Making the Lives of Children and Young People More Visible in Europe. Consensus on Child and Young People’s Health and Well-Being Indicators for Europe: A Delphi Process
Résumé
Well-constructed indicators are used to measure and monitor the health and well-being of children and young people (CYP), aged 0 to 24. There are substantial differences between European Member States (MS) health systems, and in how each country measures and monitors population health and well-being, making it difficult to construct valid comparisons. Reliable, valid and comparable data are required to enable evidence-based health policies to maximise the quality of lives for CYP. Using indicators identified in existing databases and knowledge, this research aimed to establish consensus on an agreed set of indicators to measure and monitor the health and well-being of CYP across Europe. A review of relevant indicator-specific projects was carried out to identify possible indicators. As part of a three-round Delphi process, online surveys were distributed to health professionals across Europe who work with health information on CYP. A list of 94 indicators was established across 16 domains and four dimensions. The final set contained 32 indicators to measure and monitor CYP’s health and well-being across Europe. Of these, 21 indicators were reported as widely available. The remaining 11 were reported as not widely available but recommended by panellists to be made compulsory for all MSs to collect. There are considerable differences in reported information availability. Gaps in health data should be properly addressed. These findings provide a basis on which an international set of CYP’s health and well-being indicators can be established. Much more work is needed at EU-Level for this to happen.