1. HOD 2535:
Health Policy
HEALTH IMPACT Lauren
Brinkley -
ASSESSMENTS Rubinstein
March, 29,
201 2

2. SOCIAL CONDITIONS MATTER
 Places where we live, work and play have a tremendous
impact on American’s health
 Policy makers in many sectors have opportunities to make
choices that—if they took health into account —could help stem
the growth of pressing health problems such as obesity,
injury, asthma and diabetes
 This is important because these issues have a huge impact on our
nation’s health care costs and on people’s quality of life.

3. HEALTH IMPACT ASSESSMENTS
 look at health from a broad perspective that considers social,
economic and environmental influences;
 brings community members, business interests and other
stakeholders together, which can help build consensus;
 acknowledges the trade -of fs of choices under consideration
and of fers decision makers comprehensive information and
practical recommendations to maximize health gains and
minimize adverse ef fects;
 puts health concerns in the context of other important factors
when making a decision; and
 considers whether certain impacts may af fect vulnerable
groups of people in dif ferent ways.

4. PRINCIPLES AND VALUES
UNDERLYING HIA
 Democracy
 Emphasizing the right of people to participate in the formulation and
decisions of proposals that affect their lives, both directly and through
elected decision makers.
 Equity
 Emphasizing the desire to reduce inequity that results from avoidable
differences in the health determinants and/or health status within and
between different population groups.
 Sustainable Development
 Emphasizing that development meets the needs of the present
generation without compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their own needs
 Ethical Use of Evidence
 Emphasizing that transparent and rigorous processes are used to
synthesize and interpret the evidence.
 Comprehensive Approach to Health
 Emphasizing that physical, mental, and social well -being is determined
by a broad range of factors from all sectors of society

5. THE HIA PROCESS
1 . Screening
 Determines whether the HIA is likely to succeed and add
value.
 Questions include:
 What specific proposed project, program or policy decision will the
HIA address?
 What will the HIA inform?
 How important to health is the decision?
 Will the HIA provide new and important information or insight on
previously unrecognized health issues?
 Is it feasible in terms of available resources (e.g., data, time, money,
stakeholder interest and political will)?

6. THE HIA PROCESS
2. Scoping
 Creates objectives for the HIA , and an outline for the steps of
the HIA process by asking:
 What health effects should the HIA address?
 What concerns have stakeholders expressed about the pending
decision?
 Who will be affected by the policy or project, and how ?
 What methods should I use?

7. THE HIA PROCESS
3. Assessment
 Involves two steps
 describing the baseline health of people and groups affected by the
decision
 predicting the potential health effects.
 The baseline health analysis attempts to explain not only the
important causes of illness, but also the conditions that
influence health and could be af fected by the decision in
question

8. THE HIA PROCESS
4. Recommendations
 The HIA should point the way to decisions that protect and
promote health.
 The actions required to integrate an HIA’s analysis and
recommendations into a decision -making process will vary.
 In some cases, simply providing a thorough analysis that outlines the
potential risks, benefits and costs of alternatives may help policy
makers to make informed choices that support health. In many
cases.
 However, an HIA’s ability to influence outcomes sometimes require
additional efforts, including the development of specific
recommendations based on the analysis, as well as a health
management plan

9. THE HIA PROCESS
5. Reporting
 The findings are disseminated to decision makers, af fected
communities and other stakeholders with a request for
feedback.
 This stage may result in a revised report that addresses public
responses to the draft.

10. THE HIA PROCESS
6. Monitoring and Evaluation
 There are three types of evaluation in HIA
 1) process evaluation gauges the HIA’s quality according to
established standards and the original plan for the HIA
 2) impact evaluation assesses the HIA’s impact on decision -
making and its success according to the objectives
established during scoping
 3) outcome evaluation assesses changes in health status and
health determinants as the decision is implemented.

11. IMPORTANT TO CONSIDER WHEN
CONDUCTING A HIA
 Think about who the key stakeholders are and involve them in
the process
 Approach the assessment with a holistic view of health

12. SMALL GROUP WORK
 Group One: Jenny, Natalie & Kathleen
 Group Two: Ashley K., Sam & Leah
 Group Three: Bailey, Ashley N., Jef f and Billy
Group One: Housing
Group Two: New Economic Development in your City
Group Three: Transit subsidies provided by employers