Return on Investment Framework to Capture the Social Value of Public Health Interventions

Investment in public health has far-reaching impacts, not only on physical health but also on communities, economies, and the environment. There is increasing demand to account for the wider impact of public health and the social value that can be created, which can be captured through the use of the social return on investment (SROI) framework. This study aims to explore the application of SROI and identify areas of advancement for its use in public health.

Authors: Kathryn Ashton, Andrew Cotter-Roberts+ 3 more
, Timo Clemens, Liz Green, Mariana Dyakova

Skills for public health systems leadership: Reflections on practice

The role of public health leaders is ultimately to improve health outcomes, especially for the most vulnerable in our society. Public health leaders have to work across multiple ‘systems’ because the causes of public health issues are often complex and multi-faceted.
This report, via a brief literature review and interviews with public health systems leaders, aims to explore the role of public health leaders in driving change for better health outcomes and the attributes needed to be successful. We hope that the report findings will be useful for future systems leaders to develop their skills in these areas.

Authors: Jo Peden, Dr James Rees+ 2 more
, Sophie Cole, Manon Roberts
Time to Talk Public Health Wales Oct 23 Panel Survey published Dec 23

Time to Talk Public Health: October 2023 Panel Survey Findings

Time to Talk Public Health is a national panel of Welsh residents aged 16+ years established by Public Health Wales enabling regular public engagement to inform public health policy and practice. The panel is designed to be broadly representative of the Welsh population by age, sex, deprivation, ethnicity and health board. This report presents findings from the October 2023 survey covering: 20mph speed limits, vaping, use of antibiotics, HIV, vaccines, addressing inequalities and coronavirus.

Authors: Catherine Sharp, Karen Hughes
Front cover of 'Everybody's Business' - publication by PHW WHO CC

Everybody’s Business: Early Intervention Crime Reduction

This report aims to aid understanding of how multi-agency partners, including police and justice, health and social care, local government, education, and the third sector, can work together to prevent harms that cross the public health and criminal justice landscape, such as violence, substance use and mental health. It provides examples of ways in which multi-agency partners can work to implement whole system approaches to addressing harm and examines areas where early intervention and preventative policing approaches have been or are likely to be successful.

Authors: Zara Quigg, Chloe Smith+ 5 more
, Karen Hughes, Charley Wilson, Nadia Butler, Lisa Jones, Mark Bellis

Research on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and shift to more agile working, on Public Health Wales’ carbon footprint

The report looks at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and shift to more agile working on Public Health Wales’ carbon footprint, focusing on both operational and staff homeworking emissions.

The report covers four key areas of emissions, procurement, travel, business/ site and homeworking. The emissions for each area have been calculated for 2019/20 and 2020/21 to compare the difference between the two years, identifying the impact on our carbon footprint for each key area, along with key insights and recommendations.

Authors: Tracy Evans

Understanding the impact of COVID-19 on Public Health Wales’ Emissions

The five infographics share the key findings and recommendations of the research project to look at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and shift to more agile working on Public Health Wales Carbon Footprint.

The infographics cover the overall findings and the impact on emissions for the four key areas; procurement, homeworking, business/ site and travel emissions. They include detail on the overall recommendations for PHW, along with suggestions on how individuals can help to reduce their carbon emissions.

Authors: Tracy Evans
Front cover of English journal: Parental Technoference

Parental technoference and adolescents’ mental health and violent behaviour: a scoping review

The term ‘technoference’ refers to habitual interferences and disruptions within interpersonal relationships or time spent together due to use of electronic devices. Emerging evidence suggests associations between parental technoference and young people’s mental health and violent behaviours. This scoping review sought to summarise the existing literature. Findings suggest that parents should be aware of the environment in which they use electronic devices as their use can potentially, directly and indirectly, influence adolescent mental health and violent behaviours. Further research into the potential caveats of parental technoference could support the development of evidence-informed guidelines for parental management of electronic devices.

Authors: Donna Dixon, Catherine Sharp+ 2 more
, Karen Hughes, J. Carl. Hughes

A practical handbook on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Delivering prevention, building resilience and developing trauma-informed systems: A resource for professionals and organisations

This new resource aims to support action on ACEs by providing practical advice on implementing work to prevent ACEs, build resilience, and develop trauma-informed organisations, sectors and systems. It supports the development of a trauma-informed society that is invested in action to prevent ACEs and better support those affected by them.

Authors: Sara Wood, Hayley Janssen+ 3 more
, Karen Hughes, Jonathon Passmore, Mark Bellis
Welsh Health Equity Solutions Platform - acronym WHESP

New Solutions Platform Spotlight Feature on Improving Health Equity by Giving Every Child the Best Start in Life

The Welsh Health Equity Solutions Platform (WHESP) has published a new Spotlight Feature, highlighting solutions focused action to address health inequities. This spotlight feature focuses on ‘Children and the cost of living crisis in Wales: How children’s health and well-being are impacted and areas for action’.

Evidence shows the cost of living crisis is compounding the impacts of child poverty on children’s development now, and their outcomes in later life. Public Health Wales’s analysis identified 11 priority areas for action to reduce the impact of child poverty and the cost of living crisis on health inequity among children in Wales, both now and into the longer term.

Public Health Wales hopes that this analysis can help inform the development of Welsh Government’s revised Child Poverty Strategy for Wales and provides a framework for prioritising the health and well-being of children during this time of crisis while also setting a course for a healthier and more equal future for Wales.

Front cover of PHW International Health strategy for 2023-2035

Public Health Wales: Our International Health Strategy 2023-2035

Public Health Wales has updated its 2017 International Health Strategy to better reflect the significant changes in the global landscape and to enable Public Health Wales’ new Long-Term Strategy.

Authors: Liz Green, Emily Clark+ 5 more
, Laura Holt, Abigail Malcolm (née Instone), Golibe Ezenwugo, Daniela Stewart, Mariana Dyakova

Cold indoor temperatures and their association with health and well-being: a systematic literature review

Evidence suggests that indoor temperatures <18°C are associated with negative health effects. This study aimed to identify, appraise and update evidence on the association between cold temperatures (i.e. <18°C) within homes (i.e. dwellings) and health and well-being outcomes. Significant gaps in the current evidence base are identified, including research on the impacts of cold indoor temperatures on mental health and well-being, studies involving young children, and the long-term health effects of cold indoor temperatures.

Authors: Hayley Janssen, Kat Ford+ 5 more
, Ben Gascoyne, Rebecca Hill, Manon Roberts, Mark Bellis, Sumina Azam

The rising cost of living and health and wellbeing in Wales: a national survey

Households across Wales and worldwide are experiencing an increase in the cost of living. Since late 2021, price rises for basic items such as food and energy have outstripped increases in average wages and welfare payments, leading to a fall in real disposable incomes. As a result, increasing pressure on household budgets is making it harder for people to afford the basics and is often referred to as a ‘cost of living crisis’. This report presents the findings of a survey developed to understand how the cost of living crisis is affecting health and wellbeing among the Welsh public; their approaches and decision-making relating to rising living costs; and their awareness of and access to financial support and schemes.

Authors: Rebecca Hill, Karen Hughes+ 3 more
, Katie Cresswell, Kat Ford, Mark Bellis

Identifying evidence to support action to reduce socioeconomic inequalities in health: A systematic scoping and mapping review

This report examines the review-level evidence that is available to guide action on reducing socioeconomic inequalities in health. Evidence about public health interventions, programmes and policies applied to populations, groups and other geographically defined areas or jurisdictions was sought to explore whether they preferentially improve the health outcomes of people experiencing socioeconomic inequalities.

Authors: Lisa Jones, Mark Bellis+ 3 more
, Rebecca Hill, Karen Hughes, Sara Wood