Health needs assessment Flashcards
What is the health needs assessment planning cycle?
Needs assessment
Planning
Implementation
Evaluation
Define need, supply and demand
Need - ability to benefit from an intervention
Demand - what people ask for
Supply - what is provided
Define a health needs assessment
systematic method for reviewing the health issues facing a population, leading to agreed priorities and resource allocation that will improve health and reduce inequalities
Difference between health needs and health care needs?
Health needs - Need for health. Measured using mortality, morbidity
Health care needs - Need for health care. Depends on potential of prevention, treatment and care services
Who or what might a health needs assessment be carried out for?
It might be carried out for:
Population i.e GP practice population
Condition i.e COPD
Intervention i.e coronary angioplasty
4 different types of need according to Bradshaw (sociological perspective)
Felt need - individual perceptions of variation from normal health
Expressed need - individual seeks help to overcome variation in normal health (demand)
Normative need - professional defines intervention appropriate for the expressed need
Comparative need - comparison between severity, range of interventions and cost
3 different public health approaches to health needs assessment?
Epidemiological
Comparative
Corporate
What does epidemiological approach to health needs assessment mean?
Define problem Size of problem - incidence / prevalence Services available - prevention / treatment / care Evidence base - effectiveness and cost-effectiveness Models of care - including quality and outcome measures Existing services - unmet need; services not needed Recommendations
Limitations of the epidemiological approach?
Required data may not be available
Variable data quality
Evidence base may be inadequate
Does not consider felt needs of people affected
What does comparative approach to health needs assessment mean?
Compares the services received by a population (or subgroup) with others
- Spatial
- Social (age, gender, class, ethnicity)
May examine:
- Health status
- Service provision
- Service utilisation
- Health outcomes
(mortality, morbidity, quality of life, patient satisfaction)
Limitations of the comparative approach?
May not yield what the most appropriate level e.g. of provision or utilisation should be Data may not be available Data may be of variable quality May be difficult to find a comparable population
What does corporate approach to health needs assessment mean?
Assessment of stakeholder perception - includes commissioners, providers, professionals, patients, press, politicians, opinion leaders to make a combined decision
Limitations of the corporate approach?
May be difficult to distinguish need from demand Groups may have vested interests May be influenced by political agendas Dominant personalities may have undue influence
Give one health related example of something that
you consider is demanded but not needed or
supplied, clearly explaining the reasoning for your
example
Cosmetic surgery
