Even the miracle life isn’t safe from social inequity. For her PhD research, Leonie Daalderop studied which factors contribute to inequity at birth and describes an approach to remedy this injustice.
The overarching aim of this thesis was to derive new insights into the factors underlying perinatal health inequities and to study how to build and accelerate cross-sectoral collaborations to achieve a structural breakthrough in the reduction of perinatal health inequities.
The studies presented in this thesis contributed to the knowledge about which factors underlie perinatal health inequities. The results have demonstrated that addressing perinatal health inequities requires a cross-sectoral approach with professionals working for local governments, as well as professionals working in the medical, social or public health sector. The HP4All-3 programme has helped to shape such collaborative networks.
It is important to also consider that the research has contributed to increased awareness and a clearer understanding of the urgency of a healthy and promising start. This enhanced the intrinsic motivation of professionals to commit themselves to ensure a healthy and promising start for all children. And it is these professionals through which we can achieve change. With their dedication we can ensure that children grow up into healthy residents.
