European Data

NEPHO has Europe as one of its PHO lead areas.

The information below gives a brief background on the work NEPHO is doing to support this role, together with links to publications and other websites.

If you require further information or have any questions, please contact either:

• John Wilkinson, Director NEPHO.
  Professor Wilkinson is involved in a European project to develop the whole area of public health genomics and presented a report produced in cooperation with the Public Health Genetics Foundation in Istanbul in November 2008.: john.wilkinson@nepho.org.uk

• Gillian Bryant, Health Information Analyst NEPHO: gillian.bryant@nepho.org.uk

NEPHOs EUROPEAN WORK

1 ISARE

In its lead role for European health, NEPHO has been active in a number of projects funded by the European Commission. Most notably is ISARE (health indicators in the regions of Europe).

Three ISARE projects covering a period of 8 years have lead to the current I2SARE project being possible:

• ISARE I: Defining health regions
• ISARE II: Testing the feasibility of data collection
• ISARE III: Assessing the ways of data presentation and dissemination

A number of reports have been completed and are available from the website. In addition two articles have been published in peer reviewed journals on the ISARE project:

• Wilkinson J.R., Berghmans L., Imbert F, Ledesert B, Ochoa A. Health Indicators in the European Regions – Expanding Regional Comparisons to the new countries of the EU - ISARE III. Public Health 2009 (published on line 16th July 2009)

• Wilkinson J.R., Berghmans L., Imbert F, Ledesert B, Ochoa A. Health Indicators in the European Regions - ISARE II. European Journal of Public Health 2008 18:178-183

The PHO is now involved in a new project I2SARE. The aim of the project is to assist European, national, regional and local decision makers in developing health policy through a better understanding of the health status of the population and of health inequalities at regional level.

The project has two specific objectives:

• The creation of health profiles for each region of all EU member states
• The creation of typologies, the classification of demographic, socio-economic and health indicators, to highlight similar regions for all EU member states and sub-regions for ten selected countries

NEPHO has responsibility for the collection of data in this project.

2 SUPPORTING WORLD CLASS COMMISSIONING

Two of the World Class Commissioning (WCC) competencies require benchmarking against international targets and best practice:

• Competency 5: Manage knowledge and undertake robust and regular needs assessments that establish a full understanding of current and future local health needs and requirements

• Competency 11: Ensuring efficiency and effectiveness of spend

Our European neighbours seem a good place to start. However, there is a need for improved access to and use of, European data on: health, the determinants of health and use of health care resources. The work of the I2SARE project is one area which could support these needs and NEPHO will be working to provide links and information on European comparator data.

3 DATA

NEPHO will develop a collection of European data and links to data sources to support the international comparison of health outcomes and health resources. Data will be presented on:

• Population
• Health status
• Determinants of health
• Health outcomes

Supporting information and analysis will also be available to assist in the interpretation of the data and highlight the potential benefits and pitfalls of using the data.

Below are links to information held on the I2SARE website. Please note the website is evolving and that new material is being added over time.

Currently the website holds the following:

I2SARE Leaflet: Brief background and information on the I2SARE project and names and contact details of the I2SARE work package teams.

Information about the important I2SARE project

The European Directory of regional institutions involved in Health Information Systems. Please visit the site and register your organisation for inclusion in the directory.

The Directory aims to gather all institutions and professionals working in Health Information at regional level, in each country of the European Union. It is hoped that it will facilitate contact between people and institutions across Europe and stimulate scientific exchanges and collaboration.

The Directory provides contact details of regional institutions, their most recent published reports, any areas of specific interest they are working on and existing national networks they are using.

Links to other websites:

Eurostat Regional Data: European-scale regions statistics are used for a wide range of purposes, e.g. for allocating structural funds and for post-assessment of the EU's Cohesion policy. For many years, EUROSTAT has been collecting a wide variety of regional statistics. This dedicated section provides a single access point to Eurostat's activities in regions and cities statistics.

FNORS: Fédération Nationale des Observatoires Régionaux de la Santé.

Policy Impact Assessment of Public Health Reporting: PIA-PHR. Public health reporting is a system for collecting, organizing, analysing, reporting, and disseminating data and information on health, diseases and their determinants in a defined population.

EU Public Health Portal: The Health-EU Portal (the official public health portal of the European Union) holds a wide range of information and data on health-related issues and activities at both European and international level. The main objective of the Portal is to provide easy access to comprehensive information on Public Health initiatives and programmes at EU level. The portal is intended to help meet EU objectives in the Public Health field, it is an important instrument to positively influence behaviour and promote the steady improvement of public health in the 27 EU Member States.

WHO: World Health Organisation (WHO). WHO is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.

OECD: Good health is necessary for individuals to flourish as citizens, family members, workers and consumers. Improving health is a key concern of OECD societies, as it can contribute to higher economic growth and improved welfare. The OECD has long provided leadership in the area of health data and statistics. The OECD collects cross-country data in the OECD Health Data, one of the most comprehensive source of comparable statistics on health and health systems across OECD countries.

Public Health Genomics: PHGEN: Modern research in genetics and molecular biology offers new opportunities for the promotion of population health. Public Health Genomics (PHG) is the responsible and effective integration of genome-based knowledge and technologies into public policy and into health services for the benefit of population health.