Health of the Nation

Neil Surtees, London Branch chairman, sent this report on the Branch's latest networking breakfast meeting – a debate on the 'Health of the Nation', aboard the HQS
Wellington.
"80,000 deaths occur in the UK every year due to poor health and lack of exercise. This alarming and thought provoking statistic was provided by Joe Webb (ISG Infrastructure), chair of the panel. Joe explained what steps are now being taken to reduce this figure and that 'prevention rather than cure' will have the biggest impact. "Joe introduced his fellow panel members; Charles Johnston (Sport England), Dr Michael Shillingford
(MedicX), Daniel Law (Nuffield Health) and Stephen Jepson (Drivers Jonas Deloitte) who provided a lively debate and various insights into how the industry can facilitate a greater level of participation in sport and fitness through a mixture of education, availability, encouragement and supervision.  "Dr Shillingford explained that the changes about to be implemented at the NHS including a reduction in bureaucracy and a shift away from the "nanny" state. The strategy for the future will focus on pro-active rather than reactive healthcare, with an emphasis on education and empowerment of individuals as opposed to increasingly expensive treatments.
"In addition, Daniel Law added how seriously the importance of partnerships between public and private sector are, particularly in addressing the ageing population, using data from Sport England's demographics model to deliver measurable results.
"Drawing the debate to a close, Charles Johnston concluded that the number of people who have now participated in a particular sport for the first time has increased by 200,000. The panel agreed this is encouraging and, in order to sustain this level of
interest, projects need to be looked at on a 'co-location' basis i.e. sport, education and medical facilities combined with retail. "Delegates left the event with the message of the 'right facilities in the right places' as a key factor in achieving this goal." London Branch's 'Health of the Nation' debate followed on from a similar format in Manchester.