New study to examine health issues linked to Hartlepool's alcohol intake

Tees Valley Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Governing Body heard at its latest meeting how work is to be carried out with partners in each area of the region to help tackle different health inequalities.

In Hartlepool, health chiefs are to work with organisations in the area to look at issues with alcohol, how it can impact health and wellbeing along with potential wider problems linked to its use.

Karen Hawkins, CCG director of commissioning, strategy and delivery for primary and community care, told how important it is to work to tackle such health inequalities.

She said: “We are working with primary care networks and with all of the local authorities and directors of public health to look at health inequalities.

“Hartlepool as an area, all practices across Hartlepool, will be working together in terms of alcohol.

“It’s linked very much with the health and wellbeing priorities and making sure that we’re looking at health inequalities, not just from a health care perspective, but looking at that through the lens of population health and the wider determinants of health.”

The plans will also include working with community, mental health, social care, pharmacy, hospital and voluntary services in Hartlepool.

Elsewhere across the CCG area, Stockton health chiefs will be looking at healthy weight, Middlesbrough’s will be focusing on existing poverty and poor mental health while Darlington’s will target the elderly and loneliness.