A plan to support healthy eating for children in the ACT fails to address early access to treatment for children with abnormal eating habits and does not support family needs for food security or financial access, an audit has found.
ACT Auditor-General Michael Harris has released a report into a five-year plan from the ACT government focused on childhood healthy eating and active living programs.
The Healthy Canberra: ACT Preventive Health 2020-2025 was developed by the government to support families, enable active living, increase health eating, reduce risk behaviours and promote health ageing.
But the audit report found the plan was not comprehensive and did not address or acknowledge improved early address to children with "atypical eating or activity behaviours, atypical weight gain and related health concerns".
It found the plan did not address the specific needs and priorities of groups with higher health risks or different needs, such Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people with a physical or intellectual disability, people with a mental illness or people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities.
This was despite the plan acknowledging these groups may have different health needs or priorities. The plan did also not articulate a strategy to reach these groups.
The audit also found there was no professional support for ACT government staff to prevent weight stigma and discrimination, and there needed to be an improved understanding of the impacts of this.
"Evidence from research, and from the lived experience of people with larger bodies, shows that weight stigma and discrimination can have serious negative impacts on peoples' health and wellbeing," the report said.
"There is an opportunity to introduce strategic actions for introducing or strengthening professional development opportunities and practice guidelines, to build capacity of the ACT workforce to approach issues of healthy eating, active living, body size and health sensitivity and without bias, blame, discrimination, or stigma."
Mr Harris said programs did not support needs for food security or financial access to active living.
"While programs have been effective in directing effort to improving food and activity environments for children and building skills and knowledge for children and families, they have not effectively supported core family needs for food security and financial access to active living," Mr Harris said.
"Unmet demand and incomplete service delivery increase the risk of poor health outcomes for children, young people and adults and increases the cost and complexity of healthcare required later in life."
The report made eight recommendations for improvement.
In response to the report, the ACT Health directorate said it was considering the recommendations.
"We will work collaboratively across the ACT public service to respond to its findings and recommendations in the context of government priorities," ACT Health said.
