wellbeing

Community wealth (and health) building

This article originally appeared in the Municipal Journal.

The purpose of our economy should be to generate good lives and wellbeing for all, and, in CLES’s final Community Wealth Building Conversation at the end of November, we got to hear first-hand about the myriad ways in which this progressive approach to economic development is helping to deliver better health outcomes for people and communities, through the actions of key anchor institutions. Three things stood out from the conversation.

First, there is growing evidence of impact.

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How can health care organisations maximise their resources to improve population health? 

The Five Year Forward View and evolution towards integrated care systems have placed greater expectations on the NHS to work across a geographical area and maximise its resources to improve the health of a local population. And while this focus on place-based systems of care has spurred developments in the way services are designed and delivered to help prevent ill health and promote wellbeing, limited attention has been given to how the NHS can influence the economic conditions that help create health in the first place.

The impact the NHS has on people’s health extends well beyond its role as a provider of treatment and care. As large employers, purchasers, and capital asset holders, health care organisations are well positioned to use their spending power and resources to address the adverse social, economic and environmental factors that widen inequalities and contribute to poor health.

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