The main aim of JA:EHLEIS is (i) to provide a central facility for the co-ordinated analysis and synthesis of life and health expectancies to add the quality dimension to the quantity of life lived by the European populations, (ii) provide evidence of inequalities between Member States (MS) and (iii) highlight potential targets for public health strategies both nationally and at a pan-European level.
Two previous projects have been conducted to promote the Structural Indicator HLY, based on the development of an Information System and research work to monitor health trends and gaps in Europe.
During the first phase (2004-2007) the EHEMU project developed several summary measures of population health (SMPH) indicating the quality of the remaining years that a person is expected to live (i.e. free of chronic disease, free of disability and in good perceived health).
In the second phase (2007-2010) the EHLEIS project began to systematically monitor health trends and gaps among the European countries and to identify their determinants through the survey instruments developed by EHEMU and included in the new pan-European survey SILC (European Statistics on Incomes and Living Conditions) and SHARE (Survey on Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe).