Introduction
People require medical intervention to remediate their pains and sicknesses. As a result communities benefit from the promotion of essential practices of health as well as prevention of diseases. The efforts designed to achieve the shared goals in promotion of healthcare are categorized under health policy. Accordingly, identification and definition are important processes in a health policy that should consider the health definition of the World Health Organization (WHO). It is therefore important for every healthcare institution to align its policy with the health definition of WHO.
Importance of Definition of Health to a Health Policy
A comprehensible definition of health as has been postulated by World Health Organization (WHO) is important in facilitating a public debate over a health policy. During formulation and the review process of a health policy, debates arise from the general public and health experts over certain sections of a policy that parties deem as controversial or unfit (Anderson et al., 2022). At these times the conversations around the policy are structured within the guidelines of the universally accepted definition of health by WHO. At the formulation stage for instance, an interested party in a policy can gauge whether a policy is narrowly of broadly focused on a health problem (Anderson et al., 2022).
Accordingly, when the definition of health’s scope is widened, then the policy will be broadly explained. When the public base their debate on a policy from the perspectives of health definition then they are able to examine the overall effectiveness of the policy when the policy is being reviewed (Anderson et al., 2022). As evident, health policy is purely grounded on the explicit definition of health.
Target Population in a Health Policy
Health policy compared to any other policy has its target population. Target population is the group of individuals who have unique characteristics that a specific health policy is formulated to address (McLaughlin & McLaughlin, 2014). For instance, the US health policy of Medicare is geared towards providing health insurance for the individuals over the age of 65 years and the younger persons with certain disabilities (Piatak, 2017).
It means that the target population for this Medicare is the younger individuals with specific disabilities and the elderly above 65 year of age. Notably, the target population should not only have challenges that a given health policy needs to address (Piatak, 2017). For example, an institution may formulate a policy such as the bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy to give a clear procedure on entry of devices that are not from the healthcare facility. In this case, the target population for this policy is the healthcare staff and the general public. Evidently, every health policy has a group of individuals who are impacted by the its provisions or whose behaviors are regulated by the policy.
How Societal Influences Impact the Identification and Definition Process of Policy
Societal influences immensely impact the identification and definition process of a health policy. In essence, the social determinants of health can be viewed as the social, physical, and economic settings in which people are born, live, interact, work, and age (Cockerham, 2021). All the aforementioned social influences have an effect on the identification process on a health policy. In identification process, the problem which is to be addressed by a policy is clearly defined and stated. Defining the problem requires the policymakers to understand the social context within which the policy is applicable. Without doubt, social factors such as demography, social stratification, and class distribution in a country form a basis in which a problem in a policy is tied (Cockerham, 2021). Categorically, the problem is defined within the bounds of the social setup, institution, or social interaction and any error that arises from the influences are mitigated by the provisions of the policy.
Moreover, social influences impact the identification and definition of a health policy in terms of scope and qualities that are desirable in the target population. For one to identify a relevant policy in a community, one should assess the social aspects of individuals in that community (Cockerham, 2021). As such, considerations such as education and drug use behavior need to be emphasized when a policymaker wants to define effective health policy that is relevant to a particular target group. Specifically, education influences a health policy by enabling a policy maker to categorize the target population in terms of the educational standards and statuses (Cockerham, 2021). As a result, the policymaker is able to define how each category of individuals is impacted by the policy and extent to which the impact is manifested on the overall target population.
How Adventist HealthCare’s Policies Align with the WHO’s Definition of Health
Healthcare organizations are working to ensure that they allign their policies with the health definition of WHO to ensure compliance. A good example of a healthcare institution whose policies align with the WHO definition of health is the US’ Adventist HealthCare that is based in Gaithersburg, Maryland State. This particular healthcare organization is focused on the health and wellbeing of the communities through an integrated ministry of spiritual, physical, and mental healing. The outlined objective of the healthcare institution align with the WHO’s description of health as a condition of complete physical and psychosocial wellbeing and not entirely a lack of infirmity. Aligning of a healthcare policies to WHO’s health definition is important in establishing a ground in which a health institution can formulate its operational policies.
Apart from its working policy, Adventist HealthCare Organization has other policies that orientate towards the health definition of the WHO. Adventist HealthCare understands that extension to all individuals of the benefits of medical and psychological and associated knowledge is necessary to the fullest realization of health. Therefore in its undertaking, the Adventist HealthCare Organization organizes classes and events aimed at imparting knowledge to the local communities about different health topics of concern. In addition, the healthcare organization has established online health risk assessments to provide its patients with insights about certain prevalent health conditions. Among the diseases that the health institution has devised assessment for, include the breast cancer and heart related ailments. As a matter of fact, Adventist HealthCare Organization is providing knowledge to the general public about psychological and medical knowledge that is important in improving community health conditions.
Conclusion
In summary, a health policy is deeply rooted in the identification and definition processes that are again based on the WHO’s health definition. Importance of definition of health can be derived from its ability to direct public debate about any health policy that is to be formulated. Moreover, for every health policy to be relevant, it must clearly define the target population for which it is intended. Indeed, health policy is an important tool for any healthcare organization.
References
Anderson, J., Moyer, J., & Chichirau, G. (2022). Public policymaking (9th ed.). Cengage Learning.
Cockerham, W. (2021). The social causes of health and disease. John Wiley & Sons.
McLaughlin, C. P., & McLaughlin, C. D. (2014). Health policy analysis: An interdisciplinary approach (2nd ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Piatak, J. (2017). Understanding the implementation of Medicaid and Medicare: Social construction and historical context. Administration & Society, 49(8), 1165-1190. Web.