Organisation:
Eastern Investing for Health Partnership – North/West

Description:
The Eastern Investing for Health Partnership (EIFHP) works to strengthen collective intersectorial planning and action to address health inequalities and improve the health and wellbeing of individuals and the communities in which they live and work. The approach taken within the Eastern area to progress planning and delivery on the Investing for Health (IfH) strategy has been to locate an IfH manager within four geographical areas and to encourage locally relevant intersectorial action planning and delivery.

North and West Belfast has a strong community infrastructure and a number of existing partnerships such as the Health Action Zone and seven Healthy Living Centres, which have accelerated the local action on the IfH agenda. Additionally, there has been the establishment of multi-agency Community of Interest (COI) groups. These include Poverty COI, Fuel Poverty COI, Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing COI, Wider Environment COI, and Healthier Choices COI. This locality approach enables local needs to drive the action. A locality Health Improvement Plan is generated and reviewed on an annual basis. The implementation of the plan is led and supported by a wide range of partner organisations.

Contact name: Mimi McAlinden

Address:
1 Cromac Quay
Gasworks
Ormeau Road
Belfast

Postcode: BT7 7JA

Tel: (028) 9043 4004

Fax: (028) 9030 3563

Email: mmcalinden@ehssb.n-i.nhs.uk

Website: www.wellnet-ni.com

Sector (statutory, voluntary, community, other): Statutory

Area of interest/expertise:
Health inequalities, impact assessment, outcome measures, evaluation, intersectorial planning, health gain, poverty, fuel poverty, older people’s health and wellbeing, Travellers, black and ethnic minority groups, vulnerable groups

Mission statement:
The purpose of the EIFHP is to identify opportunities for reducing inequalities and improving health and wellbeing by encouraging individuals, families and communities to identify health improvement priorities and collectively seek ways to address these. The IFH strategy seeks to address the broader determinants of health and wellbeing by adopting an open and participatory approach to identifying and prioritising local needs and developing plans to take required action.