A Community Interest Company
Expertise in Preventive Care
Vision
Our vision is that many more people can manage long-term conditions at home and so enjoy more years in good health and live independently for longer.
Purpose
With this vision in mind, our purpose is to encourage and develop habits of good self-care, with support from carers and local networks, to relieve the pressure on health and care services and to enhance participation in economic activity.
focus
Our focus is on long-term health conditions, and associated risk factors, that can be directly impacted by changes in behaviours and activity. This includes hypertension, CVD and diabetes and, indirectly, dementia and chronic pain from MSK issues. Behaviours would include habits of good self-care such as monitoring vital signs, medications compliance, physical and social activity.
APPROACH
We work with health and care systems to develop local strategies, plans, systems and services that prevent the incidence and exacerbation of chronic disease. We apply a comprehensive perspective from outreach in communities with poor health outcomes to the provision of technology to support active self-managers and their carers.
We address the human and cultural challenges involved in motivating and equipping people with appropriate and personalised prevention packages of engagement, education, support and medical actions.
We operate at two levels:
1. Providing independent and informed facilitation to local systems
Help them identify and integrate disparate ideas, initiatives, responsibilities and resources into a cohesive ambition, programme and plan for prevention:
- recognise and capitalise on existing assets, capabilities and relevant good practice
- leverage good practice and research findings from the UK and overseas
- maximise the impact achievable from existing expenditure
- identify new funding sources that may pump-prime ‘proof-of-value’ initiatives
- steadily build the case for the funding of prevention at-scale
2. Catalysing and participating in research and development activity
Bring together academic experts, local teams and suppliers to map the existing evidence base for prevention, from behavioural science to digital solutions. Identify and action R&D work that will fill the gaps and enable local systems to invest with confidence, including with emerging technologies.
The challenge
Leaders of services responsible for commissioning and delivering health and care services to their local populations are facing an inexorable rise in demand for services, driven by the rising tide of chronic disease. Unaddressed, this will stretch NHS workforce and finances to breaking point.
Our response
We work with local leaders to refocus and scale up preventive care services for people living with long term conditions. Health coaching, local VCSE support, remote monitoring and help with medications can enable people to lead healthier and more productive lives at home. In today’s highly constrained financial climate, this means working with existing local assets and resources, bringing together insight and expertise from local health and care teams to develop a distinctive local solution for preventive care.
Why is this important?
We believe that people living longer lives while managing one or more chronic health conditions could and should enjoy more years in good health. This is especially true for those in deprived communities who endure unacceptable health and care inequalities. Those chronic conditions need not define our wellbeing.
What is the impact for patients?
With support for monitoring vital signs, taking medications as prescribed, encouragement to be more active, etc., we can all develop habits of good self-care. Support for carers and engagement of an individual’s wider support network will also be crucial to success.
What is the wider impact?
The outcome will be substantial containment of the demand on professional healthcare services (the NHS) and Local Authority provided social care. It will also enhance economic activity – both that measured by employment and the informal contributions we make to society.
What is our role?
With our domain knowledge, determined focus and partnering skills, Health for Living acts as catalyst for the development and delivery of targeted and scalable preventive care solutions that help people manage their long-term conditions day-to-day. We work with ICB/Place-level commissioners, provider collaboratives, and, more widely, VCSEs and technology suppliers, to plan and enable this vital shift to preventive care at scale, which is both ‘high tech’ and ‘high touch’.