The 18^th annual Health Promotion Research Centre Summer Conference will take place at NUI Galway on Wednesday, 11 June in Áras Moyola. Plenary lectures, workshops, oral and poster presentations will focus on ‘Applying the Principles of Health Promotion to Population Health Improvement’.  

In the context of the national policy framework ‘Healthy Ireland’, which was launched last, this conference brings together practitioners, researchers, academics and policy makers to consider the impact of Health Promotion on population health and how the core principles of Health Promotion can be applied in Ireland.

Professor Louise Potvin, who holds the Canada Research Chair in Community Approaches and Health Inequalities at the Université de Montréal, Canada will deliver a keynote lecture which argues for population health intervention research as an emerging yet fundamental science for Health Promotion. Professor Potvin said: “It is vital that we base interventions to improve health on clear good-quality research and ensure that this is translated into policy and practice nationally and internationally. We should also manage to learn more from the innovative practices of practitioners and community organisations and research their efforts to improve the local conditions.”

Dr Antony Morgan, an epidemiologist and Associate Director, at the Centre for Public Health Excellence, National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), England, will discuss the Assets Model for improving health and wellbeing. The Assets Model, rather than focusing on a deficits or needs approach, identifies the potential strengths of individuals and communities and promotes joint solutions between communities and outside agencies. Dr Morgan said: “The Assets model provides some of the answers to unlocking persistent barriers to reducing health inequalities at the population level.”

Biddy O’Neill, Barry McGinn and Cate Hartigan of the HSE will bring the national perspective to the plenary sessions in the conference. The implications and opportunities for Health and Wellbeing services in Ireland as a result of implementation of Healthy Ireland and the impact on service management and evaluation will be discussed. This session is relevant to delegates as practitioners or indeed as service users.  

Participants will also hear and debate the latest research on alcohol misuse, food environments, men’s health and physical activity promotion affecting the Irish population across the life span.

Dr Saoirse Nic Gabhainn, Senior Lecturer and Chair of the Annual Conference 2014, said: “The conference is a key event in the Health Promotion calendar in Ireland and it provides a unique opportunity to debate the issues and challenges facing Ireland as it strives to be a healthy society. The platform provided by the conference will help to showcase and disseminate the impact of health promotion on population health improvement in Ireland.”

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