Critically evaluate a government policy-based public health intervention in a whole population (e.g., a whole country) or sub-population (e.g., a region, school children, pregnant women, under 5y old children). The intervention must have aimed to improve health outcomes.
Examples of government policy-based public health interventions include:
- A specific intervention that is part of a government’s obesity strategy
- A fortification or vitamin supplement programme aimed at reducing micronutrient deficiencies in the population
- Interventions to improve fruit/vegetable consumption (Healthy start vouchers)
- Interventions to reduce sugar or salt intake (Sugar tax; Buying standards for food procurement – limits on salt, for example)
- Ban on trans saturated fat
- Food labels (Traffic light system, menu calorie)
- School breakfast clubs
- Vaccination programme
- Improving Physical activity
- Ban on advertising unhealthy foods to children
- Smoking in public places ban
- Screening programmes
Requirements
This assessment requires you to write a 3000-word report. Please ensure you:
- answer the assessment title and not make up your own
- write in a report format
- are familiar with the marking criteria
- observe the word count and word limit requirements
- use Harvard referencing or APA (7th)
- use a word processor
- use Arial font, size 12 with 1.5 line spacing and page numbers
Guidance
| Introduction | Concise and clear introduction outlining the identified policy, public health problem, context/country, and purpose of essay. |
| Public health policy | Defines public health problem in selected population and the policy which addresses this. Support by relevant data/reports etc. |
| Critical evaluation of policy | Evaluation of policy Present and discuss the research which has evaluated the policy. Outcomes evaluated Critically discuss the outcomes which have been evaluated. Population context Discuss the population context (burden of morbidity or mortality but also the demographic and socioeconomic context). Methodology used Critically discuss the methodology used to evaluate the policy. |
| Conclusion | Summarises key arguments and overarching conclusion. |