19 March 2004
Ministers should introduce local health czars and revamp GP surgeries as part of a programme of public health improvement, the King's Fund said this week.
Last month, the government published a report by former NatWest bank chief executive Derek Wanless, which focused on the need to reduce the incidence of obesity, heart disease and other preventable illnesses.
Health Secretary John Reid has promised a white paper on health promotion later this year and recently launched a three-month public consultation on its contents.
However, in a report published this week, the charity said the white paper's health promotion measures would fail unless they included practical measures to prevent illness.
In Prevention rather than cure: making the case for choosing health, the fund said local leadership was crucial. British cities could introduce high-profile 'health mayors', as seen in other European cities such as Barcelona and Copenhagen, or a health commissioner, such as in Baltimore, where Dr Peter Beilenson has a significant budget and executive powers.
The report also suggests that traditional doctors' surgeries could be revamped into 'health clubs'. Individuals could join to receive information and advice on how to stay well, along with receiving treatment when they were ill.
The fund has commissioned research into practical steps to improve public health. King's Fund chief executive Niall Dickson said: 'We need to develop a new kind of national health service that gives priority to promoting health rather than just caring for people when they become ill.
'The real challenge now is to make sure the right structures and incentives are in place across the system so that what we do really does make a difference.'
Report author Anna Coote, King's Fund health policy director, added there were 'powerful disincentives' for governments to focus on improving health.
'The NHS has become a national icon. It is tempting for politicians to try to “save” it, without looking very hard at ways of preventing illness,' she said.
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