Crowded homes, which are also damp and cold, can significantly increase the risk of various health conditions such as respiratory issues, skin infections, rheumatic fever, and so on. On both national (New Zealand) as well as international scale, everyone agrees that health can be improved from dried and warmer homes. That's the basic idea behind the healthy homes initiative, which aims to make the homes healthier for the people living in them.

HHIs (Healthy Homes Initiatives) was first established in the period between 2013 and 2015. At that time, this initiative covered around 11 DHBs who were suffering from a high rate of rheumatic fever. In the start, this program was targeted towards those families who had low-income and also had children who were at risk of this fever. One common theme among these houses was that they were overcrowded.

Finally, in the year 2016, the coverage of this program was increased to cover more areas. The aim of this program was to provide dry, healthy, and warm housing for:

• Those families who have children between the ages of 0 to 5 years old and are hospitalized due to issues related to housing.
• Pregnant women.
• Families with children from the age of 0 to 5 years old for which a minimum of 2 risk factors of social investment also apply.

In the year 2021, the government of New Zealand decided to further expand the impact and reach of this program by providing additional funding. From 2022 (1st July), the government plans to expand this program to the entire country. You can also get Healthy home assessments Ashburton or healthy home assessments in Timaru by other companies.

Healthy Homes Initiative - How it Works

This program identifies those families who are eligible and then works with them to get a complete housing assessment done. By completing the action plan tailored for each family, the result is a healthier home that is warm and dry.

The HHIs program can help eligible families to get what they need in order to improve their living environment. The children are the main aim of these programs to ensure that they get a healthier environment. Some of the interventions provided to the families include help with beds, minor repairs, insulation, ventilation, curtains, coverings, heating sources, and so on.

So this program basically identifies those households which are at risk of poor housing environment and need help. Then a complete assessment is done to find out which things need to be improved in the house. Depending on the situation, the program may even help those to get the required things.

In the end, the housing conditions for the whole family especially children's, are improved. If you think about it, the HHIs initiative can reduce the chances of a lot of health problems for all family members, including children.

For more information related to Healthy Home assessments Timaru, head over to EEA.

Facts about HHIs

Let's have a quick look at the facts related to the HHI program:

• Around 24,000 children have been identified and referred.
• In total, around 74,000+ interventions were delivered, such as draft stopping, curtains, and so on.
• Around 75% of the total referrals to this program were pacific or Māori people.