Enhancing the healthy qualities of food to promote wellbeing and reduce obesity
Tackling the lifestyle related risks that cause chronic disease and mental illness
Enabling a skilled workforce to secure and sustain these benefits
Vision
To forge strategic partnerships among leaders of multiple sectors in communities and prominent organisations to combine their influence, expertise and resources to: act in concert to protect the environment; equitably improve people’s health; and overcome the growing high burden of chronic diseases and disability that is driving up health care costs.
Objective
To stimulate and foster collaborative action by a network of civic, academic, public and private sector partners from the Federal, NSW and Local Governments, regional services, and local communities to undertake large scale, high impact, cross-discipline and cross sector programs to encourage and secure lifestyle and health care delivery changes that will result in more resilient and healthier communities in Western Sydney.
Strategies
What we do:
1. Enable a healthier food supply chain that includes: more affordable, fresh local produce; food manufacturers using a healthier mix of ingredients including less salt, sugars and high levels of saturated fats; elimination of trans fats in meal preparation; drinking more water and less high calorie beverages; health friendly packaging and labelling; retail outlets selling healthier food choices ; and health friendly food advertising
2. Promote more physical activity including: more physical activity used in daily transport (walking, bike riding); healthy urban planning- greater use of parks, paths, gyms, pools and other recreation facilities; and more exercise to be part of daily routine in the workplace and schools
3. Encourage all health professionals to promote and “prescribe” health preserving lifestyles through Community Health Workers, SWAHS Staff and Community Pharmacists; and GP Divisions, individual General Practices and their Allied Health networks, becoming better resourced and stronger advocates for healthy lifestyle choices
4. Enable greater community networking through: strengthening community transport to reduce isolation and improve social networking; encouraging shopping centres-large and small, sports clubs, and community facilities to include education on healthier food and lifestyle choices as part of their services and awareness campaigns; local and ethnic languages based media being activated to promote healthy lifestyles; and festivals, farmers and health and wellbeing markets, and other events
5. Support and develop benchmarks for healthier workplace, schools and education institutions through: encouraging the adoption of healthy lifestyles by employees and students; healthier food supply; use participatory learning; and use of financial incentives
We are working with 'Hawkesbury Harvest'- to learn more about Hawkesbury Harvest click here to visit their website.
Food Security Forums in Penrith and Blue Mountains LGAs: SWAHS, in partnership with Penrith City Council and Blue Mountains City Council, have conducted Food Security Forums in August 2010. Click here for a copy of the presentation.
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