As found in: HSJ
Since it was created just under a year ago, the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Issues Affecting Men and Boys continually heard that there was a need for an improved focus on men’s health. Those experts who gave evidence for our first report A Boy Today’ were not talking from a discrete disease or condition basis, they were speaking on the need for a whole system change. This includes the responsiveness of the health service and society as a whole.
This promoted the question on whether we should have an overarching strategy or not. Our new report, The Case for a Men’s Health Strategy: For a Healthier, Happier and a More Productive Society for All, concludes that we do need such a strategy. The aim of a strategy would be very simple: To improve the health of all men and boys throughout their life course. It would be underpinned by taking a holistic, evidence-based, positive and gender-informed approach to men’s health.
Listening to the evidence from national and international men’s health experts, there are serious challenges in men and boys’ health. Whether that is in terms of tackling mental health issues such as suicide, health conditions such as cancer, or unhealthy lifestyles underpinned by obesity and alcohol.
For example, nearly one in five men do not live until they are 65, 13 men take their own lives every day and men in some parts of Kensington and Chelsea live 27 years longer than those in some parts of Blackpool.
We heard that the current government individual conditions/disease-based approach is not improving men’s health. It is also a different approach than is being taken with respect to women’s health, for which there will be a strategy published soon, which I welcome.
The evidence was clear that a strategy for men would help. It would address and help prevent the range of underlying causes and barriers that have a negative impact on men’s health, while also making the health system more responsive. These range from social determinants, gender norms, intersectional issues, an unresponsive health system and better focused communications.
For example, despite making up 75 per cent of all suicides, men make up only 34 per cent of those referred to IAPT therapy. Is that because they are not being referred or is that because suicidal men are not accessing the health system in the first place? It could be a combination of course but why are men not accessing the health system and what is being done to address this? Only 46 per cent of men had the NHS Health Check in 2017-18, why are the numbers so low? Of course men need to adapt and help themselves but the evidence we heard was that the primary responsibility has to be on society and the health system to change.
We heard that accountability and targets are important. Which is why it is vital that there is clear ministerial responsibility for improving men’s health and a specific strand of work within the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. There has also to be specific accountabilities for local authorities, NHS Integrated Care Partnerships and mental health trusts.
Quantitative data capture and targets at a local and regional level are important too. Local support would also underpin the quickly growing community-based charities like UK Men’s Sheds, Andy’s Man Clubs and Football Fans in Training. All are saving men’s lives, getting men to talk and improving their health.
The experts also set out examples of why a strategy is a better solution. For instance, if we address suicide, alcoholism or obesity as separate issues, we will fail to see that they often result from similar circumstances.
This is the approach that already exists around the world. The World Health Organisation (Europe) alongside the Irish and Australian governments have strategies. It means one here would not be a radical approach. There is also a head of steam growing for a strategy here due to the national campaign being led by the Men’s Health Forum. This is backed by organisations such as The Patients Association and Prostate Cancer UK, for example.
Certainly the point was also made clear there should not be a deficit-model approach and that the burden for change should not fall on the shoulders of men themselves. Dr John Barry expressed the view that there was too much focus on labelling the inherent aspects of masculinity and men as being a negative.
It was not the role of the APPG to be prescriptive about the actual detail of a strategy. That is for the government and the health sector working with the experts in the field such as men’s health experts and specialist charities. Men need to have their say too.
The final point is a men’s health strategy would benefit not just men and boys themselves; it would benefit women and girls with whom they share their lives and society. Improvements in the health of men and boys, would benefit us all. I am confident that the government and health leaders will see the logic and the case for moving this forward.
