Self-assessment tool for cross-sectoral health promotion

Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, 00079 Metropolia, Finland

^* Corresponding author: Kaija.Matinheikki@metropolia.fi

Abstract

Finding sustainable solutions to complex health and well-being problems requires cross-sectoral cooperation. The Healthy Boost project, funded by the EU Baltic Sea Programme (2019-2021), together with 14 partners from seven countries, created a model and tools for enhancing cross-sectoral cooperation. The Self-Assessment Tool (SA) presented in this article was co-created and validated to enable different city sectors to identify their current state of cross-sectoral co-operation to promote urban health and well-being. Based on pilot self-assessment data, significant differences within and between cities exist, as regards their engagement in cross-sectoral cooperation. The most noticeable challenges were the ability to coordinate cross-sectoral cooperation, the lack of common cross-sectoral tools, communication, and resources. Based on the pilot feedback, the revised digital and matrix-based SA tool was developed. The revised SA tool provides both numerical and descriptive, verbal feedback on the state of cooperation between the city sectors. The revised SA tool has been made available to users in several languages and is intended for all professionals in different sectors of cities.