‘Are we there yet?’ – Operationalizing the concept of Integrated Public Health Policies
Section snippets
Background
Integrated public health policies are often advocated, since they are assumed to pave the way to a healthier society [1], [2], [3], [4]. However, it is difficult to evaluate the extent to which health policies are integrated, since a clear operational definition of integrated public health policies is lacking [5].
Many researchers have described integrated public health policies in abstract terms [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], such as ‘health in all policies’ [6], ‘multi-sectoral policy’ [7] and
Methods
Our method was based on four steps: (1) conducting a literature review of publications that propose an operationalization of integrated public health policies and related notions (e.g., health in all policies) using the following search terms: health in all policies, intersectoral action, intersectoral action for health, health governance, health policy, public policy, as well as finding common elements in these publications; (2) identifying gaps in the operationalizations, especially regarding
Literature review of previous operationalizations
Table 1 provides an overview of the previous publications in the field of integrated public health policies [1], [4], [6], [7], [8], [17], [18], [19], [20], [21], [22], [23], [24], [25]. What these publications have in common is that they emphasize: (a) establishing broader goals, not necessarily health, (b) the need for intersectoral action, (c) a focus on social determinants, such as equity, (d) the search for ‘synergies’, based on the assumption that more is achieved together compared to
Discussion
In this article, we have proposed an operationalization of ‘integrated public health policies’ based on two criteria that can be used to assess the extent to which public health policies are integrated. The first criterion is that the combination of policies (e.g., as described in policy documents) includes an array of appropriate interventions that optimize the behavioral system's functioning, thus ensuring that motivation, capability and opportunity interact in such a way as to promote the
Conclusion
We have proposed an operationalization of the concept of integrated public health policies which is based on the Behavior Change Wheel. This operationalization includes two criteria: (1) whether the combination of policies (e.g., as described in policy documents) enables a mix of interventions that make the behavioral system function (in terms of motivation, capability and opportunity), and (2) whether the policy is developed and implemented by the relevant policy sectors from different policy
Competing interests
We declare we have no competing interests.
Acknowledgements
AMH and JH conceived the idea. AMH drafted the manuscript. JH, MJ, SK, JG, SM and NdV helped to refine the manuscript. SM has ensured that the assumptions of the BCW are correctly formulated. MJ and HvO ensured the manuscript is in line with current developments in the health policy field.
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