Choosing Health
Choosing health 2004 is the first ever government policy which was published by department of Health on 16th November 2004. It set out how the Government will make it easier for people to make healthier choices by offering them practical help to adopt healthier lifestyles. Choosing Health laid out a challenging programme of practical action aimed at saving thousands of lives in years to come. Tackling health inequalities will be central to successful delivery and targeted support will be offered in communities with the worst health and deprivation.
Choosing Health also sets out commonsense steps to prevent unnecessary deaths and help people who want to be healthier. The national engine for health improvement is to be found in people’s own ambition to live healthier lives and is underpinned by three key principles the first principal informed choice which acknowledges that people want to be able to make their own decisions about choices that impact on their health and to have credible and trustworthy information to help them do so. They expect the Government to provide support by helping to create the right environment. The second core principal was personalisation some people want support in making healthy choices and sticking to them, but particularly in deprived groups and communities, find current services do not meet their needs or are difficult to use. To be effective in tackling health inequalities, support has to be tailored to the realities of individual lives, with services and support personalised sensitively and provided flexibly and conveniently. Thirdly was the principal of working together the public are clear that Government and individuals alone cannot make progress on healthier choices. Real progress depends on effective partnerships across communities, including local government, the NHS, business, advertisers, retailers, the voluntary sector, communities, the media, faith organisations and many others. People look to Government to lead,
Choosing Health also sets out commonsense steps to prevent unnecessary deaths and help people who want to be healthier. The national engine for health improvement is to be found in people’s own ambition to live healthier lives and is underpinned by three key principles the first principal informed choice which acknowledges that people want to be able to make their own decisions about choices that impact on their health and to have credible and trustworthy information to help them do so. They expect the Government to provide support by helping to create the right environment. The second core principal was personalisation some people want support in making healthy choices and sticking to them, but particularly in deprived groups and communities, find current services do not meet their needs or are difficult to use. To be effective in tackling health inequalities, support has to be tailored to the realities of individual lives, with services and support personalised sensitively and provided flexibly and conveniently. Thirdly was the principal of working together the public are clear that Government and individuals alone cannot make progress on healthier choices. Real progress depends on effective partnerships across communities, including local government, the NHS, business, advertisers, retailers, the voluntary sector, communities, the media, faith organisations and many others. People look to Government to lead,