Table 2.
Essential public health operations and environmental public health operations in the Netherlands
| Essential public health operations, WHOa | Essential environmentalpublic health operations | Examples of daily practice | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Surveillance of population health and wellbeing | 1 | Surveillance, evaluation, and analysis of (the determinants of) environmental health and wellbeing | Monitor and register notifications and questions of citizens |
| Add questions regarding environmental health to the national health monitor | ||||
| 2 | Monitoring and response to health hazards and emergencies | 2 | Monitoring and response to environmental health hazards and emergencies | Communication of health risks after small incidents |
| Follow-up and monitoring of health complaints after a fire containing asbestos | ||||
| 3 | Health protection including environmental occupational, food safety and others | 3 | Health protection, enforce laws and regulations that protect environmental health and ensure safety | Including health in the revised law on intensive farming |
| 4 | Health Promotion including action to address social determinants and health inequity | 4 | Health promotion, including action to address social determinants, health inequity and health literacy | Organise information sessions about health effects of atmospheric pollution |
| Campaigning for healthy climates inside buildings and houses | ||||
| 9 | Advocacy communication and social mobilisation for health | 4 | Health promotion, including action to address social determinants of environmental public health, health ine + D20quity and health literacy | |
| 5 | Disease prevention, including early detection of illness | 5 | Disease prevention, diagnosis and investigation of environmental health problems and health hazards | Analyse and follow-up of notifications from citizens |
| Active research on healthy enviroments within schools and learning outcomes | ||||
| 6 | Assuring governance for health and wellbeing | 6 | Assuring governance for health, support environmental health public policy | Advise local governments on new housing next to power pylons |
| Advise local governments on how to handle asbestos in primary schools | ||||
| 7 | Assuring a sufficient and competent public health workforce | 7 | Assuring a sufficient and competent environmental public health workforce | Supervision of trainees |
| Development of a curriculum on environmental public health | ||||
| 8 | Assuring sustainable organisational structures and financing | 8 | Assuring sustainable organisational structures, enforcement of the quality of health services | Participation in quality policy like the Harmonisation Quality Evaluation in the social service sector (HKZ) |
| Enforcing quality + E29 of health care (organisation and quality of environmental public health services) | ||||
| 10 | Advancing public health research to inform policy and practice | 9 | Advancing research and development on environmental public health | Conducting scientific research on environmental public health |
| Development of new health promotion materials to promote environmental public health | ||||
| 10 | Regional consultation and support | Advising neighbouring environmental public health services |
aEuropean Action Plan for Strengthening Public Health Capacities and Services
Malta: World Health Organisation, regional office for Europe, 2012