How can we best help our most disadvantaged citizens? A new council for the disadvantaged in the Capital Region of Denmark will attempt to answer this question. One of the areas that the new council for the disadvantaged will deal with is health.
Socially disadvantaged people have a significantly shorter average life expectancy than the rest of the population, and this is due to both lifestyle and habits, but also because many services offered by the health system are not designed to meet the special needs of this group.
- We have particular responsibility to make an extra effort for those whose needs are greatest. We want to ensure that everyone has equal access to health, and therefore we’re now establishing a special council for the disadvantaged, which will argue the case of the socially disadvantaged, including to the politicians of the Regional Council.
- It’s incredibly important to me that we receive concrete input from the users, so we can best support their wishes and needs for a better life, said the Chairman of the Regional Council Sophie Hæstorp Andersen (Social Democrats).
Broad foundation
The council for the disadvantaged has a broad foundation involving representatives from a large number of voluntary organisations, with concrete daily experience, for instance of the interaction between shelters/residences, municipalities and the health service.
It is therefore hoped that the council for the disadvantaged can suggest aspects of the collaboration that can be improved and thus ensure that the socially disadvantaged have a better quality of life.
- The council for the disadvantaged will not deal with individual cases, but will examine the structure and help make sure that valuable knowledge also reaches the policy makers.
- It will help ensure that the most disadvantaged have a voice, including in the Regional Council, and therefore help our health service become better organised, says Sophie Hæstorp Andersen.
Ensure dialogue
One of the tasks of the council for the disadvantaged is to plan an annual meeting at which the council will meet representatives of the various user groups and politicians and enter into a dialogue about chosen subjects. In addition, the council for the disadvantaged will work to ensure dialogue between the administration, politicians and socially disadvantaged citizens.
Facts about the council for the disadvantaged:
The council for the disadvantaged is composed of 12 representatives from voluntary organisations, municipalities and regional actors who work with socially disadvantaged citizens and have in-depth knowledge of their needs.
The 12 organisations are:
- Reden København (Danish YMCA)
- SIND
- WeShelter
- Omsorgscenter Thorsgade (Red Cross)
- Børns Vilkår (child support group)
- Gadejuristen (legal aid group)
- SAND - De hjemløses landsorganisation (the Danish national organisation for homeless people)
- LAP - Landsforeningen af nuværende og tidligere psykiatribrugere (the national association for current and previous psychiatry users)
- Socialsygeplejerskerne (the Social Nurses)
- Sociolancen (collaboration between the Capital Region of Denmark, the City of Copenhagen and Hovedstadens Beredskab)
- Kompetencecenter for Dobbeltdiagnoser i Region Hovedstadens Psykiatri (part of the mental services at the Capital Region of Denmark)
- Den Sociale Virksomhed (the Social Enterprise), Capital Region of Denmark
Further information:
- Regional Council Chairman Sophie Hæstorp Andersen (Social Democrats), via press office, tel.: +45 70 20 95 88