To celebrate our network and project community and to showcase how cross-border and transnational work promote unity and progress, we join Interreg Cooperation Day 2024 with a week full of events. With the support from Interreg, we can make boundaries irrelevant in our daily lives and build inclusive communities with an aim to improve the health and well-being of all.

Since 2023 we are working on a project "Arts on Prescription in the Baltic Sea Region" aiming to improve the mental wellbeing of citizens. In short, Arts on Prescription is a non-clinical health programme in which people with mild to moderate mental health problems are referred to arts and cultural activities. To better grasp the Arts on Prescription concept, watch a short animation that introduces the idea of the novel approach and its benefits.

Across the NDPHS partner countries, more and more people are working later in life. Due to their chronological age, older workers however often face ageism in the form of prejudice, discrimination, or neglect. To advance the NDPHS and PA Health in the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region work on promoting active and healthy ageing, we are glad to announce the launch of a project SAFE.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) member States amendments to the Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work to explicitly include "a safe and healthy working environment" is a pivotal moment in the effort to prioritize occupational safety and health on a broader scale. Amidst these developments and considering the profound changes in the world of work, what steps can be undertaken to elevate occupational safety and health standards within the NDPHS countries and give effect to the amended Declaration?

In March, the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health welcomed the MentalHealthMatters transnational consortium and the NDPHS Expert Group on Occupational Safety and Health to Helsinki. The project partners and invited guests delved deeper into the education and training of the employers and OSH professionals on mental health related risks and resources at work. The purpose was to explore areas where reform would be needed to build a stronger know-how for action in the workplaces. 

Every year on March 24 we commemorate World TB Day to raise public awareness about the devastating health, social and economic consequences of tuberculosis and to step up efforts to end the epidemic. In the Northern Dimension countries TB disease incidence has gone down thanks to successful control measures. However, a much larger number of people is latently infected, forming a reservoir for TB cases in the future. To better understand the situation, our Expert Group on HIV, TB & AI with Finnish Lung Health Association leading the project, will conduct a study on latent tuberculosis infection in the region.

The top 10 countries have remained much the same since before COVID. Our Partner country Finland is at the top for the 7th consecutive year, with Sweden closely following and Baltic countries being amongst those with one of the largest increase in happiness. The NDPHS thematic priorities - active and healthy ageing and wellbeing for all are listed among the reasons why people feel content and satisfied.