Increased prevention for non-communicable diseases
Cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes and other noncommunicable diseases cost a lot of money and cause great suffering. A national strategy of the federal government, the cantons and Health Promotion Switzerland aims to address this.
The five non-communicable diseases cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, respiratory diseases and muscoskeletal diseases place a heavy burden on the national economy - and cause a great deal of human suffering. Yet a healthy lifestyle and a health-promoting environment could do much to reduce the incidence of these diseases.
The National Strategy Prevention of Noncommunicable Diseases of the federal government, the cantons and the organization Health Promotion Switzerland aims to tackle risk factors. These include lack of exercise, unbalanced diet, alcohol abuse and tobacco consumption.
Although various prevention programs on these topics have been underway for years, stakeholders foresee even greater numbers of cases and follow-up costs for Switzerland in the future due to demographic trends and changes in lifestyle.
For this reason, the National Strategy aims to better coordinate efforts and activities and to use resources for prevention more efficiently. Specifically, it provides an orientation framework for this purpose, which the actors can use as a guide.
The aim of the strategy is to reduce the number of cases of the disease - regardless of the social status of those affected. It also aims to prevent the development of these diseases through early detection and treatment. Finally, it aims to mitigate the consequences for those affected and their families. In general, the strategy aims to improve the quality of life of the population and to enable as many people as possible to live additional years in good health.
The draft strategy is still in consultation until September 28, with implementation planned from 2017.
