PHSSR Policy Roadmaps for Acting Early on NCDs Synthesis Report 2025

39 Acting early on NCDs The Partnership for Health System Sustainability and ResilienceSeveral country reports demonstrate approaches that push beyond traditional prevention paradigms. The Japan report describes social prescribing initiatives, particularly the Yabu City project, which connects medical care with community services, allowing patients to digitally self- assess and receive personalised support to improve lifestyle and wellbeing that extends beyond clinical interventions (Yabu City Health & Welfare Dept, n.d.). This represents a reimagining of prevention as something embedded in communities rather than confined to clinical settings. The Greece report documents a novel “dentist pass” programme providing free preventive dental care for children aged 6–12, whilst the Poland report describes the evolution from “Profilaktyka 40+” (2021–2025) to “My Health – Adult Health Check-up” programmes, which attempts to provide comprehensive health assessments with follow-up Individual Health Plans, though participation remains challenging, as discussed in the following chapter of this report. Vaccination programmes for NCDs Vaccination programmes targeting HPV and hepatitis B represent established interventions to reduce prevalence of cervical and liver cancer. WHO guidelines recommend HPV vaccination for girls aged 9-14 years, with a global target of 90% coverage by age 15 as part of cervical cancer elimination objectives. For hepatitis B, WHO recommends universal infant vaccination beginning within 24 hours of birth, recognising that chronic infection acquired in infancy carries a 15-25% lifetime risk of hepatocellular carcinoma. Targeting at-risk populations such as certain healthcare workers with top-up hepatitis B vaccinations as adults can further reduce risk of contracting hepatitis B. Achievement of these targets varies considerably across the eight countries studied. Whilst the Spain report documents free HPV vaccination at age 12 integrated into comprehensive cervical cancer prevention (Ministry of Health Spain, 2024a), the France report identifies one of the lowest rates of HPV vaccination coverage in the EU despite implementing school-based programmes. The Greece report’s documentation of 35% coverage rate in 2019 for eligible girls (Naoum et al., 2022) similarly highlights the importance of adequate promotion and accessibility of screening programmes. The Poland report notes declining childhood vaccination rates despite mandatory schedules,. These disparities underline that vaccine availability alone is insufficient: active promotion, convenience, and cultural acceptance all play crucial roles in achieving coverage targets.