Growing up in Ireland. Key findings: infant cohort (at 3 years).

 The latest results from the study paint a picture of how these families are faring across a range of areas in their lives including their health, family life and financial and economic circumstances. In general the findings show that three-year-olds in Ireland are in good health with a few notable public health and related issues (including overweight and obesity), there is overall stability in family structures over the short term and that the recession has had a substantial effect on families with young children over the last number of years. These are the first longitudinal findings from the study. The first wave of fieldwork with the families of the Infant Cohort included approximately 11,100 nine-month-olds, their parents and carers. Interviews began in September 2008 and were completed in March 2009. Interviews for the second round of interviews with this cohort took place between January and August 2011. A total of 90% of the original sample of nine-month-olds were successfully re-interviewed. (A full download of the results released today, presented in three briefing documents can be found by clicking here. Key findings include: Health â?¢ Most of the children were described as being in good health; 75% were rated as very healthy and a further 23% were rated as healthy, but a few minor problems. Girls were more likely to be reported as very healthy (78%) compared with boys (72%). â?¢ One in four or almost one quarter of three-year-old children were overweight (19%) or obese (6%). â?¢ Childrenâ?Ts weight was related to household social class. 5% of children in families in the professional/managerial group were classified as obese at three years of age compared with 9% of those in the most disadvantaged social class group. However, at least one-fifth of children in every social class were overweight. â?¢ Childrens consumption of energy-dense foods such as crisps, sweets, chips, and non-diet fizzy drinks increased as parental education fell. 63% of children whose mother had a lower secondary education or less ate at least one portion of crisps compared with 36% of those from degree-level backgrounds, although consumption of biscuits/chocolates was over 70% for both groups of children. â?¢ Two-thirds (66%) of three-year-olds had received at least one course of antibiotics in the 12 months preceding the interview. Children with a full medical card (35% of the sample) or a GP-only medical card (5% of the sample) were more likely to have received a course of antibiotics than â?¢ Children with a full medical card received a higher number of antibiotic courses on average (2.6) compared with those without a medical card (2.1). â?¢ Just under 16% of three-year-old children were reported as having at least one longstanding illness, condition or disability. The most commonly reported illness types included Asthma (5.8%), Eczema/Skin allergies (3.9%) and Food/digestive allergies (1.2%) Family Life and Childcare â?¢ While the overall distribution of family structure was stable, there have been transitions from one-parent families to two-parent families and vice-versa over the 27 months between interview â?" approximately 2 to 3 percent in each direction. â?¢ 50% of three year olds were in some form of non-parental childcare for eight or more hours a week. The most common form used was centre-based childcare which almost tripled between nine months and three years, from 11% to 30%. â?¢ A similar percentage of grandparents were caring for children at both nine months and three years, 12% and 11% respectively. A total of 10% of three-year-olds were being minded by a childminder, an increase of 3 percentage points from when the children were nine months of age. â?¢ Children who were in some form of non-parental childcare were spending an average of 23 hours a week in their main type of childcare. â?¢ At time of interview the vast majority of mothers reported that they had regular contact with the Study Childâ?Ts grandparents (91%). In offering support to parents, grandparents were most likely to babysit (50%), and buy clothes (40%) at least on a monthly basis. One-parent families were more likely than two-parent families to receive financial support from grandparents with just under one-third (66%) of one-parent families receiving financial support from grandparents at least once every three months. â?¢ The most frequently used discipline technique was â?~discussing or explaining why the behaviour was wrongâ?T, with 63% of mothers saying they always did this. â?¢ 12% of mothers said they used â?~smackingâ?T as a form of discipline now and again and less than 1% used â?~smackingâ?T as a form of discipline more frequently. Over half reported that they never smacked the Study Child. Financial and Economic Circumstances â?¢ Just over half (53%) of mothers of three-year-olds worked outside the home, 38% said they were on home duties and 6% said they were unemployed. â?¢ The biggest change in terms of the work status of three-year-oldsâ?T parents was an increase in the percentage of unemployed fathers â?" 6% when the child was nine months rising to almost 14% when s/he was three years of age. â?¢ 61% of families of three-year-olds reported experiencing difficulties in making â?~ends meetâ?T. This was a substantial increase from 44% in the first round of interviews when the children were nine-months-old. â?¢ Almost two thirds (63%) of all families with three-year-olds reported that the recession had had a very significant or significant effect on them. â?¢ The most frequently recorded effects were: a reduction in wages (63%); canâ?Tt afford luxuries (54%), social welfare reduction (53%) and canâ?Tt afford/cut back on basics (32%). Growing Up in Ireland is a Government funded study tracking the development of two nationally representative cohorts of children: an Infant Cohort which was interviewed initially at nine months and subsequently at three years of age; and a Child Cohort which was interviewed initially at nine years and subsequently at 13 years of age. The study is being conducted by a consortium of researchers led by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) and Trinity College Dublin. For Further Information Please Contact: Jillian Heffernan Communications Officer, Growing Up in Ireland Tel: 01 896 3378 Mobile: 087 9016880This resource was contributed to our repository by the National Documentation Centre on Drug Use.

