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The Regional Health Observatory of Provence-Alpes-Cote d’Azur was created at the beginning of the 1980’s within the framework of decentralisation. It is directed by Dr. Yolande OBADIA and presided over by Mr. Michel VAUZELLE, President of the Regional Council. It is one of the 26 Regional Health Observatories grouped together within a national federation, the FNORS. The primary mission of the ORS is to provide help in decision making through observation and also to supply information regarding the health of the region’s population. |
ORS: missions and teams
Without knowing the state of health of the population residing in any given region, one cannot draw up a coherent public health policy nor establish health priorities at a regional level. As we suffer and die in different ways depending on our environment, it is vital to have precise information on health related needs and problems of a region’s population. The ORS in PACA responds to this requirement.
The Observatory’s activity is organised in two centres: one is devoted to observation and knowledge valorisation in terms of the health of the region’s population, while the other focuses on research activities and on the production of new knowledge.
Thanks to its special partnership with INSERM research unit U379 and with the Federal Institute of Research “Human, Economic and Social Sciences for Health, Aix-Marseille University” (IFR SHESS-AM), the ORS groups together principal investigators, INSERM and CNRS researchers and PhD students. The complete team comprises a total of 70 people with multidisciplinary training (medical doctors, epidemiologists, economists, sociologists, statisticians and demographers)
The ORS is financed both by the State-Region Contract (20% of its budget) and by submission of tenders to local/regional (15 to 20%) and national/international (60 to 65%) organisations.
Knowledge Valorisation…
The ORS collects and analyses data produced by numerous partner organisations to draw up synthetic documents (barometers, performance/organisational charts VERIFIEZ etc.) and makes compositional data on the health of the region’s inhabitants widely available.
In order to become even more reactive and to make this information accessible to a wide range of health professionals and decision makers, the ORS has created an original database on regional health: www.sirsepaca.org.
New knowledge production….
The ORS initiates and carries out numerous regional surveys and participates in national and international surveys, and this research work leads to publications in international scientific reviews. The ORS team also participates in national and international conferences and provides expertise for regional and national actors in the fields of care and prevention.
Themes investigated …
The Observatory carries out studies in several public health areas: from principal pathologies to risk factors, to the supply and take-up of care:
- Cancer and its long term repercussions
- Mental Health Problems
- Transmissible Diseases (HIV, Hepatitis C) with projects at a national level as well as others in Southern countries, focussing on quality of life and access to treatment.
- Addictive behaviours, Drug Addiction and Substitution Treatment
- Dependency and problems associated with Ageing
- General Practitioners’ medical practices
- Health Problems linked to Occupational and Environmental Conditions
- Youth Health especially in the case of students
Network organisation…
The ORS is highly sought after to organise working groups and participates in numerous networks at regional, national and international levels. It focuses primarily on studies involving HIV, hepatitis, drug addiction and cancer.
Sharing Knowledge…
As sharing information is indispensable, the Observatory widely distributes its data using an ever increasing range of tools. These include performance/organisational charts VERFIEZ either for general health at a regional level (e.g. the city of Marseille and its quarters) or for specific themes (e.g. environmental health, occupational health and mental health), health directories, the publication of reference books, the distribution of “RegardSanté”- a letter reviewing the Observatory’s published research work, and a regular information bulletin on the health of the region’s population entitled “RepèreSanté”. It also has a site dedicated to professional illnesses: www.sistepaca.org
The ORS contributes to training Master’s and Doctorate students in Public Health and Social Sciences as well as organising further training.
Aiding Decision making…
The ORS has brought clinicians and researchers together in a Scientific Committee, chaired by Prof. Pierre-Jean WEILLER. This committee has been officially commissioned by all the local authorities to deal with current political expectations and to anticipate future public health needs.
Today the ORS represents not only an indispensable Public Health tool but also an objective and reliable resource, recognised in the worlds of health and research.
