Health and Wellbeing Queensland

This year has been a remarkable chapter in our journey towards enhancing the health and wellbeing of Queenslanders. As we build on our organisation’s first five years, we remain passionately committed to our GenQ vision to see children born today experiencing better health outcomes than the generations of Queenslanders before them.    Our impact in 2024 has been significant as we continue to reach new milestones. None of this would be possible without the dedication and passion of our teams and the vital partnerships we share with communities, stakeholders and partners across the state. Together, we’re creating a healthier, more connected state.   To read more about our impact, we encourage you to view our GenQ Impact Report which shares powerful stories from the communities we have served since our inception in 2019 > https://lnkd.in/gxxsRGrY   To everyone in our Health and Wellbeing Queensland family and the communities we serve, thank you for another incredible year. We look forward to 2025 and are ready to build on this year’s success to continue making healthy happen.

New findings from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) Australian Burden of Disease Study 2024 reveal that overweight and obesity have overtaken smoking as the leading risk factor impacting Australians' health and wellbeing. Overweight and obesity now accounts for 8.3% of the total disease burden, compared to 7.6% for tobacco use.  This marks a pivotal moment in public health, as the impacts of overweight and obesity ripple across our communities, affecting individuals of all ages.  At Health and Wellbeing Queensland, our Making Healthy Happen Strategy has never been more relevant. The strategy takes a systems change approach to prevent, reduce and treat obesity by: ✔️ addressing the underlying environments that contribute to unhealthy weight ✔️ partnering with communities to empower people to stay as healthy as they can be ✔️ embedding prevention and early intervention into Queensland’s health care system. Explore the Making Healthy Happen strategy and action plan ➡️ https://lnkd.in/gJ8jFdRW For more details on the findings: https://lnkd.in/ggywjk4j 

Sports have a unique power to bring people together, foster connections, and promote physical activity and wellbeing. That’s why we’re excited to share an incredible opportunity for Queensland innovators to contribute to the future of rugby league! Advance Queensland (AQ) and the National Rugby League (NRL) have teamed up to launch the 2025 NRL Magic Round Tech Sprint, a unique innovation partnership inviting Queensland-based small businesses to tackle key challenges in rugby league. This 10-week industry access program, delivered in collaboration with the Australian Sports Technology Network (ASTN), is designed to help up to eight businesses refine and adapt their technologies with the guidance of NRL experts. Successful applicants will receive $25,000 in funding to participate and showcase their solutions during the 2025 NRL Magic Round in Brisbane. 🔍 The NRL is seeking innovative solutions in areas such as: 1. Strengthen the appeal and engagement for new audiences 2. Better engage Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) fans 3. Enhance the in-stadium experience 4. Better enable volunteers and administrators to improve the participation experience 5. Boost the accessibility and appeal of stats to drive user engagement 6. Elevate the quality of the fan experience for those watching at home 7. Advance performance excellence and promote long-term career health for NRL/NRLW athletes. Whether your business is already in the sports sector or operates in another industry with adaptable technology, this is your chance to make an impact in rugby league and beyond. Applications close 9 January 2025. Learn more and apply here > https://lnkd.in/egDxvjdZ #Innovation #SportsTech #QueenslandBusiness #NRL #AdvanceQueensland #MagicRound2025

Friends play a pivotal role in whether young people remain physically active or not, according to senior students from Woodridge State High School and Kelvin Grove State College. The students told us that when physical activity involved their friends, they were more likely to get involved.     Students also spoke to the barriers of cost, accessibility, and the pervasive distraction of social media on their ability to prioritise physical activity.      Health and Wellbeing Queensland visited these schools in August as part of our Motivate + Activate pilot program, an action under the Making Healthy Happen 2032 Strategy, in collaboration with Children's Health Queensland Hospital and Health Service’s School Based Youth Health Nurse Service.  During the interactive workshops the students explored real-world issues that prevented them from being active, and what motivated or inspired them to move.   A video capturing the fun, interactive nature of the workshops can be viewed here 👉 https://lnkd.in/gb6e-WEJ    With less than 25% of Australian children aged 5 – 17 years meeting the recommended amount of physical activity each day, it is more important than ever to work with young people to co-design the right type of messaging and campaigns that will get them moving more. The students emphasised their preference for short-form content on platforms like YouTube, Instagram and Tik Tok, particularly from creators of similar age and demographics. These insights will help us to craft real-world digital content that truly connects with and inspires young people across Queensland to participate in daily activity.

Healthy Outback Communities launches in Boulia 🥕 Healthy Outback Communities (HOC) brought health and wellbeing to the heart of Western Queensland, launching in the remote outback town of Boulia, on Pitta Pitta, Kalkadoon, Yulluna, Yalarrnga, Bularnu Waluwarra Wangkayuju and Wangkamahdla country. Hosted at the Boulia Shire Hall, the Boulia Family Fun Day was a celebration of health, resilience, and connection, marking the beginning of an exciting journey for the Shire. Health and wellbeing took centre stage with: ⭐ Free health checks ⭐ Local health and community services information stands showcasing year-round support and services available in the region ⭐ Kids' activities & footy fun ⭐ Food trucks and entertainment Our Director of Policy, Joanna Munro, joined the Western Queensland PHN and alliance members in Boulia to commemorate this significant milestone. HOC is a game-changer for Western Queensland, ensuring residents have greater access to preventive health and wellness services, reducing the need for hospital visits, preventing long-term health issues and fostering healthy behaviours. It aims to build new care networks, co-designed and managed by the communities in which they operate. Health and Wellbeing Queensland is thrilled to be part of this journey and support communities like Boulia in their quest for healthier futures. BOULIA SHIRE COUNCIL Central West Hospital and Health Service CheckUP Australia Health Consumers Queensland Royal Flying Doctor Service (Queensland Section) Western Queensland PHN BUSHkids

