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Formulation of Health Policy

This document outlines the key steps in the health policy formulation process in Uganda. It begins with defining what a policy is and the different types of policies. It then describes the 8 main stages of policy formulation: [1] agenda setting; [2] problem identification; [3] policy formulation; [4] validation; [5] adoption; [6] budgeting; [7] implementation; and [8] evaluation. Each stage involves consultation with stakeholders, prioritization of issues, consideration of options, and formal approval before the policy is implemented, monitored and assessed.

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AYO NELSON
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230 views28 pages

Formulation of Health Policy

This document outlines the key steps in the health policy formulation process in Uganda. It begins with defining what a policy is and the different types of policies. It then describes the 8 main stages of policy formulation: [1] agenda setting; [2] problem identification; [3] policy formulation; [4] validation; [5] adoption; [6] budgeting; [7] implementation; and [8] evaluation. Each stage involves consultation with stakeholders, prioritization of issues, consideration of options, and formal approval before the policy is implemented, monitored and assessed.

Uploaded by

AYO NELSON
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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HEALTH POLICY

FORMULATION

Presentation by: Paga Quirine


Lecture Outline
• Definition of Policy
• The Policy Process
• The Uganda Policy Process
• The National Health Policy & Health
Sector Strategic Plans
What is Policy?
• A course or principle of action adopted or
proposed by a government, party,
business, individual, NGOs, civil society
organizations, etc.
• The basic principles by which a
government is guided to foster
development.
What is Public Policy?
These are actions taken by government, its
decision that are intended to solve problems and
improve the quality of life for its citizens.
What is Health Policy?
• Health policy refers to decisions, plans, actions
that are undertaken to achieve specific health
goals within a society
• Compare health policy and health care policy
Types of Policy
i) High Policy
 Related to the maintenance of core values and long term objectives of the
state
 macro/systemic policy;

 national/state government level;

 e.g. major economic policy; regulation of the private sector;

 May require legislation;

ii) Low Policy


 Not involving key questions relating to a state/national interest or those
important to significant groups
 micro/ sectoral policy;

 MoH/ Institutional;

 e.g. changes in vaccine policy;


Types of Policies
iii) Distributive policies
– Providing for services/benefits to particular groups in country with no
obvious disadvantage to others;
– not particularly controversial;

iv) Regulatory policies


– Imposition of limitation/restriction on the behaviour of groups or individuals
– e.g. licensing of doctors;

v) Self-regulatory policies
– By an organisation to control its own members

vi) Redistributive polices


– Constitute of deliberate government attempts to change the distribution of
income or wealth
– e.g. through taxation or social insurance;
– controversial
Categories of Health Policy
• There are many categories of health policy
which include; Global health policy, mental
health policy, health care policy, insurance
health policy, personal health care policy.
• Policies related to public health include;
vaccination policy, tobacco control policy,
breast feeding policy, malaria control policy.
The Policy formulation Process

Stages of policy-making
i. Problem identification and issue recognition
ii. Policy formulation

iii. Policy implementation


iv. Policy evaluation
Policy Making Process
Steps for policy formulation
• Policy writing
Step 1.
Need to draft or revise a policy
Step 2
Consult with key stakeholders regarding policy content.
Establish reference groups with relevant expertise
Step 3
Consult with related areas that may have process, role
or implementation role to develop accompanying draft
procedure.
Steps for cont.
• Step 4
Develop or revise appropriate procedure
Step 5
Review procedure, verify if it meets policy requirement
to ensure that policy and procedure are aligned.
Step 6
Seek approval by the appropriate authority eg the
National Health Policy is approved by the Executive and
confirmed by Parliament
Steps cont.
• Step 7
Publishing on the media eg National newspapers
Step8
Disseminate and implement the policy as step 2
(see reference groups in step 2)
1.0 Agenda setting phase

Definition - The list of subjects or problems to


which government officials and people outside
government are paying serious attention at any
given time.

Who?
• Government; International agencies; Civil
society; media;
Agenda cont.
How? Various approaches
a) legitimacy, feasibility, support
• Legitimacy – government should be concerned and have the
right to intervene
• Feasibility – potential for implementing policy – technical,
financial etc.
• Support – by the population, by different groups
Agenda cont.
b) problem, politics & policies streams –
window of opportunity and the streams merge
• How is a certain issue considered a problem e.g.
statistics, disease outbreak
• How is issue affected by different members of society –
visible (politicians) and hidden (academia) participants
• How do the contents of the policy affect it – e.g technical
feasibility
2.0 Problem identification phase.
 How do issues get on the policy agenda?

 Why do some issues not even get discussed?


• Situation analysis (diagnosis phase) What are
the emerging policy concerns?
• To produce a statement of issues which
identifies the opportunities and constraints
through research, broad-based consultation
to collect views of all the stakeholders on the
health challenges they face and their demand.
3.0 Policy formulation phase.

 Who formulates policy?

 How is it formulated?
 Where do initiatives come from?
This involves;
Prioritisation of policy issues
Generation of policy options
Presentation of the rationale and justification for their choice
Note: this should lead to formulation of a set of health
objectives designed to address the problems identified and
to exploit opportunities which may arise
Formulation cont.…
• Formulation Steps
i. Which issues or policy concern to address in the
community.
ii. Which policy option to use to tackle the health
selected health problems..
iii. Choose policy interventions informed by a set
of criterior or indicators such as health targets,
complementarity or substitution of policies,
etc.
4.0 Validation phase

After drafting, it must be submitted for


validation in workshops, conferences, seminars.
After validation, the technical team should
incorporate the comments and finalise the
policy document
5.0 Adoption phase

Formalisation and executive force:


 The policy needs to be given executive force ie all the
authority necessary to be taken serious and given the
credibility by the actors
Means of formalisation
 Government official adoption
 Issuing a statement, decree, conversion into a Law or
other.
 Integration into national Development framework
Communication
• To internalise the policy and its contents to all
those who are concerned
• Make them understand its meaning as a
comprehensive and new mode of action to
deal with health challenges i.e. the ways and
means that every actor, public or private, in
their field of responsibility, must contribute to
the promotion of the policy.
Communication
• Adoption through;
-mass media
-training workshops
-Village theatre
-distribution of gargets, t-shirts
-website, social media, Facebook, etc.
6.0 Budgeting phase
This phase deals with the following;
• Specify the necessary conditions for ownership
and authority
• Itemise intervention in operational manner and
establish authority and ownership of the policy
• Define the plan which is going to allow the
organisation and progress for implementation
of the policy
Budgeting cont.
• Give information about the process, methods
and conditions which are going to allow the
policy into a national policy and national
development framework.
• Formulate the requirements relating to the
strengthening of the technical and financial
capacities without which implementation
cannot be made.
7.0 Implementation phase
• Depends on the other policies and on numerous
actors with all interest.
The basic principles of implementation are;
i. Internalisation of the policy objectives by all
concerned actors.
ii. Convergence of their efforts and their
monitoring.
iii. Dialogue and cooperation/consultation as a
mode of organisation of the implementation.
Implementation phase cont.
• Key elements to ensure the implementation of
the policy
i. Operationalise the tripartite, inter-ministerial
coordination mechanism eg revision of legal
text, institutional audit, etc.
ii. Operationalise monitoring and evaluation
framework
iii. Financial resources must be brought within the
annual budget cycles
8.0 Evaluation phase
Has the initiative achieved its objectives
What were the effects
Are there any policy changes needed?
Evaluation is measured by; using social science
research methods including quantitative and
qualitative technique e.g. the effects of policy.

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