The International Network of Health Promoting Hospitals and Health Services (HPH) was initiated by WHO-Euro in 1990. HPH promotes health promotion in and by hospitals as a strategy to improve the health gain of patients and relatives, staff, community and bystanders. HPH combines a vision, a concept, a set of 18 core strategies and 5 standards that can be linked with the organisation's quality management.

In 1986, the re-orientation of health care settings was formulated as one of the major action areas of health promotion in the WHO Ottawa Charter. WHO-Euro initiated conceptual discussions around HPH in 1988, and in 1989 the first pilot health promoting hospital project was set up at the Rudolfstiftung Hospital in Vienna, Austria. Two years later, the International Network of Health Promoting Hospitals was initiated by WHO with the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for the Sociology of Health and Medicine (LBISHM) designated as its first co-ordinating centre. The Budapest Declaration on Health Promoting Hospitals was launched in 1991 as the first policy document of the network, and a European pilot project with 20 participating hospitals from 11 countries was conducted from 1993-1997.

 

The following hospitals participated in the project:

• Austria: Rudolfstiftung Hospital, Vienna
• Czech Republic: City Hospital, Prague
• France: Vaugirard Hospital, Paris
• Germany: City Hospital, Chemnitz, Alten Eichen Hospital, Hamburg, St. Bernward Hospital, Hildesheim, St. Irmingard Hospital, Prien, Philipps Hospital, Riedstadt
• United Kingdom: England: Preston Acute Hospital NHS Trust, Preston, Northern Ireland: Altnagelvin Area Hospital, Londonderry, Scotland: Stobhill NHS Trust, Glasgow, Wales: Prince Philip Hospital, Llanelli
• Greece: Areteion Hospital, Athens
• Hungary: Koranyi Hospital, Budapest
• Ireland: James Connolly Hospital, Dublin
• Italy: Vittore Buzzi Children's Hospital, Milan, University Hospital, Padova
• Poland: Upper-Silesian Rehabilitation Centre Repty, Ustron, Children's Memorial Health Institute, Warsaw
• Sweden: University Hospital, Linköping

At the end of the pilot project, a new policy document of the network was launched: the Vienna Recommendations on Health Promoting Hospitals >> (WHO 1997). In 1995, national / regional networks of HPH started to develop, partly supported by the European Commission (DG SANCO).

 

The International Network consists now of around 800 member organisations in 36 national / regional networks in 24 countries, as well as independent members in 17 countries distributed over all continents:

Australia		Italy / Friuli-Venezia-Giulia
Austria		Italy / Liguria
Belgium / French Community		Italy / Lombardia
Bulgaria		Italy / Piemont
Canada / Montréal		Italy / Trentino
Canada / Ontario		Italy / Tuscany
China / Taiwan		Italy / Veneto
Czech Republic		Lithuania
Estonia		Norway
Finland		Russian Federation
France		Slovakia
Germany		Spain / Catalania
Greece		Sweden
Ireland		Switzerland
Italy		UK / Northern Ireland
Italy / Aosta Valley		UK / Scotland
Italy / Calabria		USA / Connecticut
Italy / Campania		USA / Pennsylvania
Italy / Emilia Romagna

 

 

Many more countries and hospitals are regularly participating in the annual international HPH conferences which have been organised since 1993 in Warsaw, Padova, Linköping, Londonderry, Vienna, Darmstadt, Swansea, Athens, Copenhagen, Bratislava, Florence, Moscow, Dublin, Lithuania, Vienna, Berlin, Hersonissos, Manchester, and in 2011 Turku.

A semi-annual HPH-Newsletter was issued from 1993 until 2007, and is published bi-monthly since 2008.

 

International task forces support the continuous adaptation of HPH concepts, strategies and implementation for specific types of health services or with regard to specific topics. At present, the following task forces exist:

• Health promoting psychiatric health services
• Health promotion for children and adolescents in & by hospitals and health services
• Migrant Friendly and Culturally Competent Hospitals and Health Services
• Tobacco-Free United
• Alcohol and Alcohol Intervention
• HPH & Environment

Temporary working groups produce specific outcomes like the 18 HPH core strategies which are the result of the working group "Putting HPH Policy into Action", and the 5 standards for health promotion in hospitals with a related self-assessment tool which were produced by the Working Group on Standards for Health Promotion in Hospitals.

 

In May 2008, by signing its constitution, the HPH network became an international non-profit association (under Swiss law) with specific relation to WHO. The Network is now governed by an elected international governance board and has a general assembly meeting once a year. The secretariat is based at the WHO Collaborating Centre for Evidence-Based Health Promotion in Copenhagen, Denmark. The International HPH conferences, the international HPH Newsletter and other scientific and technical functions are supported by the WHO Collaborating Centre for Health Promotion in Hospitals and Health Care Services, Vienna, Austria.

 

Results from the evaluations of the first HPH model hospital project and the European Pilot Hospital Project have been published in numerous books and articles. E.g.:

• Pathways to a Health Promoting Hospital. Experiences from the European Pilot Hospital Project 1993-1997
• The Health Promoting Hospital (HPH): Concept and development
  (published in “Patient Ecucation and Counselling”, 239-243, Vol. 45 (4), 2001)

In 2005, WHO-Euro published a document on available evidence for health promotion in health services:

• Health Promotion in Hospitals: Evidence and Quality Management
  O. Groene, M. Garcia-Barbero (ed): WHO Regional Office for Europe. 48-67, May 2005

From 2008 to 2011, "PRICES-HPH", an international HPH evaluation project is being coordinated by the Vienna WHO-CC. During the first project phase (December 2008 until Spring 2010), HPH implementation has been evaluated on the level of national / regional HPH networks and on the level of HPH member hospitals. The main aim of this first project phase was to find out what has worked with regard to HPH implementation and where there are areas for improvement. During the second project phase (2010-2012), implementation tools for HPH will be developed. For general information, please see a short project info or contact the Vienna WHO-CC

 

A toolbox with further information on HPH can be found on the website of the Copenhagen WHO-CC: http://www.who-cc.dk/hph-member-toolbox