The Derbyshire Health Trainer Programme
Where did the idea of Health Trainers come from?
Health trainers were announced in the 2004 Department of Health White Paper Choosing Health: Making healthy choices easier.
People highlighted that they want help to make the right decisions for their own health and support to make the changes to make it happen - Health Trainers are the new 'personal health resource' to support those people.
Following national selection the Derbyshire Local Area Agreement partnership became one of the 'early adopter' sites funded by the Department of Health.
Derbyshire Health Trainers
Health Trainers understand what it means to live and work within local communities and are there to support local people with their lifestyle choice. They can offer people a health 'stock take' to help them assess how their lifestyle might be impacting on their health and help people think about the sort of changes they could make to help improve their health and well-being. For many people this sort of support will be all they want but people are not all the same. Health Trainers offer tailored information, motivation and practical support and can connect and support people into other specialist services .
Health Trainers are:
- people drawn from local communities who understand the day-to-day concerns and experiences of the people they are supporting
- accredited by the NHS to have the right skills to help members of their community make the changes they want
- approachable, understanding and supportive and a guide for those who want help........not an instructor for those who do not
- able to offer practical advice and connections into local services
Derbyshire Health Champions
As well as a Health Trainers there are a large number of Health Champions in Derbyshire.
Health Champions understand their local community and know about the services available to people. They can signpost people into appropriate local services and support them to access them or simply give out relevant information.
In Derbyshire our Health Champions are generally volunteers - generously giving their own time to support the programme. We also have a number of Health Champions who are employed in a different job but are also trained to be Health Champions so they can offer their clients a broader service.
What does the service look like in Derbyshire?
The Derbyshire Health Trainer service is delivered by a wide range of organisations including: GP practices, Housing Associations, Voluntary Sector Organisations, Derbyshire Community Health Service and Local Authorities.