Health Minister Trevor Moniz yesterday relaunched the STEPS to a Well Bermuda health survey

The survey, involving more than 2,600 Bermuda households, was started last year in an effort to gauge health issues on the Island and help develop a chronic disease management strategy. However, it was briefly halted due to the holiday season.

“Just as an individual needs to have regular health check-ups, so does a population,” Mr Moniz said. “And population health surveys which contain physical measurements and biochemical assessments, such as STEPS, add substantially to the information about the state of health of a population.

“Routinely collected mortality data estimates that over 60 percent of deaths in Bermuda are attributable to heart disease, cancer and diabetes alone. Global research also shows that up to 40 percent of cancers and up to 80 percent of heart diseases and Type 2 diabetes are preventable through risk factor modification.”

The STEPS initiative uses Pan-American Health Organisation’s STEPwise approach to collect information on eight major health risk factors, and is being carried out in collaboration with the Pan American Health Organisation, the Caribbean Public Health Agency, the Bermuda Hospitals Board and the Bermuda Diabetes Association. It is also supported by Bermuda Cancer and Health Centre and Bermuda Heart Foundation.

It involves a series of questions and simple measurements, such as the height, weight and blood pressure of participants. Those taking part are then encouraged to attend a clinic for finger-stick blood measurements to determine cholesterol levels and the risk of diabetes, and select participants are asked to participate in either an oral health screening or an objective measurement of physical activity.

Mr Moniz said: “In essence, participation in STEPS to a Well Bermuda provides the participant with a free health screening, most of which is done in their own home, and the opportunity to contribute to the sound evidence base required to inform and evaluate local efforts to prevent and control chronic, non-communicable diseases in Bermuda.”

He thanked the interviewers for carrying out the survey, for their time and the more than 2,000 residents who are taking part in the process.

“The information you collect is vital to informing where resources should best be targeted and also for monitoring and evaluating the impact of any actions taken,” Mr Moniz said. “To use a well-known quote, ‘Without knowledge, action is useless’.”