Hello.

I'm John Picken.

Thank you for visiting the Shandwell website and blog which is devoted to the health and wellbeing of the working age population.

The demographic of this population is changing. It is getting older and the health risks are different now than they were even just ten years ago when I first got involved.

There is now much greater emphasis on education, prevention and early diagnosis. We all intuitively know that this makes sense but often struggle to understand the longer term benefits or are unwilling to wait for them to be realised. From my experience this is a wasted opportunity to make a significant difference.

I believe that identifying health risks and investing in preventing them or reducing their impact through early intervention should be the core of any health and wellbeing strategy.   

The objective of Shandwell is:

" To help stakeholders in the health and wellbeing of the working age population understand how to structure their resource effectively and make informed decisions on their strategy based on wholly independent advice and information."

I hope you find what you read here interesting and useful. If you have any comments or ideas, I’d be very pleased to hear from you.

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“John's in-depth knowledge and experience of the issues employers face in the Health and Wellbeing arena were instrumental in helping us with key elements of our strategic decision making.” 

David Mobbs Group Chief Executive Nuffield Health

“John was commissioned by the regional public health community in the East Midlands to engage the Private Sector in work to reduce the rising obesity levels in the region. He successfully employed his powers of negotiation, persuasion and tenacity to exceed his target. His ability to understand the agenda from a public and private sector perspective was key to his success.“

Kath Childs Consultant in Public Health

 “As part of our Well Flourishing People programme, John has engaged our senior leaders in a thought provoking way with his extensive knowledge of the wellbeing market place and public health agenda.”

Tricia O’Neill Group Head of Health Centrica British Gas