EuroHealthNet is a non-profit partnership of organisations, agencies and statutory bodies working to contribute to a healthier Europe by promoting

health Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...

and

health equity Health equity arises from access to the social determinants of health, specifically from wealth, power and prestige. Individuals who have consistently been deprived of these three determinants are significantly disadvantaged from health inequiti ...

between and within European countries. EuroHealthNet achieves this through its partnership framework by supporting members’ work in EU and associated states through policy and project development, networking and communications. The network’s office has been located in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

since 1996 and staff members are experienced in engaging with the

EU institutions The institutions of the European Union are the seven principal decision-making bodies of the European Union and the Euratom. They are, as listed in Article 13 of the Treaty on European Union: * the European Parliament, * the European Council ...

, decision makers and a large number of stakeholders from public authorities, civil society, the corporate sector and academia. EuroHealthNet has connections with national and regional governments, as well as with the European institutions, and therefore a good understanding of how evidence and information on health equity can be introduced in current

policy Policy is a deliberate system of guidelines to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent and is implemented as a procedure or protocol. Policies are generally adopted by a governance body within an orga ...

making agendas. The secretariat of around ten staff is based in Brussels and supports the partnership, which operates in three closely interlinked platforms: * EuroHealthNet PRACTICE * EuroHealthNet POLICY * EuroHealthNet RESEARCH

Health inequalities and inequities in Europe

Health inequalities can be defined as “systematic differences in health between social groups” and populations.Marmot, M., Friel, S., Bell, R., Houweling, T. A. J., & Taylor, S. (2008). Closing the gap in a generation: health equity through action on the social determinants of health. The Lancet, 372(9650), 1661-1669. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(08)61690-6) Health inequities, on the other hand, are unfair, “avoidable inequalities” of populations within and between countries. The WHO’s Committee on the Social Determinants of Health stated that the social gradient, - systematic differences between populations - was unfair; “killing people on a grand scale”. Perhaps the clearest example of health inequalities can be seen in

life expectancy Life expectancy is a statistical measure of the average time an organism is expected to live, based on the year of its birth, current age, and other demographic factors like sex. The most commonly used measure is life expectancy at birth ...

. The difference between life expectancy at birth can vary by over a decade between European Union member states. For example, in 2012 the life expectancy at birth for Swedish males is 81 years, whereas in Lithuania a baby born could expect to only live until 68.4. In terms of

healthy life years The Healthy Life Years (HLY) indicator, also known as disability-free life expectancy or Sullivan's Index, is a European structural indicator computed by Eurostat. It is one of the summary measures of population health, known as health expectanc ...

(years of life lived without disability) the gap is even greater, with Estonian males born in 2012 predicted to have 18.4 fewer healthy life years than their Maltese counterparts. These disparities in life expectancy don’t just exist at the macro scale, but can be seen right down to the neighbourhood level; with differences reaching into the decades. Such disparities are found worldwide, with a whole area of research looking at demographics and improving life expectancy.

EU Health Policy

Inequalities in health have been an important part of the work of the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...

(EU) since 1992 when specific competencies for public health were included in the

Maastricht Treaty The Treaty on European Union, commonly known as the Maastricht Treaty, is the foundation treaty of the European Union (EU). Concluded in 1992 between the then-twelve Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Communities, ...

. However, as noted above large differences in health still exist between and within all countries in the EU, and some of these inequalities are widening. The

contribute to reducing health inequalities across the social gradient through a variety of strategies, policies, programmes and initiatives which affect the socio-economic determinants of health. The Health programmes, the latest being 2014-2020, are one of the Commission’s main instruments for implementing policies aimed at reducing health inequalities. In 2009 the European Commission recognised the challenges and importance of reducing health inequities. In June 2010 the EU adopted its new strategy -

Europe 2020 Europe 2020 is a 10-year strategy proposed by the European Commission on 3 March 2010 for advancement of the economy of the European Union. It aims at a " smart, sustainable, inclusive growth" with greater coordination of national and European po ...

: A strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. The document sets out the proposed economic, social and environmental development for the EU over the next 10 years. Although the strategy does not directly address health inequalities, it clearly acknowledges the need to fight inequalities as a prerequisite for growth and competitiveness. The EU has indeed committed to lift 20 million people out of poverty by 2020. This will be pursued through the European platform against poverty and social exclusion, one of the Commission’s seven 'flagship initiatives’ i.e. the mechanisms through which the EU 2020 strategy will be delivered. This process will undoubtedly impact health inequalities between and within EU countries.