Degree in Social Work Incentive Scheme 2006 (PDF 45 KB)

Student Bursaries Incentive Scheme

Report: Access to the New Social Work Degree for Relevant Graduate in Northern Ireland (PDF 36 KB)

Report: Access to the New Social Work Degree for Relevant Graduate in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland Framework Specification for the Degree in Social Work (PDF 213 KB)

Northern Ireland Framework Specification for the Degree in Social Work

Speech by Mr Micheál Martin TD at Launch of Pre-Registration Nursing Degree Programme

Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. I am very pleased that you were all able to accept my invitation to join me here today on this landmark occasion for nursing education. It is fitting that all of the key stakeholders from the health and education sectors should be so well represented at the launch of an historic new development. Rapid and unpredictable change throughout society has been the hallmark of the twenty-first century, and healthcare is no exception. Regardless of what change occurs, no one doubts that nursing is intrinsic to the health of this nation. However, significant changes in nurse education are now needed if the profession is to deliver on its social mandate to promote people´s health by providing excellent and sensitive care. As science, technology and the demands of the public for sophisticated and responsive health care become increasingly complex, it is essential that the foundation of nursing education is redesigned. Pre-registration nursing education has already undergone radical change over the past eight years, during which time it has moved from an apprenticeship model of education and training to a diploma based programme firmly rooted in higher education. The Secretary General of my Department, Michael Kelly, played a leading role in bringing about this transformation, which has greatly enhanced the way students are prepared for entry to the nursing profession. The benefits of the revised model of education are clearly evident from the quality of the nurses graduating from the diploma programme. The Commission on Nursing examined the whole area of nursing education, and set out a very convincing case for educating nursing students to degree level. It argued that nurses of the future would be required to possess increased flexibility and the ability to work autonomously. A degree programme would provide nurses with a theoretical underpinning that would enable them to develop their clinical skills to a greater extent and to respond to future challenges in health care, for the benefit of patients and clients of the health services. The Commission has provided a solid framework for the professional development of nurses and midwives, including a process that is already underway for the creation of clinical nurse specialist and advanced nurse practitioner posts. This process will facilitate the transfer of skills across divisions of nursing. In this scenario, it is clearly desirable that the future benchmark qualification for registration as a nurse should be a degree in nursing studies. A Nursing Education Forum was established in early 1999 to prepare a strategic framework for the implementation of a nursing degree programme. When launching the Forum´s report last January, I indicated that the Government had agreed in principle to the introduction of the proposed degree programme next year. At the time two substantial outstanding issues had yet to be resolved, namely the basis on which nurse teachers would transfer from the health sector to the education sector and the amount of capital and revenue funding required to operate the degree programme. My Department has brokered agreements between the Nursing Alliance and the Higher Education Institutions for the assimilation of nurse teachers as lecturers into their affiliated institutions. The terms of these agreements have been accepted by all four nursing unions following a ballot of their nurse teacher members. I would like to pay particular tribute to all nurse teachers who have contributed to shaping the position, relevance and visibility of nursing through leadership, which embodies scholarship and excellence in the profession of nursing itself. In response to a recommendation of the Nursing Education Forum, I established an Inter-Departmental Steering Committee, chaired by Bernard Carey of my Department, to consider all the funding and policy issues. This Steering Committee includes representatives of the Department of Finance and the Department of Education and Science as well as the Higher Education Authority. The Steering Committee has been engaged in intensive negotiations with representatives of the Conference of Heads of Irish Universities and the Institutes of Technology in relation to their capital and revenue funding requirements. These negotiations were successfully concluded within the past few weeks. The satisfactory resolution of the industrial relations and funding issues cleared the way for me to go to the Government with concrete proposals for the implementation of degree level education for nursing students. I am delighted to announce here today that the Government has approved all of my proposals, and that a four-year undergraduate pre-registration nursing degree programme will be implemented on a nation-wide basis at the start of the next academic year, 2002/2003. The Government has approved the provision of capital funding totalling £176 million pounds for a major building and equipment programme to facilitate the full integration of nursing students into the higher education sector. This programme is due to be completed by September 2004, and will ensure that nursing students are accommodated in purpose built schools of nursing studies with state of the art clinical skills and human science laboratories at thirteen higher education sites throughout the country. The Government has also agreed to make available the substantial additional revenue funding required to support the nursing degree programme. By 2006, the full year cost of operating the programme will rise to some £43 million pounds. The scale of this investment in pre-registration nursing education is enormous by any yardstick. It demonstrates the firm commitment of myself and my Government colleagues to the full implementation of the recommendations of the Commission on Nursing, of which the introduction of pre-registration degree level education is arguably the most important. This historic decision, and it is truly historic, will finally put the education of nurses on a par with the education of other health care professionals. The nursing