Health Promoting Universities: Developments and Networking in Europe Dr Mark Dooris University of Central Lancashire Developing Leadership and Governance

Presentation Contents Addressing Health in Higher Education: Why Health Promoting Universities? Health Promoting Universities: Background & Conceptual Underpinnings Developing & Networking Health Promoting Universities in Europe: Overview

Addressing Health in Higher Education: Why Health Promoting Universities? Health Promoting Universities: Background and Conceptual Underpinnings Developing & Networking Health Promoting Universities in Europe: Overview

Why Health Promoting Universities? “Health is created and lived by people within the settings of their everyday life; where they learn, work, play and love.” WHO (1986) Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion Universities represent an important and largescale setting: in the UK alone, there are 164 Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) with 2.5million students and 382,000 staff HESA, 2010/11 Healthy Universities builds on experience of Healthy Schools and adds consistency across the education spectrum

Why Health Promoting Universities? Investing in health and wellbeing is a ‘win-win’ situation: Healthy students and healthy staff will increase levels of achievement, performance and productivity. Universities have potential to make significant contribution to long-term health of the population, through:  improved student & staff wellbeing  wider organisational impacts  longer-term influence.

Why Health Promoting Universities? Universities are large and complex systems that do not have health as their main aim or ‘raison d’être’. It can therefore be very challenging to introduce and integrate health and wellbeing – and in ‘making the case’, it is essential to argue in terms of impact on ‘core business’ (e.g. student/ staff recruitment, retention, experience & performance). Little research on Health Promoting Universities, but possible to draw on learning/evidence from health promoting schools and other settings, suggesting that effective programmes adopt a sustained ‘whole system’ approach addressing a range of factors and involving activity across domains (Stewart-Brown, 2006)

Addressing Health in Higher Education: Why Health Promoting Universities? Health Promoting Universities: Background and Conceptual Underpinnings Developing & Networking Health Promoting Universities in Europe: Overview

Health Promoting Universities: Approach ‘Health Promoting Universities’ is one application of the healthy settings approach, which is well-established in other settings e.g. Schools; Cities; Hospitals The approach reflects an appreciation that: “many risk factors are interrelated and can be best tackled through comprehensive, integrated programmes in appropriate settings where people live, work and interact” Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety, 2002

Health Promoting Universities: Approach The approach also reflects: Ecological Model: health and well-being determined through interplay of environmental, organisational and behavioural factors; human and ecosystem health (‘people’ and ‘planet’ ) essentially interlinked. Systems Perspective: interconnected inputs, processes, outputs and impacts within, outside and beyond the university. Whole System Thinking: beyond ‘interventions in the setting’ – emphasis on introducing and managing change across whole institution: multi-factorial, multi-stakeholder, multi-domain.

Health Promoting Universities – In the Context of Other Settings

Health Promoting Universities: Context In applying the settings approach to higher education, we must recognise that a university is a complex system… a centre of learning and development a focus for cross-disciplinary creativity and innovation a business, concerned with performance and productivity a partner and player in local/national/global communities a setting in which students undergo transition – facing challenges; and exploring, experimenting and developing independence and lifeskills a context that ‘future shapes’ students – to have influence and impact through roles in families, communities, workplaces, policy-making etc.

Health Promoting Universities: Vision “A Health Promoting University aspires to create a learning environment and organisational culture that enhances the health, wellbeing and sustainability of its community and enables people to achieve their full potential.” [

Health Promoting Universities: How? Underpinning Values

students lecturers caterers & venue operators wider community families support services …connecting between people Health Promoting Universities: How?

formal curriculum inter-personal relationships student finance transport infrastructure students’ union campus design …connecting between components of the system Health Promoting Universities: How?

sexual health alcohol & substance use/misuse physical activity advertising & sponsorship mental wellbeing food and diet …connecting between issues Health Promoting Universities: How?

Addressing Health in Higher Education: Why Health Promoting Universities? Health Promoting Universities: Background and Conceptual Underpinnings Developing & Networking Health Promoting Universities in Europe: Overview

1994/5 Initiatives established at two English universities (UCLan and Lancaster) following 1993 International Settings Symposium 1998 WHO book ‘Health Promoting Universities’ Tsouros et al, 1998 No subsequent international programme or WHO leadership ‘Intra-country’ activity and network development in range of countries and regions (e.g. Germany, England, Spain, Latin America, Asia Pacific) International conferences Health Promoting Universities: History 2007 IUHPE GWG on Healthy Settings 2010 Virtual European Network established, UniHealth 2020 vision statement agreed & meetings held at conferences (no funding, but contact points in 15 countries)

German Health Promoting University Network Developing Leadership and Governance

English Healthy Universities Network English Healthy Universities Network has grown from just 8 universities in 2006 – and has expanded by around 50% since this project started in It now has representation from:  69 universities  27 other stakeholder organisations  Welsh Assembly  Scottish, Welsh and Irish HEIs. Developing Leadership and Governance

English Healthy Universities Network

English Healthy Universities Network

1994/5 Initiatives established at two English universities (UCLan and Lancaster) following 1993 International Settings Symposium 1998 WHO book ‘Health Promoting Universities’ Tsouros et al, 1998 No subsequent international programme or WHO leadership ‘Intra-country’ activity and network development in range of countries and regions (e.g. Germany, England, Spain, Latin America, Asia Pacific) International conferences Health Promoting Universities: History 2007 IUHPE GWG on Healthy Settings 2010 Virtual European Network established, UniHealth 2020 vision statement agreed & meetings held at conferences (no funding, but contact points in 15 countries)

Strengthen role of European universities in addressing key 21 st century public health issues Enhance and build on good occupational safety and health management as cross-cutting issues Forge strong and visible connections between public health and sustainable development agendas Develop evidence base for effectiveness of university- focused health promotion interventions and of the whole system Health Promoting Universities approach European Health Promoting Universities: Network Objectives

Identified Priorities and Aspirations European conference(s) ‘How to’ (20 steps) guide Quality standards and handbook Link to CSR (ISO26000) and sustainable development Guidance for integrating health into other disciplines Key Challenges Retaining and building interest, enthusiasm and momentum Securing funding for co-ordination and development Ways Forward Liaise and meet with WHO, IUHPE and other organisations ‘Locate’ work within context of wider settings development Health Promoting Universities: Moving Forward

Health Promoting Universities: Developments and Networking in Europe Dr Mark Dooris University of Central Lancashire Developing Leadership and Governance