EuroHealthNet’s Mission

EuroHealthNet seeks to address the factors that shape health and social inequalities, building the evidence base for

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...

and health-related policies and health promotion interventions in particular to level up the social gradient in health. The enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being without distinction of

race Race, RACE or "The Race" may refer to: * Race (biology), an informal taxonomic classification within a species, generally within a sub-species * Race (human categorization), classification of humans into groups based on physical traits, and/or s ...

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

, economic or social condition. EuroHealthNet therefore stimulates and supports the implementation of integrated approaches addressing the social determinants of health by operating at all levels and across the political spectrum in relevant health, social and employment fields.

Areas of work

The topics that EuroHealthNet works on include, but are not limited to: *

Chronic diseases A chronic condition is a health condition or disease that is persistent or otherwise long-lasting in its effects or a disease that comes with time. The term ''chronic'' is often applied when the course of the disease lasts for more than three mon ...

Health equity Health equity arises from access to the social determinants of health, specifically from wealth, power and prestige. Individuals who have consistently been deprived of these three determinants are significantly disadvantaged from health inequiti ...

Mental health Mental health encompasses emotional, psychological, and social well-being, influencing cognition, perception, and behavior. It likewise determines how an individual handles stress, interpersonal relationships, and decision-making. Mental hea ...

Childhood development Child development involves the biological, psychological and emotional changes that occur in human beings between birth and the conclusion of adolescence. Childhood is divided into 3 stages of life which include early childhood, middle childhood, ...

* Health literacy * Ageing * Sustainable lifestyles * Evidence-based policy making *

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

Social protection Social protection, as defined by the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, is concerned with preventing, managing, and overcoming situations that adversely affect people's well-being. Social protection consists of policies and ...

Vaccination Vaccination is the administration of a vaccine to help the immune system develop immunity from a disease. Vaccines contain a microorganism or virus in a weakened, live or killed state, or proteins or toxins from the organism. In stimulating ...

and

vaccine hesitancy Vaccine hesitancy is a delay in acceptance, or refusal, of vaccines despite the availability of vaccine services and supporting evidence. The term covers refusals to vaccinate, delaying vaccines, accepting vaccines but remaining uncertain abou ...

Projects

* Determine (2007-2010) An EU wide initiative to stimulate action to address the social and economic determinants of health (SDH) and to improve health equity in the EU and its Member States * GRADIENT (2009-2012) Identifying and evaluating policies which could level-up the socio-economic gradients in health among children and young people in the EU * Spread (2011-2012) Development of scenarios of sustainable lifestyles in 2050 focusing on sustainable living, moving, consuming and healthy living * Crossing Bridges (2011-2012) Advancing the implementation of Health in all Policies (HiAP) approaches in EU Member States * Equity Action (2011-2014) Assisting the Member States to develop tools to better enable health inequalities to be addressed in cross-government policy making * IROHLA (2012-2015) Identifying, validating and presenting evidence based guidelines on addressing health literacy needs of the ageing population in Europe * DRIVERS (2012-2015) Addressing the strategic determinants to reduce health Inequity Via 1) Early childhood development, 2) Realising fair employment, and 3) Social protection * Quality Action (2013-2016) Using practical Quality Assurance (QA) and Quality Improvement (QI) tools to increase the effectiveness of HIV prevention in Europe * CHRODIS (2014-2017) European Joint Action on Chronic Diseases and Promoting Healthy Ageing across the Life Cycle (CHRODIS-JA) * INHERIT (2016-2019) INter-sectoral Health and Environment Research for InnovaTion (INHERIT) * CHRODIS PLUS (2017-2020) CHRODIS PLUS is a high-level response by the EU to support Member States by stepping up together and sharing good practices to alleviate the burden of chronic diseases. * Joint Action Health Equity Europe (JAHEE). JAHEE is a collaborative action between 25 European countries financed by the third Health Programme (2014-2020), a funding programme managed by the

Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety The Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE), until 2014 known as the Directorate-General for Health and Consumers (DG SANCO), is a directorate-general of the European Commission. The DG is responsible for the implementation of E ...

(DG SANTE) and the Consumers, Health, Agriculture and Food Executive Agency (CHAFEA). * IMMUNION (2021-2023). IMMUNION support EU efforts to improve vaccine uptake by strengthening joint efforts amongst Coalition for Vaccination member associations and other stakeholders to deliver better vaccine education to health professionals and better information to the general public. * RIVER-EU (2021-2026) aims to identify and remove Health system barriers in vaccine uptake, specifically focusing on MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) and HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccination in selected underserved communities (migrants community in Greece, Turkish females and Moroccan females in the Netherlands, Ukrainian minority in Poland and Roma community in Slovakia).

References

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External links

EuroHealthNet , European Partnership for Health Equity and Wellbeing

Understand Health Inequalities and Act on Them- Health Inequalites portal

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