On Tuesday 18th July, AHPA Board Director Melinda Edmunds and AHPA Executive Officer Rebecca Zosel met with the Hon. Mark Butler MP, Australian Minister for Health and Aged Care and his Deputy Chief of Staff, Clare Firth.
We were pleased to have a wide-ranging discussion that included:
- The role of AHPA as the peak body for health promotion in Australia and our unique workforce
- The importance of building health promotion capacity over the long term, and AHPA's efforts to increase workforce registration, such as our partnership with Wellbeing SA
- The successful South Australian Health in All Policies initiative
- The complexity of health issues such as obesity, and the government's commitment to tackling the root causes of poor health
- Why health promotion is central to the establishment of an Australian Centre for Disease Control
- AHPA's National Health Promotion Symposium in October in Geelong, Victoria.
AHPA as the peak body for health promotion in Australia actively engages with politicians to advocate for greater focus, commitment and investment in health promotion and illness prevention.
We thank Minister Butler for his time and look forward to continuing to work with the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care to deliver the National Preventive Health Strategy 2021-2030 and create a healthy, equitable Australia.
Read AHPA's Health Promotion and Illness Prevention Position Statement.