Christine Hancock spoke at the UK opposition party's spring conference on 18 March, in a session on 'Public health and personal responsibility'.
[The notes below are summarised from the monitoring report of the event.]
Speech by Andrew Lansley
The Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley spoke on how the government had to focus on health outcomes and not merely funding levels.
However, impossible demands should not be placed on the NHS, he insisted. Money should be spent on improving public health as well as on treatment, Mr Lansley argued, encouraging people to lead healthier lifestyles.
Obesity was getting worse and in the next forty years 40 per cent of people could be obese, he argued, highlighting that hospital admissions due to diabetes had doubled since 1997.
Public health was worsening, the Shadow Health Secretary claimed, insisting that society had to change to ease the burden on the health service.
Moving on to discuss public health in more depth, Mr Lansley introduced the following speakers:
- Christine Hancock, Oxford Health Alliance and former General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing;
- Helen Tindale, Kids Food Matters
- Louise Aston, Business in the Community.
Speech by Christine Hancock
Addressing the conference, Ms Hancock insisted that making the healthy choice had to equate with making the easy choice.
Cardio-vascular disorders were currently the biggest killer in Britain, resulting in quarter of a million deaths per year or four deaths in every ten. These conditions were exacerbated by smoking, obesity, lack of activity and diabetes, Ms Hancock asserted.
Currently ten per cent of the NHS budget was used for admissions relating to diabetes and this could increase to as much as twenty per cent by 2010, she claimed.
Although the number of smokers was declining, 100,000 people still died from smoking related illnesses, Ms Hancock went on to highlight.
Regarding diet, she stated that half of children had no fruit and vegetables in a week. In addition, 65 per of adults did not undertake enough exercise, she added.
Prevention of illness was a 'simple, affordable and effective' approach to take, Ms Hancock argued, as 80 per cent of heart, stroke and diabetes related deaths each year were preventable whilst 40 per cent of cancers were.
There was a role for the Government, individuals, non-governmental organisations and professionals, she asserted, insisting that the Government's role had to be to promote education and improve sporting facilities.
Moreover, the Government was a major employer, employing one in three of the British workforce, she added, stressing that they should take serious action to promote physical exercise and healthy eating amongst this group.