Healthy Public Policy

Question 1

Healthy Public Policy

Answer 1

• public policies outside of the health sector “characterized by an explicit concern for health and equity in all areas of policy and by an accountability for health impact

Question 2

Why is it important to target federal and municipal governments for health outcomes (not just provincial) ?

Answer 2

• provincial has jurisdiction over healthcare federal/municipal have jurisdiction over other sectors outside of healthcare, that still affect health of individuals
  ex. education

Question 3

Declaration of Alma Ata (1978)

Answer 3

• conference that states that 1) health is a huma right and 2) attaining health requires the action of other sectors
• The Conference reaffirms that health (a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing, not the absence of disease) is a fundamental human right and
  …. and the attainment of the highest possible level of health is a most important world-wide social goal whose realization requires the action of many other social and economic sectors in addition to the health sector

Question 3

Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion (1986)

Answer 3

The fundamental conditions and resources for health are:
1. peace
2. shelter
3. education
3. food
4. income
5. stable eco-system
6. sustainable resources
7. social justice
8. equity

health promotion = building health public policy

Question 4

Adelaide recommendations on health public policy (1988)

Answer 4

• Healthy public policy is characterized by an explicit concern for health and health equity in all areas of policy and by an accountability for health impact
• In the pursuit of healthy public policy, government sectors concerned with agriculture, trade, education, industry, and communications need to take into account health as an essential factor when formulating policy
• ## Built on the Ottawa charter and declaration of alma ata

Question 4

Goals of Adelaide health public policy

Answer 4

• makes health choices possible or easier for people
• makes social and physical environments health-enhancing
• assigns high priority to underprivileged and vulnerable groups
• recognizes the unique culture of Indigenous peoples, ethnic minorities, and immigrants

Question 5

What is important about the adelaide recommendations for health?

Answer 5

• focus on equity
• Governments must measure and report the health impact of their policies - can keep track

Question 6

Health Impact Assessment (HIA)

Answer 6

• a combination of procedures, methods and tools by which a policy, program or project may be judged as to its potential effects on the health of a population, and the distribution of those effects within the population
• A method for making health a concern for all policy sectors, as proposed in the WHO’s Adelaide Recommendations on Healthy Public Policy

Question 7

HIAs emerged from what?

Answer 7

Emerged from Environmental Impact Assessment
- it was responsive to social determinants of health

Question 8

2 Aims of HIA

Answer 8

1. Evaluate the potential health impacts—positive and negative, short and long-term—of policies
2. Enhance the quality of decision-making through recommendations to improve predicted positive health impacts and minimize negative impacts.

Question 9

3 ways HIAs can be done

Answer 9

1. Prospective - what may benefit health outcomes in future?
2. Concurrent - can be done while policies are being made
3. Retrospective - can look at old policies and learn from them, use this in assessment

Question 10

Questions asked in HIAs

Answer 10

• What are the policy’s potential benefits to the population’s health?
• What are the policy’s potential harms to the population’s health?
  Might certain populations be disproportionately advantaged or disadvantaged by the policy?
  Consider: both intended and unintended benefits and harms, short-term and long-term benefits and harms
• How might the policy be modified to better promote or mitigate harms to the population’s health?

Question 11

Which non health sectors have biggest impact on health?

Answer 11

• not one - all of them
• agriculture, food, rural affairs –> directly impacts us through food products
• university/college ministry –> the health policies they make within their organizations
• education - health education

Question 12

Ex of HIA done in toronto

Answer 12

• community health impact of casino in Toronto

Question 13

Which province requires HIA to be systematically done

Answer 13

Quebec
- every sector has to do an HIA for each policy they make

Question 14

Quebec Public Health Act

Answer 14

• The Minister should give other ministers advice they consider advisable for health promotion and developing policies that can enhance the health/ welfare of the population.
• the Minister should be consulted about the development of the measures provided for a regulation that could have significant impact on the health of the population

Question 15

Public health policy

Answer 15

• Focuses on the health of populations instead of individuals (e.g., the health of Indigenous populations)
• Focuses on prevention instead of treatment (e.g., vaccination)
• Focuses on collective action instead of individual intervention (e.g., fluoride in municipal water supply) - often means at the policy level

Question 16

Public Health

Answer 16

• collective activities that aim to protect and promote the health of populations

Question 17

Public health care

Answer 17

• health care that is publicly financed (e.g., Canada’s ‘public’ health care system)

Question 17

Public Health agency of Canada

Answer 17

• focuses on preventing chronic diseases, preventing injuries, and responding to public health emergencies and infectious disease outbreaks

Question 18

Public health Ontario

Answer 18

• ## provides scientific evidence and expert guidance to shape policies and practices for a healthier Ontario.

Question 19

Of Canada’s total expenditures on health, what percentage makes up spending on ‘public health’?

Answer 19

5%