One of the major events on the European health policy arena was held last week - this year with extra focus on the need for stronger efforts to improve and educate hygiene literacy across all ages, demographics, and areas of Europe. The European Health Forum Gastein has since 1998 been a cornerstone for international health policy debate and ideation on key health issues.
Surprisingly, the issue of hygiene and hygiene literacy was new on the agenda this year. In a debate taking place on October 1st, three SafeConsume organizations, Nofima, IFH Home Hygiene, and the Danish Council for Better Hygiene joined forces with the University of Lyon to talk about the need for a better understanding of infectious diseases - and actions to prevent them.
From Nofima, Solveig Langsrud focused on the need for better collaboration and efforts to educate people - and especially children - on how to navigate a modern food system and the challenges of their own home when cooking safely. Sally Bloomfield of IFH Home Hygiene stressed the importance of understanding the principle of targeted hygiene from an early age, while Anders Miki Bojesen on behalf of the Danish Council for Better Hygiene also stressed how stronger efforts were needed to combat AMR now and in the future. And with them, Denis Bourgeois of the University of Lyon reminded everyone of the almost forgotten power of good oral hygiene - and the value of educating health care professionals to teach self-care issues.
In a debate led by Kristine Sorensen of the Global Health Literacy Academy and Lars Münter from the Danish Council for Better Hygiene, the four connected key areas of prevention with a need for a stronger policy focus on hygiene and citizen self-care as a basic building block and solution for a serious of current and future challenges for future health.
The session was organised with the support and collaboration of Curaden, SafeConsume, and the Danish Council for Better Hygiene - and was both a great opportunity to share SafeConsume policy-related results in a core policy arena and to further this essential arena in the general health strategies in Europe - current and in a post-pandemic future.
See the programme and later also watch the session via https://www.ehfg.org/conference/programme/sessions/hygiene-literacy-key-to-a-safer-future
