Promoting Healthy Lifestyle Not Enough, Says Health Council

To take pressure off health care budgets, governments must expand their approach to health promotion, says new report.
Promoting Healthy Lifestyle Not Enough, Says Health Council
12/23/2010
Updated:
12/23/2010
[xtypo_dropcap]C[/xtypo_dropcap]ontinuing to spend money on acute care and on programs encouraging a healthy lifestyle is not enough to improve the overall health of Canadians, particularly those who live in or close to poverty, according to a new report.

To take pressure off health care budgets, governments must expand their approach to health promotion and tackle the major societal factors that lead to poor health in the first place, said the report by the Health Council of Canada.

“Good health is not simply a matter of diet and exercise,” said John G. Abbott, CEO.

“These things matter, but research shows that other factors such as our income, employment, home and work environment, and social relationships have a greater impact on our health and well-being.”

Titled Stepping It Up: Moving the Focus from Health Care in Canada to a Healthier Canada, the report cites income as a prominent factor in determining health.

Canadians with the lowest incomes are the most frequent sufferers of chronic afflictions such as diabetes, arthritis, and heart disease. They are also the most likely to live with a disability and be hospitalized for any type of ailment.

Mental health is another concern among this group, as many afflicted with mental health conditions are likely to perpetuate circumstances in which well-being and quality of life in all areas, including income and physical health, are damaged.

According to the report, in 2010 the estimated health care expenditure in Canada was pegged at $192 billion. Of that, an estimated 20 percent may be attributed to wide income disparity.

The government needs “a seismic shift” in its approach, from spending strictly on acute care and health treatment toward investing in the root factors, particularly those that are socio-economically based, the report said.

The council proposes the formation of a pan-Canadian strategy to promote healthy living. This would include consultation and input from a wide variety of sectors, including governments, NGOs, the private sector, aboriginal organizations, and others, with the set goal “to improve overall health outcomes and to reduce disparities among Canadians.”

“Canadians’ health and a healthy population must be viewed as the responsibility of government and society as a whole. Governments need to govern more collaboratively, in an approach that links multiple ministries, multiple levels of government, and other sectors of society,” Abbot said.

“In the end governments need to recognize that unless we challenge the status quo about how to improve the health of Canadians, we are going to pour billions into the formal health care system and achieve very little.”

Created by the 2003 First Ministers Accord on health care renewal, the Health Council of Canada is an independent agency funded by Health Canada to report on the progress of health care reform.