The role of an All-Ireland obesity observatory Kevin P Balanda Informing efforts to tackle obesity

Institute of Public Health in Ireland All-Ireland body:  North-South co-operation  Inequalities in health Broad view of health and its determinants Three work strands:  Capacity building  Policy support  Information and intelligence - INIsPHO 2008/2009 – 10 year anniversary

Aim and projected outcomes for the symposium “To investigate the best way forward in setting up a national database on overweight and obesity in Ireland” Projected outcomes: –Adequate sample size –Data to be sought and recorded –Usefulness of a database in influencing policy –Value to clinicians in management of obesity

Some key players Some key datasets Some key players

Some other database issues How do we get necessary standards for All-Ireland monitoring and surveillance? How should the database be disseminated? –Who should have access to it? –How will they access it when they need it? –At what level? What data linkages would be useful? How do we ensure that –the database develops to reflect new knowledge and emerging priorities? –Policy makers / clinicians / practitioners / others are fully involved and optimise their contributions?

Some “knowledge creation” issues How do we ensure that the database properly supports monitoring & surveillance activities; service planning, commissioning & delivery, performance management, research & evaluation? What routine reporting should be done? –In what form should it be presented? –How will this be undertaken? How do we support other relevant specialised analyses? How do we engage policy makers and practitioners in co- production of knowledge?

Some “knowledge translation” issues How do we ensure that –Policy makers/clinicians/practitioners/others get findings when they’re needed? –They also get the other information they need? –We are consistent in policy advice to departments and public information ? –The findings are actually used to inform policy and practice? How do we know if this has any affect at all?

What is an obesity observatory? “A collaboration that aims to provide a focus for the co-ordinated development, dissemination and application of intelligence to support obesity control activities” English Obesity Observatory established as part of the APHO family; housed in SEPHO.

Functions of the English obesity observatory An authoritative source of data and evidence Co-ordinating surveillance Analysing surveillance data and reporting Providing guidance on evaluation pilots and demonstration interventions Gathering information on international best practice Developing links with supranational bodies

Recent outputs of the English obesity observatory Standard Evaluation Framework (SEF): for weight management interventions

All-Ireland obesity observatory IPH is leading the development of an All-Ireland obesity observatory Its development is being undertaken in collaboration: HRB Centre for Health and Diet Research – UCC /UCD Centre of Excellence for Public Health (NI) - QUB Strong partnership model focussed on co-ordination and networking, building on existing capacity

Some initial ideas of what an All-Ireland obesity observatory might do Role in co-ordinating monitoring & surveillance, analysis and reporting Documenting key sources Facilitating access by signposting these Links to other required information Applying to policy and practice (knowledge brokering) Feeding back into information systems

Next steps Today, consider not only the database but also how it fits into wider efforts to provide intelligence support to efforts to tackle obesity Attend an obesity observatory workshops: –Belfast (Holiday Inn): 1-4 pm 26 November –Dublin (Radisson Hotel): 10-1pm 27 November A business plan will be submitted in early new year

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