PARTNERS IN CHANGE - HEALTHY WEIGHT ACTION PLAN

Since 2018, Health Consumers’ Council has been working in partnership with the Department of Health and the WA Primary Health Alliance (WAPHA) to ensure the consumer voice is front and centre of policy and service planning in the area of overweight and obesity.

After months of work, including a consumer survey, focus groups and community conversations – as well as forums involving health professionals, policy makers and other staff, the Minister for Health launched the WA Healthy Weight Action Plan 2019-2024 on Tuesday 26 November 2019. It’s available at https://ww2.health. wa.gov.au/Articles/U_Z/WA-Healthy-Weight-Action-Plan

Currently, approximately 67% of the WA adult population lives with obesity or overweight. The impacts of overweight and obesity are many and varied and people experience them differently – differently from each other and differently at different points in their lives. Many people live with overweight and obesity quite happily. Many others have struggled with their weight for years and describe a sense of resignation that anything will ever work in their efforts to manage their weight. Others again have had positive experiences in taking action to manage their weight, describing success in their efforts.

The Plan includes strategies for action over the next five years to tackle the complex causes of overweight and obesity and aims to drive long-term change across WA. In his statement launching the plan, the Minister stated that the goal is for WA to become the State with the highest percentage of population with a healthy weight in ten years.

Since the Minister launched the Action Plan, HCC staff have been meeting with the team at the Department of Health and WAPHA to discuss the ways in which the plan will be brought to life. The main focus of the discussions so far has been how the Obesity Collaborative (action 1.1) and the Community for Change (action 1.2) will work in practice.

HCC believes it is important that the conversations are informed by real experiences of people managing their weight.

On our website you can read a summary of consumer engagement activities, a presentation that Pip Brennan gave at the Obesity Forum in 2018, and watch two videos where consumers share their stories – https:// www.hconc.org.au/issues/partners-in-change-obesitycollaborative/

A bold plan for change

HCC believes the Action Plan outlines a plan that is not “business as usual” for the health system. We are particularly interested in the inclusion of the actions that recognise a new way of working is needed to really impact on this complex health issue. We look forward to the establishment of the WA Obesity Collaborative and the Community of Change that will provide platforms for people with lived experience, health professionals and policy makers to work together to take positive action.