Progress towards Healthy Ageing in Europe: to promote active healthy lifestyles in 45-68 year olds through workplace, rather than traditional health-related settings

Abstract

Purpose – Progress towards Healthy Ageing in Europe has been a two-year European funded project led by Suffolk County Council Public Health and involving five European Union (EU) member nations. The purpose of this paper is to share the learning from the project as it relates to early preventative activity to promote healthy active ageing. The population of interest are those people in the mid-life age group of 45-68 years accessed via the workplace. Design/methodology/approach – Qualitative research applying an online Health Manager tool and focus group discussions. Transnational work to learn from other EU countries about approaches to promote healthy active ageing. Findings – A comprehensive account of all project findings is available via the following web site: www.progresshealthyageing.eu This paper outlines the findings from the UK regional activity of the application of an online Health Manager™ tool to employees from Suffolk in the 45-68 year age group. Research limitations/implications – The research limitations related to smaller cohorts (ca. 1,000 participants) as opposed to large-scale surveys. The phenomenon of the “healthy worker effect” (Shah, 2009), may be a limitation as the population of interest in this age group were mainly employed and in paid employment. The healthy worker effect implies that those who are employed are already “healthier” due to being employed. The further limitation of the timescale for the intervention and project funding as a resource limitation precludes longer term follow-up and evidence collection to find out if behaviour change in participants has been sustained over time. Social implications – The findings of the EU Project have contributed towards the Europe 2020 Strategy. Locally the findings from the project have supported Suffolk County Council's ambition to be the most active county in England. The findings have added momentum to local workplace health initiatives by providing a focus for the needs of the older workforce. Learning from the Project has also informed development of the Suffolk Workplace Challenge. Originality/value – This paper provides a review on a European project, Progress towards Healthy Ageing in Europe.