• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Health Creation Alliance

  • Learning
    • Learn with us
    • Learning resources
    • Discovery learning programmes
  • Voices for Change
  • Connect to Transform
  • Publications
  • Health Creation
  • Events/News
    • Health Creation: Coming of Age
    • Health Creation Forum
    • News and Media
    • Awards
      • 2018 Awards
  • Members
  • About
    • People
    • Partners
    • Values
    • Governance
    • Reporting
    • Our Policies
You are here: Home / Press Releases / Health must begin at home – Stronger collaboration with housing could save the NHS billions of pounds a year

17/06/2015 by Health Creation Alliance

Health must begin at home – Stronger collaboration with housing could save the NHS billions of pounds a year

Speaking at gathering of influential primary care clinicians and housing officials today, Dr Michael Dixon, chair of NHS Alliance, will argue that housing organisations could save the NHS billions of pounds a year. Ensuring people have a safe and warm home to return to after a hospital stay would help swifter discharges, while a reduction in emergency admissions and GP appointments could be achieved through preventative measures, he will say, stating that “health must begin at home”.
Dr Dixon’s speech marks the launch of an NHS Alliance-driven initiative to better understand the correlation between housing and health, ‘Health Begins At Home’.  NHS Alliance has collaborated with the housing sector to develop a brand new online resource to support this initiative. www.housingforhealth.net will allow housing and health professionals to network and share learning and good practice, and aims to review and update evidence as it becomes available.
Dr Dixon will say: “While there is much to commend in NHS England’s Forward View, especially the emphasis on primary care and prevention, we don’t think it goes far enough. Housing is not specifically mentioned, but we believe there is an imperative to work far more collaboratively with our colleagues in housing, most importantly to improve people’s quality of life, but with the very considerable value-add of huge savings to the NHS.
“Recent research[1] suggests that inadequate housing is costing the NHS £1.4bn a year, but this only takes the poorest 15% of housing stock in England into consideration, and does not include any mental health issues associated with inadequate housing. Neither does it include any savings that could be made through housing-health partnerships to support community wellbeing, homeless people or people living with long-term conditions.
“Significant numbers of physical accidents, respiratory and mental health conditions can be directly attributed to poor quality housing – for example, through extreme damp – and addressing the root cause of these entirely avoidable conditions is long overdue.”
Dr Dixon predicts that savings many times that previously estimated could be achieved, based on the vision set out for ‘Health Begins At Home’. It is predicted that improving home conditions, and the care offered to people living at home, could reduce outpatient appointments and GP visits by as much as 55 per cent in certain instances. Studies have also demonstrated that improved living conditions also have enormous benefits (74 per cent improvement) to the quality of life individuals enjoy.[2]
Jeremy Porteus, founder and director of the Housing Learning and Improvement Network, said: “The most conservative estimates claim that inadequate or inappropriate housing costs the NHS £1.4bn a year. Many GPs are familiar with the diverse housing problems faced by their patients; for example, the need for home adaptations or a move to specialist accommodation following a stroke or the onset of dementia. However, they probably don’t know where they can access housing guidance to inform their decisions. This new resource is an important step for health professionals to help address health inequalities.”

  1. http://www.bre.co.uk/filelibrary/pdf/87741-Cost-of-Poor-Housing-Briefing-Paper-v3.pdf
  2. http://www.housingforhealth.net/?page_id=562

Notes to editors

  • NHS Alliance is an independent, not-for-profit, leadership organisation representing progressive providers of care outside hospital. Neither professional body nor trade union, it is an entirely solutions focused organisation, unique in its approach bringing together more than 10,000 passionate individuals and organisations across primary care who believe innovation, connections and integration are key to the sustainability of a health service that remains free to all at the point of need.
  • It represents primary care in its entirety from general practice, community eye, hearing and foot care, community pharmacy, dentistry and physiotherapy to out of hours and emergency services as well as determinants of health outcomes like housing organisations or those with an interest in maintaining good health such as local authorities and health and wellbeing boards.
  • A recognised and highly regarded engine for change, it provides a robust and influential voice for its members, and is consistently instrumental in helping shape health agendas and policy. An early exponent of clinical commissioning, it now works closely with providers and communities to identify and share the kinds of solutions we need to sustain the NHS in times of unparalleled austerity. It also provides practical support to help drive the innovation it advocates.

www.housingforhealth.net
Production of the site was funded by: Home Group, Poplar Harca, New Charter Housing, Together Housing Group, Placeshapers, Housing Learning and Improvement Network and Blaby District Council
If you would like to receive further information on any of the above or the organisations mentioned, please contact Stewart Laing, stewart.laing@salixandco.com  / 07725 555030

  • About
  • Latest Posts
Health Creation Alliance
Health Creation Alliance
The Health Creation Alliance is the only national cross-sector movement addressing health inequalities through Health Creation
Health Creation Alliance
Latest posts by Health Creation Alliance (see all)
  • How to create health (and not just consume healthcare): Building Back Together following COVID-19 - 28/07/2021
  • Health Creation Alliance Newsletter Spring 2020 - 20/04/2020
  • Community lessons from The Coronavirus Pandemic - 15/04/2020

Filed Under: Press Releases

Primary Sidebar

Categories

  • Blogs
  • Events
  • Newsletters
  • Opinion Pieces
  • Press Releases
  • Uncategorized

Blogs

  • Health Creation – Coming of Age?
  • The Fuller Stocktake: Let’s not miss the opportunity to fashion a place-based, health creating future for primary care
  • How to create health (and not just consume healthcare): Building Back Together following COVID-19

Newsletters

  • Health Creation Alliance Newsletter Spring 2020
  • Health Creation Alliance Newsletter December 2019
  • Health Creation Alliance Newsletter October 2019

Opinion Pieces

  • ‘What is the government going to do next to reverse the worrying trend in health inequalities?’
  • WELLNESS AND THE POWER OF COMMUNITY ASSETS
  • CALLING FOR A NEW FOCUS ON WELLNESS

Press Releases

  • Health Creation Alliance statement in response to Marmot Review – 10 years on
  • Health Creation Alliance calls on NHS England to reconsider how mental health services are commissioned going forward
  • Lord Adebowale joins Health Creation Alliance as a Patron

Footer

Become a member today

Join others addressing health inequalities through Health Creation: visit our Membership page. Privacy Policy

We are social

  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Useful links

  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Manifesto for Health Creation
  • Our People
  • Our Values

Contacts

Contact Us
Moseley Exchange
149-153 Alcester Road
Moseley
Birmingham
B13 8JP

 

© 2023 · Health Creation Alliance · Powered by The SEO Lounge