Navigation menu

Researchers roll out 2008 Kent Survey of Health and Lifestyle

Researchers at the Centre for Health Services Studies(CHSS) have started work on the follow-up to Kent County Council's (KCC) 2005 Health and Lifestyle Survey.

The aim of the 2005 survey, which involved experts from KCC and the National Health Service, was to learn more about health and behaviour across the county, and establish the needs of local people. 5,800 adults responded to the 2005 questionnaire, which provided important data on physical activity, obesity in the general population and those who act as unpaid carers. Their responses also contributed to other important policy areas such as mental health.

The aim of the 2008 follow-up survey, which is currently being mailed out to 12,000 people across the county, is to help the NHS and local government target services to local needs, and will focus particularly on exercise and physical activity.

Dr Ann Palmer, Honorary Senior Research Fellow at CHSS and the principal investigator, said: 'We are very pleased that KCC continues to promote the importance of physical activity; we are also delighted that they have once again called upon the expertise and experience of the University's Health and Social Survey Unit for the new survey.'

Dr Palmer also emphasised the importance of the current and previous surveys: 'By running the survey every few years, it is possible to get up-to-date information on factors that affect the health of the public, and track where change is happening.'

KCC Cabinet Member for Public Health, Alan Marsh, said: 'Getting more people to lead active lives is one of our main priorities in Kent. This survey enables us to measure how successful we have been through initiatives such as Healthwalks, Activmobs, lifestyle referral programmes, healthy schools and a multitude of other initiatives around the county.

'We need to show aspects of what a difference good health makes to people's quality of life. Look back a few weeks at the success of our athletes at the Olympics and even more so at the Paralympics. These successes are an opportunity to show all young people what they can achieve, and KCC can provide every opportunity across all its directorates to provide this motivation and stimulus.'Results from the 2005 Kent Survey of Health and Lifestyle are available online.

Contact: mediaoffice@kent.ac.uk

Story published at 3:43pm 8 October 2008