Health, Wellbeing & Equity Impact Assessment Unit (HIA Research Unit) :: About HIA

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What is HIA?

Health, wellbeing and equity impact assessment (HIA) is about predicting the potential effects of a proposed policy on people's health and wellbeing. Usually the policies being assessed are not 'health' policies as such, but they impact indirectly on wellbeing, sometimes in unintended and unforeseen ways. The aim of HIA is to inform decision makers about the potential effects of the proposed policy, both positive and negative, and come up with a list of recommendations that will enhance the positive, and mitigate the negative.

Health and wellbeing impact assessment rests on the idea that people's wellbeing is affected by a whole range of factors, most of them outside of the control of the health sector, such as housing, income, transport, environmental quality and urban design.

Changes to any of these factors, affect people's health and wellbeing. HIA is a tool for ensuring that these potential health effects are systematically thought through as part of the policy development process, drawing on the best available evidence and expertise. The HIA process values the local knowledge of people likely to be affected by the policy and people working in the community, as well as scientific knowledge.

How HIA is done in Six Easy Steps

The six basic steps to undertaking an HIA are:-

1. Deciding what proposals require assessment by HIA. Often called screening.

2. Deciding the parameters for carrying out a HIA (e.g. which aspects of the policy and/or population groups to focus on, who to involve, timeframes and budget). Often called scoping.

3. Identifying and considering the evidence for potential impacts the proposal may have on health. This usually involves desk-based research, and workshops with experts and key stakeholders. Often called appraisal.

4. Developing recommendations to improve the proposal, including recommendations for addressing inequalities.

5. Ongoing liaison with decision makers and policy writers to encourage adaptation of the proposal.

6. Monitoring and evaluation to check recommendations were adopted and whether a positive impact on health was achieved.

Source: http://www.hiagateway.org.uk

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