We’d like to extend our thanks to Professor David Hunter who gave an excellent talk at BEIS on 12th September.
Health policy is complex, arguably becoming more so. What have been termed ‘wicked issues’ are a central feature of health policy where there are often no simple or single solutions, if any at all. This is especially evident in regard to public health issues including obesity, alcohol and substance misuse, health inequalities.
But health systems more generally are undergoing major transformation in response to changes in epidemiology, aging populations, lifestyle-related illnesses, multi-morbidities, and so on. We have entered the third era of thinking about health policy which has introduced new challenges and complexities.
The talk highlighted examples from the Centre of Public Policy and Health’s research programme which is engaged in the Fuse partnership made up of the five North East universities in addressing these challenges to research and leads the complex systems research theme. It is also working with WHO Europe on a health system transformation programme of work focusing on the ‘How’ of change and not the ‘What’.
In addressing the challenges facing health systems and how to transform them, the implications for research and researchers were explored with reference to issues such as knowledge exchange, co-production, and getting evidence into policy and practice.
You can watch Professor Hunter’s seminar below: