Health primarily happens outside of the doctor’s office and is shaped by the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age. These conditions are influenced by many programs and policies which may appear to be unrelated to health, but which may have important health consequences, both positive and negative. Health in All Policies (HiAP) is an approach that integrates health considerations into policymaking to improve the health of communities and people.
The Kansas Health Institute (KHI) recently partnered with the Department of Population Health at the University of Kansas School of Medicine to provide guest lectures on HiAP to masters-level public health students. The lectures introduce HiAP concepts and demonstrate the use of the Health Impact Checklist as a way to examine potential positive and negative health and equity impacts of policies. By building student capacity in recognizing, assessing and communicating these impacts, KHI is helping to shape future public health leaders.
For more information about the collaboration, read Guest Lectures: Increasing Student Knowledge of Health in All Policies by Using the Health Impact Checklist, which was recently published in the Chronicles of Health Impact Assessment (CHIA), a journal published by the Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health at Indiana University-Purdue University. The article was authored by Tatiana Y. Lin, M.A., KHI Director of Business Strategy and Innovation; Wyatt J. Beckman, M.P.H., C.H.E.S., KHI Senior Analyst; and Vicki Collie-Akers, Ph.D, M.P.H., Associate Professor in the Department of Population Health at the University of Kansas School of Medicine.
KHI is committed to providing technical assistance and education to enhance the capacity of stakeholders and communities around the state to improve the health of all Kansans. Please contact us if your organization is interested in holding an HiAP workshop or learning more about the Health Impact Checklist.