profession has long been striving for parity, and my own involvement in the achievement of it is a matter of deep personal satisfaction to me. I am also pleased to announce that the Government has approved my plans for increasing the number of nursing training places to coincide with the implementation of the degree programme next year. Ninety-three additional places in mental handicap and psychiatric nursing will be created at Athlone, Letterkenny, Tralee and Waterford Institutes of Technology. This will yield 392 extra places over the four years of the degree programme. A total of 1,640 places annually on the new degree programme will thus be available. This is an all-time record, and maintaining the annual student intake at this level for the foreseeable future is a key element of my overall strategy for ensuring that we produce sufficient “home-grown” nurses for our health services. I am aware that the Nursing Alliance were anxious that some funding would be provided for the further academic career development of nurse teachers who transfer to one of the six Universities that will be involved in the delivery of the degree programme. I am happy to confirm that up to £300,000 in total per year will be available for this purpose over the first four years of the degree programme. In line with a recommendation of the Commission on Nursing, my Department will have responsibility for the administration of the nursing degree budget until the programme has been bedded down in the higher education sector. A primary concern will be to ensure that the substantial capital and revenue funding involved is ring-fenced for nursing studies. It is intended that responsibility for the budget will be transferred to the Department of Education and Science after the first cohort of nursing degree students have graduated in 2006. In the context of today´s launch, it is relevant to refer to a special initiative that I introduced last year to assist registered nurses wishing to undertake part-time nursing degree courses. Under this initiative, nurses are entitled to have their course fees paid by their employers in return for a commitment to continue working in the public health service for a period following completion of the course. This initiative has proved extremely popular with large numbers of nurses availing of it. I want to confirm here today that the free fees initiative will continue in operation until 2005, at a total cost of at least £15 million pounds. I am giving this commitment in order to assure this year´s intake of nursing students to the final diploma programmes that fee support for a part-time nursing degree course will be available to them when they graduate in three years time. The focus of today´s celebration is rightly on the landmark Government decision to implement the nursing degree programme next year. As Minister for Health and Children, and as a former Minister for Education, I also have a particular interest in the educational opportunities available to other health service workers to upgrade their skills. I am pleased to announce that the Government has approved my proposals for the introduction of a sponsorship scheme for suitable, experienced health care assistants who wish to become nurses. This new scheme will commence next year and will be administered by the health boards. Successful applicants will be allowed to retain their existing salaries throughout the four years of the degree programme in return for a commitment to work as nurses for their health service employer for a period of five years following registration. Up to forty sponsorships will be available annually. The new scheme will enable suitable applicants to undertake nursing education and training without suffering financial hardship. The greatest advantage of the scheme will be the retention by the public health service of staff who are supported under it, since they will have had practical experience of working in the service and their own personal commitment to upgrading their skills will be informed by that experience. I am confident that the sponsorship scheme will be warmly welcomed by health service unions representing care assistants as providing an exciting new career development path for their members. Education and health are now the two pillars upon which the profession of nursing rests. We must continue to build bridges, even tunnels where needed to strengthen this partnership. We must all understand partnerships donâ?Tt just happen they are designed and must be worked at. The changes outlined here today are powerful incentives for those in healthcare agencies, academic institutions and regulatory bodies to design revolutionary programmes capable of shaping a critical mass of excellent practitioners. You have an opportunity, greater perhaps than has been granted to any other generation in history to make certain those changes are for the good. Ultimately changes that will make the country a healthier and more equitable place to live. The challenge relates to building a seamless preparatory programme which equally respects both education and practise as an indivisible duo whilst ensuring that high tech does not replace the human touch. This is a special day in the history of the development of the Irish nursing profession, and I would like to thank everybody for their contribution. I want to express my particular appreciation of two people who by this stage are well known to all of you – Bernard Carey of my Department and Siobhán O´Halloran of the National Implementation Committee. Bernard and Siobhán have devoted considerable time and energy to the project on my behalf over the past fourteen months or so. That we are here today celebrating the launch of degree level education is due in no small part to their successful execution of the mandate that I gave them. We live in a rapidly changing world, one in which nursing can no longer rely on systems of the past to guide it through the new millennium. In terms of contemporary healthcare, nursing is no longer just a reciprocal kindness but rather a highly complex set of professional behaviours, which require serious educational investment. Pre-registration nurse education will always need development and redesign to ensure our health care system meets the demands of modern society. Nothing is finite. Today more than ever the health system is dependent on the resourcefulness of nursing. I have no doubt that the new educational landscape painted will ensure that nurses of the future will be increasingly innovative, independent and in demand. The unmistakable message from my Department is that nursing really matters. Thank you.

