The Health Promoting Hospitals and Health Services (HPH) concept has been in development since 1988. This database aims to support the development of HPH and is a key resource for everyone working in the field of health improvement across health service organisations.
 
The database will help health professionals access information efficiently, share knowledge, highlight potential areas for new work or collaboration and identify strengths and weaknesses from the information gathered.
 
The database will store information on any initiative, project or activity that:

• enables people to increase control over and improve their health;
• helps healthcare settings promote the health of their patients, staff and local communities; and
• embraces the aims of health promotion.

 
Initiatives, projects or activities will relate to:

• Organisational management: health improvement/promotion policies or initiatives which are an integral part of an organisation’s quality management system.
• Quality of life improvement: initiatives to support patient treatment, to improve prognosis and promote patients’ health and wellbeing.
• Patient information and empowerment: initiatives that ensure patients are informed about planned activities that enable them to participate actively in such activities, and that facilitate integration of health improvement/promotion initiatives in all patient care.
• Promoting a healthy workplace: policies or initiatives that support a healthy and safe environment for staff, or promote staff health and wellbeing.
• Working in partnership or collaboration with others: initiatives involving other health service facilities, voluntary organisations or non-HSC bodies, or multi-professional groups within an organisation.

 
It is important to note that it is not the intention of the HPA to identify every initiative in Northern Ireland. Data collection is dependent on self-selection and not on a restrictive representative sample.
 
The descriptions of the projects included in the database are those of the contributors. While the database is complied by the HPA, the inclusion of initiatives does not signify endorsement. Every effort has been made to ensure that this information is accurate, however no responsibility (legal or otherwise) is accepted by the HPA for any errors, omissions or otherwise.
 
More information on HPH is available at www.healthpromotionagency.org.uk