Message from the President

As the name suggests, Health Promotion and Health Policy Association is an organization that aims to support individuals to lead a healthy life by protecting the physical, mental and spiritual health of the society. In this direction, we carry out our activities in two main areas: The first is civil society activities carried out with the participation of individuals to promote healthy living. The second is our work for decision makers, policy makers, health professionals and academia; our aim is to contribute to the production of sustainable and supportive policies that facilitate society's access to a healthy life.

Both in Turkey and around the world, health systems face the burden of chronic non-communicable diseases. The risk factors of these diseases create serious burdens in terms of financial sustainability of the health system as well as mortality. The most effective method to combat chronic non-communicable diseases is to prevent the risk factors of these diseases and to expand preventive health services. Thus, individuals can be kept healthy through preventive medicine services before they become ill, which brings great benefits not only to the health system but also to the general welfare of the society.

The adoption of preventive health services as a state policy and the establishment of a culture of healthy living in society requires long-term and determined efforts. Prevention of these diseases, also known as lifestyle-related diseases, requires a conscious cultural transformation in the light of scientific data for a healthy society. This transformation is the cornerstone of the formation of a sustainable health culture in which individuals can transfer their healthy living habits to the next generation.

As the Association, we consider it our duty to conduct comprehensive studies on all issues concerning public health and to raise awareness of our stakeholders and decision-makers about the requirements of healthy living. In this context, we call the working groups we convene to conduct in-depth research and development in specific areas "academia", thus facilitating access to scientific knowledge on relevant topics. Over the past decade, we have carried out projects with public institutions and various organizations that indirectly affect millions of people across the country and directly involve thousands of people. These projects cover areas such as chronic non-communicable diseases, substance abuse, rare diseases, combating obesity, promoting physical activity, and supporting patient initiatives. We will continue to strengthen our cooperation with local governments, the private sector, media, professional organizations and patient associations to spread the culture of healthy living throughout society.

The challenges of specialization in the healthcare system make it difficult to understand the big picture, which is why we believe that increasing interaction and communication between parties plays a critical role. We aim to protect the health of individuals, minimize their risk factors and develop solutions to protect their physical, mental and spiritual health. In this context, we will continue to work with all our strength to support this organization, which serves millions of people and is widely accepted, at all levels, from specialists to family physicians, from non-governmental organizations to policy makers.

We believe that sharing our activities, collaborations, sources of income, ethical codes and methodologies with the society with full transparency is the basis for building trust in civil society. We are aware that conflicts of interest and disinformation are the biggest obstacles to the establishment of a healthy living culture in society. We will continue to contribute to public health by adhering to the principles of transparency and honesty.

Prof. Dr. M. Hamza Müslümanoğlu
Chairman of the Board