Report of the National Taskforce on Obesity: Obesity - the policy challenges: Executive Summary

The prevalence of overweight and obesity has increased with alarming speed over the past twenty years. It has recently been described by the World Health Organisation as a ‘global epidemic’. In the year 2000 more than 300 million people worldwide were obese and it is now projected that by 2025 up to half the population of the United States will be obese if current trends are maintained. The disease is now a major public health problem throughout Europe. In Ireland at the present time 39% of adults are overweight and 18% are obese. Of these, slightly more men than women are obese and there is a higher incidence of the disease in lower socio-economic groups. Most worrying of all is the fact that childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions in Europe, with body weight now the most prevalent childhood disease. While currently there are no agreed criteria or standards for assessing Irish children for obesity some studies are indicating that the numbers of children who are significantly overweight have trebled over the past decade. Extrapolation from authoritative UK data suggests that these numbers could now amount to more than 300,000 overweight and obese children on the island of Ireland and they are probably rising at a rate of over 10,000 per year. A balance of food intake and physical activity is necessary for a healthy weight. The foods we individually consume and our participation in physical activity are the result of a complex supply and production system. The growing research evidence that energy dense foods promote obesity is impressive and convincing. These are the foods that are high in fat, sugar and starch. Of these potentially the most significant promoter of weight gain is fat and foods from the top shelf of the food pyramid including spreads (butter and margarine), cakes and biscuits, and confectionery, when combined are the greatest contributors to fat intake in the Irish diet. In company with their adult counterparts Irish children are also consuming large amounts of energy dense foods outside the home. A recent survey revealed that slightly over half of these children ate sweets at least once a day and roughly a third of them had fizzy drinks and crisps with the same regularity. Sugar sweetened carbonated drinks are thought to contribute to obesity and for this reason the World Health Organisation has expressed serious concerns at the high and increasing consumption of these drinks by children. Physical activity is an important determinant of body weight. Over recent decades there has been a marked decline in demanding physical work and this has been accompanied by more sedentary lifestyles generally and reduced leisure-time activity. These observable changes, which are supported by data from most European countries and the United States, suggest that physical inactivity has made a significant impact on the increase in overweight and obesity being seen today. It is now widely accepted that adults shoud be involved in 45-60 minutes, and children should be involved in at least 60 minutes per day of moderate physical activity in order to prevent excess weight gain. Being overweight today not only signals increased risk of medical problems but also exposes people to serious psychosocial problems due mainly to widespread prejudice against fat people. Prejudice against obese people seems to border on the socially acceptable in Ireland. It crops up consistently in surveys covering groups such as employers, teachers, medical and healthcare personnel, and the media. It occurs among adolescents and children, even very young children. Because obesity is associated with premature death, excessive morbidity and serious psychosocial problems the damage it causes to the welfare of citizens is extremely serious and for this reason government intervention is necessary and warranted. In economic terms, a figure of approximately â,¬30million has been estimated for in-patient costs alone in 2003 for a number of Irish hospitals. This year about 2,000 premature deaths in Ireland will be attributed to obesity and the numbers are growing relentlessly. Diseases which proportionally more obese people suffer from than the general population include hypertension, type 2 diabetes, angina, heart attack and osteoarthritis. There are indirect costs also such as days lost to the workplace due to illness arising from obesity and output foregone as a result of premature death. Using the accepted EU environmental cost benefit method, these deaths alone may be costing the state as much as â,¬4bn per year. The social determinants of physical activity include factors such as socio-economic status, education level, gender, family and peer group influences as well as individual perceptions of the benefits of physical activity. The environmental determinants include geographic location, time of year, and proximity of facilities such as open spaces, parks and safe recreational areas generally. The environmental factors have not yet been as well studied as the social ones and this research gap needs to be addressed. Clearly there is a public health imperative to ensure that relevant environmental policies maximise opportunities for active transport, recreational physical activity and total physical activity. It is clear that concerted policy initiatives must be put in place if the predominantly negative findings of research regarding the determinants of food consumption and physical activity are to be accepted, and they must surely be accepted by government if the rapid increase in the incidence of obesity with all its negative consequences for citizens is to be reversed. So far actions surrounding nutrition policies have concentrated mostly on actions that are within the remit of the Department of Health and Children such as implementing the dietary guidelines. These are important but government must now look at the totality of policies that influence the type and supply of food that its citizens eat and the range and quality of opportunities that are available to citizens to engage in physical activity. This implies a fundamental examination of existing agricultural, industrial, economic and other policies and a determination to change them if they do not enable people to eat healthily and partake in physical activity. The current crisis in obesity prevalence requires a population health approach for adults and children in addition to effective weight-reduction management for individuals who are severely overweight. This entails addressing the obesogenic environment where people live, creating conditions over time which lead to healthier eating and more active living, and protecting people from the widespread availability of unhealthy food and beverage options in addition to sedentary activities that take up all of their leisure time. People of course have a fundamental right to choose to eat what they want and to be as active as they wish. That is not the issue. What the National Taskforce on Obesity has had to take account of is that many forces are actively impeding change for those well aware of the potential health and well-being consequences to themselves of overweight and obesity. The Taskforce’s social change strategy is to give people meaningful choice. Choice, or the capacity to change (because the strategy is all about change), is facilitated through the development of personal skills and preferences, through supportive and participative environments at work, at school and in the local community, and through a dedicated and clearly communicated public health strategy. High-level cabinet support will be necessary to implement the Taskforce’s recommendations. The approach to implementation must be characterised by joined-up thinking, real practical engagement by the public and private sectors, the avoidance of duplication of effort or crosspurpose approaches, and the harnessing of existing strategies and agencies. The range of government departments with roles to play is considerable. The Taskforce outlines the different contributions that each relevant department can make in driving its strategy forward. It also emphasises its requirement that all phases of the national strategy for healthy eating and physical activity are closely monitored, analysed and evaluated. The vision of the Taskforce is expressed as: An Irish society that enables people through health promotion, prevention and care to achieve and maintain healthy eating and active living throughout their lifespan. Its high-level goals are expressed as follows: Its recommendations, over eighty in all, relate to actions across six broad sectors: high-level government; education; social and community; health; food, commodities, production and supply; and the physical environment. In developing its recommendations the Taskforce has taken account of the complex, multisectoral and multi-faceted determinants of diet and physical activity. This strategy poses challenges for government, within individual departments, inter-departmentally and in developing partnerships with the commercial sector. Equally it challenges the commercial sector to work in partnership with government. The framework required for such initiative has at its core the rights and benefits of the individual. Health promotion is fundamentally about empowerment, whether at the individual, the community or the policy level.

