Display options
Cite
Freund M, Zucca A, Sanson-Fisher R, et al. Barriers to the evaluation of evidence-based public health policy. J Public Health Policy. 2019;40(1):114-125doi: 10.1057/s41271-018-0145-9.
Freund, M., Zucca, A., Sanson-Fisher, R., Milat, A., Mackenzie, L., & Turon, H. (2019). Barriers to the evaluation of evidence-based public health policy. Journal of public health policy, 40(1), 114-125. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41271-018-0145-9
Freund, Megan, et al. "Barriers to the evaluation of evidence-based public health policy." Journal of public health policy vol. 40,1 (2019): 114-125. doi: https://doi.org/10.1057/s41271-018-0145-9
Freund M, Zucca A, Sanson-Fisher R, Milat A, Mackenzie L, Turon H. Barriers to the evaluation of evidence-based public health policy. J Public Health Policy. 2019 Mar;40(1):114-125. doi: 10.1057/s41271-018-0145-9. PMID: 30279448.
Copy Download .nbib Format: NLM
Share it on

J Public Health Policy. 2019 Mar;40(1):114-125. doi: 10.1057/s41271-018-0145-9.

Barriers to the evaluation of evidence-based public health policy.

Journal of public health policy

Megan Freund, Alison Zucca, Robert Sanson-Fisher, Andrew Milat, Lisa Mackenzie, Heidi Turon

Affiliations

  1. Health Behaviour Research Collaborative, School of Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Health and Medicine, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia. [email protected].
  2. Priority Research Centre for Health Behaviour, Faculty of Health and Medicine, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia. [email protected].
  3. Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, NSW, Australia. [email protected].
  4. Health Behaviour Research Collaborative, School of Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Health and Medicine, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia.
  5. Priority Research Centre for Health Behaviour, Faculty of Health and Medicine, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, 2308, Australia.
  6. Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, NSW, Australia.
  7. Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, City Road, Camperdown, NSW, 2006, Australia.

PMID: 30279448 DOI: 10.1057/s41271-018-0145-9

Abstract

Public health policy has the potential to produce great benefits for individuals and communities. There is growing demand that such efforts be rigorously evaluated to ensure that the expected benefits are, in fact, realised. Commonly, public health policy is evaluated by consumer acceptability, reach, or changes in knowledge and attitudes. Non-robust research designs are often used. But these approaches to evaluation do not answer three critical questions: Has a change in the desired outcome occurred? Was it a consequence of the policy and not some extraneous factor? Was the size of the change considered significant and cost-effective? We, a team of government and academic scholars working in research and evaluation, have examined some of the more common impediments to robust evaluation: political impediments, a lack of investment in evaluation capacity within bureaucracy, and the failure of academic researchers to understand the need for the evaluation of public health policy.

Keywords: Complex intervention; Dissemination science; Evaluation; Implementation science; Policymaker; Population health; Public health policy

MeSH terms

Publication Types