Solutions to urban health problems

Dublin is one of just under fifty cities designated by the World Health Organisation as a Healthy City.

The health of people living in towns and cities is strongly determined by their living and working conditions, the quality of their physical and socio-economic environment and the quality and accessibility of care services.

Modern public health calls for comprehensive and systematic efforts that address health inequalities and urban poverty; the needs of vulnerable groups; the social, economic and environmental root causes of ill health and the positioning of health considerations in the centre of economic, regeneration and urban development efforts.

The WHO Healthy Cities approach gives such comprehensive policy and planning solutions to urban health problems. Healthy Cities engages local governments in health development, through a process of political commitment, institutional changes and capacity building and partnership-based plans and concrete actions.

The following are the identifying qualities of a Healthy City:

Clean, safe, physical environment
Stable, sustainable ecosystem
Strong, mutually supportive community
Public participation and control
Meeting of people's needs
Variety of experiences
Diverse vital innovative economy
Links with the past
A city form to support these characteristics
Accessible public health and care
High health status

Healthy Cities has since its inception developed a range of strategies and actions; it has produced tools, techniques and capacity building; it has been to the fore in promoting health reporting and planning at city level.

Action at the local level is an essential component of any national or sub-national strategy or programme for health and sustainable development. Healthy Cities provides national and local governments with an effective means of dealing with health related issues such as poverty and social exclusion, pollution and sustainable development, lifestyles and living conditions, care and social support, urban planning and transport, and the special needs of vulnerable groups.

Via the WHO European Centre for Urban Health, WHO works directly with local governments through a network of committed cities and national networks, promoting commitment and change through strong leadership, strategic guidance, capacity building and networking, to implement the goals of its Healthy Cities and Urban Governance Programme.

LINKS

www.who.dk
www.who.dk/healthy-cities

http://www.dublinhealthycities.ie/
Dublin is one of just under fifty cities designated by the World Health Organisation as a Healthy City.

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