Obesity - the policy challenges: The report of the National Taskforce on Obesity

Click here to download PDF The prevalence of overweight and obesity has increased with alarming speed over the past twenty years. It has recently been described by the World Health Organisation as a ‘global epidemic’. In the year 2000 more than 300 million people worldwide were obese and it is now projected that by 2025 up to half the population of the United States will be obese if current trends are maintained. The disease is now a major public health problem throughout Europe. In Ireland at the present time 39% of adults are overweight and 18% are obese. Of these, slightly more men than women are obese and there is a higher incidence of the disease in lower socio-economic groups. Most worrying of all is the fact that childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions in Europe, with body weight now the most prevalent childhood disease. While currently there are no agreed criteria or standards for assessing Irish children for obesity some studies are indicating that the numbers of children who are significantly overweight have trebled over the past decade. Extrapolation from authoritative UK data suggests that these numbers could now amount to more than 300,000 overweight and obese children on the island of Ireland and they are probably rising at a rate of over 10,000 per year. A balance of food intake and physical activity is necessary for a healthy weight. The foods we individually consume and our participation in physical activity are the result of a complex supply and production system. The growing research evidence that energy dense foods promote obesity is impressive and convincing. These are the foods that are high in fat, sugar and starch. Of these potentially the most significant promoter of weight gain is fat and foods from the top shelf of the food pyramid including spreads (butter and margarine), cakes and biscuits, and confectionery, when combined are the greatest contributors to fat intake in the Irish diet. In company with their adult counterparts Irish children are also consuming large amounts of energy dense foods outside the home. A recent survey revealed that slightly over half of these children ate sweets at least once a day and roughly a third of them had fizzy drinks and crisps with the same regularity. Sugar sweetened carbonated drinks are thought to contribute to obesity and for this reason the World Health Organisation has expressed serious concerns at the high and increasing consumption of these drinks by children. Physical activity is an important determinant of body weight. Over recent decades there has been a marked decline in demanding physical work and this has been accompanied by more sedentary lifestyles generally and reduced leisure-time activity. These observable changes, which are supported by data from most European countries and the United States, suggest that physical inactivity has made a significant impact on the increase in overweight and obesity being seen today. It is now widely accepted that adults shoud be involved in 45-60 minutes, and children should be involved in at least 60 minutes per day of moderate physical activity in order to prevent excess weight gain. Being overweight today not only signals increased risk of medical problems but also exposes people to serious psychosocial problems due mainly to widespread prejudice against fat people. Prejudice against obese people seems to border on the socially acceptable in Ireland. It crops up consistently in surveys covering groups such as employers, teachers, medical and healthcare personnel, and the media. It occurs among adolescents and children, even very young children. Because obesity is associated with premature death, excessive morbidity and serious psychosocial problems the damage it causes to the welfare of citizens is extremely serious and for this reason government intervention is necessary and warranted. In economic terms, a figure of approximately â,¬30million has been estimated for in-patient costs alone in 2003 for a number of Irish hospitals. This year about 2,000 premature deaths in Ireland will be attributed to obesity and the numbers are growing relentlessly. Diseases which proportionally more obese people suffer from than the general population include hypertension, type 2 diabetes, angina, heart attack and osteoarthritis. There are indirect costs also such as days lost to the workplace due to illness arising from obesity and output foregone as a result of premature death. Using the accepted EU environmental cost benefit method, these deaths alone may be costing the state as much as â,¬4bn per year. The social determinants of physical activity include factors such as socio-economic status, education level, gender, family and peer group influences as well as individual perceptions of the benefits of physical activity. The environmental determinants include geographic location, time of year, and proximity of facilities such as open spaces, parks and safe recreational areas generally. The environmental factors have not yet been as well studied as the social ones and this research gap needs to be addressed. Clearly there is a public health imperative to ensure that relevant environmental policies maximise opportunities for active transport, recreational physical activity and total physical activity. It is clear that concerted policy initiatives must be put in place if the predominantly negative findings of research regarding the determinants of food consumption and physical activity are to be accepted, and they must surely be accepted by government if the rapid increase in the incidence of obesity with all its negative consequences for citizens is to be reversed. So far actions surrounding nutrition policies have concentrated mostly on actions that are within the remit of the Department of Health and Children such as implementing the dietary guidelines. These are important but government must now look at the totality of policies that influence the type and supply of food that its citizens eat and the range and quality of opportunities that are available to citizens to engage in physical activity. This implies a fundamental examination of existing agricultural, industrial, economic and other policies and a determination to change them if they do not enable people to eat healthily and partake in physical activity. The current crisis in obesity prevalence requires a population health approach for adults and children in addition to effective weight-reduction management for individuals who are severely overweight. This entails addressing the obesogenic environment where people live, creating conditions over time which lead to healthier eating and more active living, and protecting people from the widespread availability of unhealthy food and beverage options in addition to sedentary activities that take up all of their leisure time. People of course have a fundamental right to choose to eat what they want and to be as active as they wish. That is not the issue. What the National Taskforce on Obesity has had to take account of is that many forces are actively impeding change for those well aware of the potential health and well-being consequences to themselves of overweight and obesity. The Taskforce’s social change strategy is to give people meaningful choice. Choice, or the capacity to change (because the strategy is all about change), is facilitated through the development of personal skills and preferences, through supportive and participative environments at work, at school and in the local community, and through a dedicated and clearly communicated public health strategy. High-level cabinet support will be necessary to implement the Taskforce’s recommendations. The approach to implementation must be characterised by joined-up thinking, real practical engagement by the public and private sectors, the avoidance of duplication of effort or crosspurpose approaches, and the harnessing of existing strategies and agencies. The range of government departments with roles to play is considerable. The Taskforce outlines the different contributions that each relevant department can make in driving its strategy forward. It also emphasises its requirement that all phases of the national strategy for healthy eating and physical activity are closely monitored, analysed and evaluated. The vision of the Taskforce is expressed as: An Irish society that enables people through health promotion, prevention and care to achieve and maintain healthy eating and active living throughout their lifespan. Its high-level goals are expressed as follows: Its recommendations, over eighty in all, relate to actions across six broad sectors: high-level government; education; social and community; health; food, commodities, production and supply; and the physical environment. In developing its recommendations the Taskforce has taken account of the complex, multisectoral and multi-faceted determinants of diet and physical activity. This strategy poses challenges for government, within individual departments, inter-departmentally and in developing partnerships with the commercial sector. Equally it challenges the commercial sector to work in partnership with government. The framework required for such initiative has at its core the rights and benefits of the individual. Health promotion is fundamentally about empowerment, whether at the individual, the community or the policy level.

