Annex 1: Inventory of indicators from surveys and registries

� socio-economic groups;
� women and men;
� ethnic groups and;
� geographical regions of the country
In Sweden, equality in health formed a national vision for health policy and ‘efficiency in
measures and equity in outcome’ was expressed in general Swedish welfare policies.
Furthermore, Sweden decided to draw up a comprehensive equity-oriented national public
health strategy for the country. This was done by appointing a political/parliamentary
commission consisting of both politicians and experts and ensuring that the national public
health strategy was coupled to clear priority setting and resource allocation. (Ostin and
Diderichsen (2000) quoted in Swedish national report). Of interest within this context were
particular aspects of the national public health strategy. These included visions, strategic
intents and the first two objectives for a health-friendly society:
Vision
� A health-friendly society gives everyone equal opportunity to influence individual and
shared causes and consequences of sickness and disease.
� In such a society, everyone has the opportunity to manage the challenges of life and to
take personal responsibility for those aspects of health that can be influenced by the
individual.
� Factors in the surrounding environment that cause physical and mental illness, such as
inequitable living conditions and unsanitary environments, have been eliminated to a
significant extent.
Strategic intents
� Strengthen social cohesion and solidarity in society
� Increase opportunities for integration into the labour market and reduce social
exclusion
� Increase the influence and security of people in the workplace
� Give priority to families with children, in economic terms, and in respect of the time
available for being together
� Give children and young people equal chances in life by reducing segregation and
implementing compensatory measures
� Give senior citizens and people with long-term illnesses or disabilities opportunities to
shape their lives according to their needs
� Create opportunities for sustainable enhancement of health
� Increase solidarity with those who are vulnerable to lifestyle risks
(First two) objectives
� Counteraction of the wider disparities in income (Indicator: Gini coefficient under 0.25
(in 1988, 0.25)
Report on the role of Health Promotion in Tackling Inequalities in Health
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