Oral Presentation Australian and New Zealand Obesity Society Annual Scientific Conference 2026

Prevention 2.0 (141490)

Robyn Littlewood 1
  1. Health and Wellbeing Queensland, Milton, ACT, Australia

Prevention needs a reset. We’re living longer, but too many Queenslanders are getting sick earlier and living with chronic disease for decades. That trajectory isn’t sustainable for people, communities or our health system.

For years, prevention has been talked about as the right thing to do. It now needs to be treated as the critical thing to do. I propose we haven’t been so efficient in demonstrating the value of our work; it all changes now.

Prevention 2.0 – is a shift from standalone programs to a connected prevention ecosystem that:

  • embeds prevention into everyday clinical care
  • works regionally, shaped by local communities
  • uses data and digital tools to reach people wherever they live
  • focuses on small, achievable changes that deliver real health benefits.

This isn’t about telling people what they should do. It’s about making it easier to stay well and for longer, while easing pressure on a health system under strain.

Prevention done well improves health, productivity and quality of life. And we have a responsibility to show the outcomes and the value of that investment.

The challenge now lies in our collective resolve to act decisively and at the speed and scale necessary to meet the growing health challenges of our time. The question is no longer whether we can afford to invest in prevention, but whether we can afford not to.