Growing Up in Ireland: National Longitudinal Study of Children. The Infants And Their Families - Infant CohortOther Relevant Documents

Growing Up in Ireland: National Longitudinal Study of Children. The Infants And Their Families – Infant Cohort Click here to download PDF 9.46MB   Click here to download the document summary 2.84MB

Review of Undergraduate Nursing and Midwifery Degree Programmes - Consultation Report

The Department of Health has commenced a review of the undergraduate nursing and midwifery degree programmes in order to establish their efficiency and effectiveness in preparing nurses and midwives to practice in the Irish healthcare system now and into the future (referred to as the Review throughout this report). The undergraduate degree programmes have been in place since 2002 for nursing (general, psychiatric and intellectual disability nursing) and 2006 for midwifery and integrated children and general programmes.   Click here to download PDF 342kb

Report of the Review of Undergraduate Nursing and Midwifery Degree Programmes

Ireland has a strong reputation for delivering excellence in nursing and midwifery education and for providing highly qualified, competent and motivated nurses and midwives. Over the last ten years the educational system has undergone significant change, particularly with the move of undergraduate nursing and midwifery education into the universities and higher education sector. Click here to download PDF 1.4mb

Poots launches £18m state-of-the-art Telemonitoring NI service

Health Minister Edwin Poots today marked the roll-out of a ground-breaking hi-tech scheme which will enable more patients to monitor their health in their own homes. Following funding of £18m from the Department of Health, the newly named Centre for Connected Health and Social Care (CCHSC), part of the Public Health Agency, worked in partnership with business consortium TF3to establish the innovative Telemonitoring NI service. The service is now being delivered by the TF3 consortium in partnership with the Health and Social Care Trusts.Remote telemonitoring combines technology and services that enable patients with chronic diseases to test their vital signs such as pulse, blood pressure, body weight, temperature, blood glucose and oxygen levels at home on a daily basis. The service will now be rolled out to 3,500 patients across Northern Ireland per annum for a period of six years.Mr Poots today visited the home of Larne pensioner Michael Howard who has Chronic Pulmonary Obstructive Disorder (COPD) to hear how Telemonitoring NI has changed his life.During the visit Mr Poots said: "Chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and COPD affect around three quarters of people over the age of 75. This is the generation from whom transport and mobility pose the biggest problems. The Telemonitoring NI service will allow thousands to monitor their vital signs without having to leave their own homes."It means that patients are able to understand and manage their condition better. Many say it has improved their confidence and given them peace of mind. With a health professional monitoring each patient's health on a daily basis, there is less need for hospital admission. Carers are also better informed with the pro-active support provided. It means earlier intervention in, and the prevention of, deterioration of condition, acute illness and hospital admissions."Telemonitoring NI is an excellent example of how the Health Service can innovateusing modern technology to deliver a better service for our patients."Eddie Ritson, Programme Director of CCHSC, PHA, said: "The roll-out of Telemonitoring NI represents a significant step towards providing quality care for the growing number of people with heart disease, stroke, some respiratory conditions and diabetes who want to live at home while having their conditions safely managed."This new service will give people more information which combined with timely advice will enable patients to gain more control over their health while supporting them to live independently in their own homes for longer."A patient will take their vital sign measurements at home, usually on a daily basis. and these will automatically be transmited to the Tf3 system. The resulting readings are monitored centrally by a healthcare professional working in the Tf3 triage team. If the patient's readings show signs of deterioration to an unacceptable level, they will be contacted by phone by a nurse working in a central team and if appropriate a healthcare professional in the patient's local Trust will be alerted to enable them to take appropriate action."Families and carers will also benefit from the reassurance that chronic health conditions are being closely monitored on an ongoing basis. The information collected through the service can also be used by doctors, nurses and patients in making decisions on how individual cases should be managed. "Using the service, Mr Howard, 71, who has emphysema - a long-term, progressive disease of the lungs that primarily causes shortness of breath - monitors his vital signs using the new technology every weekday morning. The information is monitored centrally and if readings show signs of deterioration to an unacceptable level, Mr Howard's local healthcare professional is alerted."Taking my readings is such a simple process but one that gives me huge benefits as it is an early warning system to me and also for the specialist nurses in charge of my care. Without the remote telemonitoring I would be running back and forward to the GPs' surgery all the time to have things checked out," he explained."Having my signs monitored by a nurse means any changes in my condition are dealt with immediately and this has prevented me from being admitted to hospital - in the past I've had to spend six days in hospital any time I'm admitted with a chest infection."The telemonitoring is not only reassuring for me, it also gives me more control over managing my own condition and as a result I have less upheaval in my life, and I'm less of a cost to the health care system. Most importantly, it gives me peace of mind and one less thing to worry about at my age."Patients seeking further information about the new telemonitoring service should contact their healthcare professional.

Mental health and growing up factsheet. Cannabis and mental health: information for young people.

About this leaflet This is one in a series of leaflets for parents, teachers and young people entitled Mental Health and Growing Up. These leaflets aim to provide practical, up-to-date information about mental health problems (emotional, behavioural and psychiatric disorders) that can affect children and young people. This leaflet gives you some basic facts about cannabis and also how it might affect your mental health. Introduction Lots of young people want to know about drugs. Often, people around you are taking them, and you may wonder how it will make you feel. You may even feel under pressure to use drugs in order to fit in, or be â?~coolâ?T. You may have heard that cannabis is no worse than cigarettes, or that it is harmless. What is cannabis? The cannabis plant is a member of the nettle family that has grown wild throughout the world for centuries. People have used it for lots of reasons, other than the popular relaxing effect. It comes in two main forms: ï,§ resin, which is a brown black lump also known as bhang, ganja or hashish ï,§ herbal cannabis, which is made up of the dried leaves and flowering tops, and is known as grass, marijuana, spliff, weed, etc. Skunk cannabis is made from a cannabis plant that has more active chemicals in it (THC), and the effect on your brain is stronger. Because â?~streetâ?T cannabis varies so much in strength, you will not be able to tell exactly how it will make you feel at any particular time. What does it do to you? When you smoke cannabis, the active compounds reach your brain quickly through your bloodstream. It then binds/sticks to a special receptor in your brain. This causes your nerve cells to release different chemicals, and causes the effects that you feel. These effects can be enjoyable or unpleasant. Often the bad effects take longer to appear than the pleasant ones. ï,§ Good/pleasant effects: You may feel relaxed and talkative, and colours or music may seem more intense. ï,§ Unpleasant effects: Feeling sick/panicky, feeling paranoid or hearing voices, feeling depressed and unmotivated. Unfortunately, some people can find cannabis addictive and so have trouble stopping use even when they are not enjoying it. The effects on your mental health Using cannabis triggers mental health problems in people who seemed to be well before, or it can worsen any mental health problems you already have. Research has shown that people who are already at risk of developing mental health problems are more likely to start showing symptoms of mental illness if they use cannabis regularly. For example if someone in your family has depression or schizophrenia, you are at higher risk of getting these illness when you use cannabis. The younger you are when you start using it, the more you may be at risk. This is because your brain is still developing and can be more easily damaged by the active chemicals in cannabis. If you stop using cannabis once you have started to show symptoms of mental illness, such as depression, paranoia or hearing voices, these symptoms may go away. However, not everyone will get better just by stopping smoking. If you go on using cannabis, the symptoms can get worse. It can also make any treatment that your doctor might prescribe for you, work less well. Your illness may come back more quickly, and more often if you continue to use cannabis once you get well again. Some people with mental health problems find that using cannabis makes them feel a bit better for a while. Unfortunately this does not last, and it does nothing to treat the illness. In fact, it may delay you from getting help you need and the illness may get worse in the longer term. [For the full factsheet, click on the link above]This resource was contributed by The National Documentation Centre on Drug Use.

Mental health and growing up factsheet. Drugs and alcohol - what parents need to know.