This week, members of the Health and Wellbeing Queensland team visited Cooktown, on Guugu Yimithirr country to connect with the Cook Shire Council, updating them on the progress of our partnership, which has been delivering positive outcomes for the community over the past year. Through this partnership, we’ve accomplished some important milestones: 🥕 Expanded healthy eating programs like Pick of the Crop, which now supports all eight local schools 📗 Shared valuable resources such as Podsquad information for local community libraries ⭐ Collaborated on food security strategies in the Coen community, focusing on long-term access to healthy food options   Since our agreement in late 2023, we’ve been meeting regularly with the Council to drive our shared initiatives forward. Our focus areas include food security, increasing physical activity, and supporting workplace wellbeing, particularly for children and young people. Looking to 2025, we’re excited to expand the working group, engage even more community members, and launch new initiatives such as the 10,000 Steps workplace challenge.

Strengthening global partnerships 🌏 We were delighted to host delegates from the Shanghai Municipal Health Commission and the Shanghai Disease Control and Prevention Administration during their two-day visit to Queensland. This exchange provided a valuable opportunity for both sides to share knowledge and learnings on a range of topics crucial to public health, including governance, funding, partnerships, and innovative prevention models. With a population larger than the whole of Australia, Shanghai's commitment to integrating health into all policies is both inspiring and reassuring. We share the desire to create healthy environments where communities can thrive, regardless of size or geography. During the discussion, we learnt more about the ‘Healthy Shanghai’ Action Plan which includes 100 sub-initiatives such as promoting the construction of healthy cities and villages, through to healthy cell engineering and a psychological emergency intervention system. Their focus on health across physical infrastructure to psychological wellbeing underscores the importance of taking a multi-systems approach. We look forward to continuing this dialogue and learning from each other as we focus on building healthier communities. 🤝 #Prevention #HealthyCommunities #HealthPartnerships #PublicHealth Gemma Hodgetts Sandra Pavey Joanna Munro Annie La Hogue Mark Tuohy

Celebrating great Gather + Grow Healthy Stores progress! With the signing of a collaborative research agreement, this 3.5 year project is continually being informed and strengthened by an ongoing research project in partnership with Monash University, The University of Queensland, and Menzies School of Health Research. Gather + Grow Healthy Stores has been applying health-enabling changes and activities to improve in-store food retail environments in Queensland’s Far North and Lower Gulf. Grocery stores can be full of unhealthy options, which makes it hard for people to choose food and drinks that support their health and wellbeing. The Gather + Grow Healthy Stores project is shaking up these food environments and aiming to empower customers to make healthier choices. Since 2021, in partnership with Community Enterprise Queensland, Health and Wellbeing Queensland are building the capacity and capability of remote food stores to make healthier food environments a reality for remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. The success of the overarching Gather + Grow program has seen steps taken to address healthy food availability, accessibility, and utilisation, with a strong research and evaluation component embedded within the work. Exciting times ahead as we continue this important work in FNQ! #remotefoodsecurity #healthystores #UQ #Menzies #Monash

Join us for the final ConnectingQ ECHO® Learning Session of the year. Topic: Health and Wellbeing Queensland Prevention Program Data Driven Service Delivery – From Proving to Improving. Date: Thursday, 21 November Time: 12-1pm Participants will hear learnings from Health and Wellbeing Queensland Prevention Program partner, 10,000 Steps, on the use of data to inform program design and delivery. Health and Wellbeing Queensland currently invests $21 million each year through partnerships with preventive health agencies to deliver a suite of high-quality, evidence-based chronic disease prevention programs that are accessible and free of charge to all Queenslanders. In 2021, we engaged the The University of Queensland’s Institute of Social Science Research as our program evaluation partner to co-design, implement and assess tailored performance monitoring and evaluation tools to improve data collection and analysis. The successful strategic evaluation process continues to inform and enhance Prevention Program service delivery, upholding its unique intent to transition from proving to improving.    ConnectingQ members are invited to register to participate in this one-hour online session: https://lnkd.in/gEb8xd4p Speakers will include:   • Dr Mark Robinson, University of Queensland institute of Social Science Research  • Ms Anetta Van Itallie, Program Manager 10,000 Steps   Not a member? Join the network today at hw.qld.gov.au/connectingq/

Residents in Yarrabah are harvesting the benefits of a new Foodcubes pilot project, aimed at boosting food security in Far North Queensland. 🌱 Since June, Yarrabah Aboriginal Shire Council, Health and Wellbeing Queensland, and the University of the Sunshine Coast have partnered to bring Foodcubes, a small-scale gardening project, to the community. Funded through a UniSC grant, the project connects local families with home gardening, enabling them to grow and cook their own fresh produce. Starting with two Foodcubes at Yarrabah Daycare, the project has grown in popularity, with ten families joining and even more eager to participate. Health and Wellbeing Queensland has now committed to expanding the pilot with an additional 12 Foodcubes. Beyond providing fresh produce, Foodcubes fosters social and emotional wellbeing by encouraging physical activity and community connection. It’s a key action under the Queensland Government’s Gather + Grow Strategy, focused on sustainable food security solutions for remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. We know how important it is to engage with communities to identify and implement solutions that will have meaningful, lasting impact.