Recommendations for Effective Intersectoral Collaboration in Health Promotion Interventions: Results from Joint...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Policy
• Chronic Disease Prevention

Background:

• Europe faces a growing burden of chronic diseases, driven by lifestyle risk factors like sedentary behavior, alcohol abuse, smoking, and poor diet.
• Addressing these complex factors necessitates intersectoral collaboration to strengthen health promotion and mitigate social determinants of health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify success factors and underlying mechanisms for intersectoral collaboration in health promotion activities.
• To explore 20 health promotion interventions implemented within the Joint Action CHRODIS-PLUS framework.

Main Methods:

• A mixed-method design was employed, including a survey of 22 project partners across 14 countries and two workshops.
• Six semi-structured interviews were conducted to examine the mechanisms behind identified success factors.
• Analysis of 20 national health promotion interventions from CHRODIS-PLUS, involving collaboration across multiple sectors.

Main Results:

• Key success factors for intersectoral collaboration in health promotion were identified.
• Mechanisms underlying these success factors were explored, highlighting context-specific insights for replication.
• Interventions involved collaboration across three to over six sectors, encompassing community actions, policy, integrated approaches, capacity building, and training.

Conclusions:

• Seven essential recommendations are proposed for fostering effective intersectoral collaboration.
• Strengthening health promotion activities through collaboration is crucial for reducing the prevalence of chronic diseases in Europe.