Changes to public health services will enable Durham County Council to explore new ways of addressing inequalities.
From Monday, 1st April, councils across the country will take over responsibility for public health services currently provided by NHS Primary Care Trusts.
This includes Durham County Council, which will take on the role of promoting and protecting the health of the county’s residents, helping them to stay well and avoid illness.
As part of this role, the council will have a duty to ensure robust plans are in place to promote wellbeing across the county.
This will take in a range of areas including nutrition, physical activity, tobacco and alcohol, sexual health, teenage pregnancy and children’s health.
The council will also be responsible for protecting the public during any outbreaks of infectious disease and ensuring itself and other agencies are prepared for emergencies.
It is believed that the changes will enable public health services to better link in with other services, which will, in turn, provide more opportunities to tackle health inequalities across the county.
Anna Lynch, Director of Public Health in County Durham, said: “This is a great opportunity for us to improve residents’ lives by considering how public health can be integrated into existing local services.
“We will also be able to better empower individuals to make healthy choices and give communities the tools and resources to address their own health needs.”
By looking at the current health of the population, we examine the impact on health, lifestyles and social and economic factors.
It aims to understand and address the causes of poorer health in order to improve overall physical and mental wellbeing.
