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| Whose job is it to build healthy neighbourhoods? The British National Health Service must use its massive building programme to act as a 'good corporate' citizen through clever design and imaginative thinking, new health minister, Andy Burnham said. Speaking at the launch of Health week 2006 in London, the minister emphasised the effect of the local environment on health costs and outcomes. But it was not enough to concentrate on hospitals or clinics. He said, the NHS had to take seriously its wider impact on a local community, by supporting local economies and promoting sustainable development. Improving people's working and living environments, and supporting new green space, were important influences on people’s health that needed to be part of the overall solution. In a week-long investigation 15-19 May, the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) is taking a detailed look at the relationship between health and the built environment. Speakers from clinical practice, building design, research and public health will discuss the issues and share ideas. In other Health Week events: John Sorrell will chair Public consultation: help or hype?, an event bringing together young people and nurses to share their experiences of the design process. The Tuesday evening session, What's so special about hospitals? is expected to be a lively event, with Paul Finch in the chair and architects Andrew Barnet (Hopkins), John Cooper (Anshen Dyer) and Mike Nightingale (Nightingale Associates) debating what they believe is the future for hospitals. Paul Gocke, Director for London Mental Health Strategy at the London Development Centre, will be speaking at How physical surroundings affect mental health. The latest gadget for home assistance by Professor Heinz Wolff will be on show and Jeremy Porteus, National Lead for the Department of Health's Housing and Telecare Networks Health and Social Care Change Agent Team will be joining Designing homes for healthcare, a discussion about how our existing housing stock must respond to future levels of homecare. Roger Ulrich from the departments of Architecture and Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning, Texas A&M University, will be speaking at The benefit of hindsight, a discussion of ways to evaluate the benefits of well-designed healthcare buildings. write your comments about the article :: © 2006 Construction News :: home page |