Information about drugs and alcohol - what parents need to know: information for parents, carers and anyone who works with young people. About this leaflet This is one in a series of leaflets for parents, teachers and young people entitled Mental Health and Growing Up. These leaflets aim to provide practical, up-to-date information about mental health problems (emotional, behavioural and psychiatric disorders) that can affect children and young people. This leaflet offers practical advice for parents, teachers and carers who are worried that a young person is misusing drugs or alcohol. Why do I need to know about a young person using drugs or alcohol? Many young people smoke, drink alcohol and may try drugs. It is important you are aware of this and do not ignore it as a time when they are just having fun or experimenting. It doesnââ,‰"¢t take much for the young people to soon lose control and to need help to recover from this problem. How common is it? By the age of 16, up to half of young people have tried an illegal drug. Young people are trying drugs earlier and more are drinking alcohol. What are the different types of drugs which cause problems? The most commonly used, readily available and strongly addictive drugs are tobacco and alcohol. There are numerous others that can be addictive. Alcohol and cannabis are sometimes seen as ââ,¬Ëogatewayââ,‰"¢ drugs that lead to the world of other drugs like cocaine and heroin. Drugs are also classed as ââ,¬Ëolegalââ,‰"¢ andââ,¬Ëoillegalââ,‰"¢. The obviously illegal drugs include cannabis (hash), speed (amphetamines), ecstasy (E), cocaine and heroin. Using ââ,¬Ëolegalââ,‰"¢ drugs (like cigarettes, alcohol, petrol, glue) does not mean they are safe or allowed to be misused. It just means they may be bought or sold for specific purposes and are limited to use by specific age groups. There are clear laws regarding alcohol and young people. For more detailed information on various drugs, their side-effects and the law, see ââ,¬ËoFurther Informationââ,‰"¢ at the end of the factsheet. Why do young people use drugs or alcohol? Young people may try or use drugs or alcohol for various reasons. They may do it for fun, because they are curious, or to be like their friends. Some are experimenting with the feeling of intoxication. Sometimes they use it to cope with difficult situations or feelings of worry and low mood. A young person is more likely to try or use drugs or alcohol if they hang out or stay with friends or family who use them. What can be the problems related to using drugs or alcohol? Drugs and alcohol can have different effects on different people. In young people especially the effects can be unpredictable and potentially dangerous. Even medications for sleep or painkillers can be addictive and harmful if not used the way they are prescribed by a doctor. Drugs and alcohol can damage health. Sharing needles or equipment can cause serious infections, such as HIV and hepatitis. Accidents, arguments and fights are more likely after drinking and drug use. Young people are more likely to engage in unprotected sex when using drugs. Using drugs can lead to serious mental illnesses, such as psychosis and depression. When does it become addiction or problem? It is very difficult to know when exactly using drugs or alcohol is more than just ââ,¬Ëocasualââ,‰"¢. Addiction becomes more obvious when the young person spends most of their time thinking about, looking for or using drugs. Drugs or alcohol then become the focus of the young personââ,‰"¢s life. They ignore their usual work, such as not doing their schoolwork, or stop doing their usual hobbies/sports such as dancing or football. How do I know if there is a problem or addiction? Occasional use can be very difficult to detect. If the young person is using on a regular basis, their behaviour often changes. Look for signs such as: ïâ?s§ unexplained moodiness ïâ?s§ behaviour that is ââ,¬Ëoout of character' ïâ?s§ loss of interest in school or friends ïâ?s§ unexplained loss of clothes or money ïâ?s§ unusual smells and items like silver foil, needle covers. Remember, the above changes can also mean other problems, such as depression, rather than using drugs. What do I do if I am worried? If you suspect young person is using drugs, remember some general rules. ïâ?s§ Pay attention to what the child is doing, including schoolwork, friends and leisure time. ïâ?s§ Learn about the effects of alcohol and drugs (see websites listed below). ïâ?s§ Listen to what the child says about alcohol and drugs, and talk about it with them. ïâ?s§ Encourage the young person to be informed and responsible about drugs and alcohol. ïâ?s§ Talk to other parents, friends or teachers about drugs - the facts and your fears and seek help. If someone in the family or close friend is using drugs or alcohol, it is important that they seek help too. It may be hard to expect the young person to give up, especially if a parent or carer is using it too. My child is abusing drugs. What do I do? ïâ?s§ If your child is using drugs or alcohol, seek help. ïâ?s§ Do stay calm and make sure of facts. ïâ?s§ Don't give up on them, get into long debates or arguments when they are drunk, stoned or high. ïâ?s§ Donââ,‰"¢t be angry or blame themââ,‰?othey need your help and trust to make journey of recovery. Where can I get help? You can talk in confidence to a professional like your GP or practice nurse, a local drug project or your local child and adolescent mental health. They can refer your child to relevant services and they will be able to offer you advice and support. You may also be able to seek help through a school nurse, teacher or social worker. You can find this information from your local area telephone book or council website, or ask for the address from your health centre. [For the full factsheet, click on the link above]This resource was contributed by The National Documentation Centre on Drug Use.