Housing Improvements and Development
Healthy Housing
Healthy Housing is a joint project between Housing New Zealand and District Health Boards (DHBs). The programme works with Housing New Zealand tenants in selected areas, and began in 2001.
Healthy Housing aims to:
- raise awareness of infectious diseases like meningococcal disease, rheumatic fever, tuberculosis, cellulitis and respiratory diseases
- improve access to health and social services
- reduce the risk of housing-related health problems
- reduce overcrowding.
Healthy Housing is currently underway in Kaikohe and Auckland (Pt England, Tamaki and Mangere).
The project has also been run in Mangere, Otara, Onehunga, Glen Innes and Wiri in Auckland, as well as Whangarei and Kaitaia.
How Healthy Housing works:
Along with the DHBs, we identify the most appropriate sites for Healthy Housing by looking at hospital admissions for infectious diseases, and the numbers of state houses in areas of high social deprivation.
Housing New Zealand staff and a public health nurse meet with tenants taking part to identify housing and health issues. A clinician from the DHB reviews the information gathered from the interview.
The DHBs ensure tenants and their families can access healthcare for any health problems highlighted in the interview. They also make sure that people are connected to social service agencies if welfare services are needed. We respond to the housing-related information from the assessment.
Findings so far:
In 2005, we contracted Auckland UniServices to evaluate Healthy Housing's outcomes. This evaluation is to run over three years, and aims to identify and critically review:
- the evidence that Healthy Housing has made a difference in the risk and rate of housing-related diseases, conditions and injuries, and improved wellbeing
- the programme's outcomes
- any barriers to the achievement of Healthy Housing objectives.
A report on the first year of the outcomes evaluation found that tenants who took part in Healthy Housing identified positive changes in family life, participation in community activities, and increased general health and wellbeing.
The evaluation suggests Healthy Housing brings positive change to households, and greater collaboration between Housing New Zealand and DHBs.
"Report Summary - The Healthy Housing programme evaluation, 2005" (Word Document, 79kb)
How tenants are involved:
All Housing New Zealand households in selected Healthy Housing areas are invited to take part. You will get a letter of invitation. If you want to be involved, your area co-ordinator will arrange a time to meet with you and a public health nurse to talk about your housing and health.
The talk may lead to improvements being made to your house, such as insulation. If there are too many people living in your house we may find another one that suits you better. Or, we may consider other ways to improve your existing home.
The public health nurse can offer advice on any health-related concerns you may have.
Health Innovations Award:
The Healthy Housing initiative was the Supreme Winner in the 2005 Health Innovations Award.
As at 30 April 2006, we had completed 3,989 Healthy Housing assessments and carried out 5,821 housing improvements.
Housing improvements included:
- design alterations
- extending homes for larger families
- installing insulation
- ventilation and heating systems
- building and buying new homes
- transferring households or part households to more appropriate accommodation
- helping families move to private accommodation.
