Concluding comments

Like other countries, Australia has already made substantial investment in prevention, taken broadly to mean any action that “aims to support good health and eliminate or reduce those factors that contribute to poor health”. Our own research found close to 40 national strategies, guiding documents, commissions, committees, taskforces, agreements and significant infrastructure and program investments in prevention over the last three decades, most recently a National Strategic Framework for Chronic Conditions and a commitment to the WHO’s Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases. Arguably, Australia’s strong tradition of investing in prevention has delivered major health gains, including improved rates of immunisation and seat belt use, restrictions on driving under the influence of alcohol and changes to sleeping positions to prevent sudden infant death. Mortality from heart disease has significantly improved, declining more than 70% since the 1970s, credited primarily to major prevention efforts such as smoking controls, and hypertension and hyperlipidaemia detection and treatment. Australia is also leading the world in our evidence-based, multi-sectoral approach to tobacco control, which has resulted in tobacco use dropping to an all-time low.6 But, as the costs of chronic disease continue to spiral— conservatively costing the health system $27 billion per year in treatment costs alone —the question remains: Are we doing enough? In this special edition, The Australian Prevention Partnership Centre posed that question to 10 individuals from a mix of academia, advocacy and policy, both nationally and internationally.