Integrating Public Health Planning At The Local Level

Abstract

Planning Frameworks that support sustainable development are necessary because uncoordinated economic and social development is having increasingly diverse effects on people and the planet. Creating healthier and more sustainable communities requires new approaches to planning for health at the local level. Queensland Health, Local Government and Griffith University have formed a working partnership to develop and implement Public Health Plans in Queensland in fifteen communities. Each city has its own culture and diversity and planning for health and environment outcomes has many opportunities for health gains, at the same time creating many organisational barriers for action. This paper firstly discusses the health issues associated with living in communities and suggests ways to promote public health planning on the agenda at the local level, particularly in local government. Secondly, several key planning initiatives in Queensland that have created a sustainable foundation for improving health at the local level. These include: - 堠The 'Whole of Government' Regional Framework for Growth Management for Sustainable Futures at a State level; 堠Municipal Public Health Planning, including mechanisms for community engagement and agency partnership planning and implementation. Finally, the paper introduces ideas for an Integrated Approach to Health Planning Implementation within communities and discusses a need for 'signed off' partnerships between agencies.