Healthy Children: Transforming Child Health Information

Providing a good start in life and enabling children to achieve their full

potential and be physically and emotionally healthy provides the cornerstone

for a healthy, productive adulthood1.

Public Health England and the NHS Outcomes Framework 2015/162 stress

that a focus on children’s health is essential and that we should be striving to

provide the best start in life possible for our children. The recent National

Maternity Review3 has highlighted that this begins not just with the newborn

child but with the mother’s experiences in pregnancy and the birth itself.

The importance of ensuring this good start for the future health of children for

the sustainability of the NHS and the economic prosperity of Britain is one of

the key themes of the Five Year Forward View4.

Across health and social care and education there is now a determined focus

on improving outcomes for children’s health and wellbeing. Emphasis is on

the importance of early interventions and preventive measures in improving

health, more coordinated approaches to health and wellbeing and giving

greater weight to the voices of children, young people, parents and families to

develop effective care strategies.

Access to information and effective information services have a strong role to

play in supporting this agenda.

This forward view outlines a new vision for how child health information can

support parents and professionals in their direct care for children and young

people and how the same information can be used to promote their health

and wellbeing.

We set out the case for restructuring our information services and systems for

children, young people, parents and families so they can contribute fully to

improving their health and wellbeing and collaborate easily with professionals

across the spectrum of care.