HSC303 – Promoting Health in the Population Assignment Sample

Introduction - HSC303 – Promoting Health in the Population

The purpose of this assessment is to focus on different aspects of promoting health in the population. In this assessment, the focus will be given to the development process of public health policies, determinants of health, and the importance of health promotion in a country like the UK. In this assessment, a small-scale campaign has to be designed where the focus will be given to making people aware of any specific health issues through different approaches.

Don't compromise on your grades! Assignment Help offers premium academic writing solutions crafted by experienced professionals who understand your educational requirements perfectly.

Task 1: How is public health policy developed to improve the population's health?

AC 1.1: Discuss the process for developing a public health policy

In the United Kingdon, the development of public health policy follows systematic processes that involve several key steps for ensuring that the policies are effective in addressing the health concern and are based on evidence:

1. Identifying the issues- the process begins with identifying the key health issues or health concerns across the UK through the governmental health report, health data, research and reports from stakeholders including charitable organisations, public health organisations and healthcare professionals (Buse et al., 2023).
2. Research and gathering of evidence (Analysis): once the key issue has been identified, an extensive analysis of the gathered data has to be carried out to evaluate the cause, major risk factors and impact of the specific health concern on public health and wellbeing (Gray and Evans, 2018). Public health agencies like Public Health England, the UK Health Security Agency, and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities play important roles in this step.
3. Policy formulation (Instrumentation and consultation): the healthcare expert develops a policy proposal based on the evidence, outlining the potential interventions and strategies. This involves input from healthcare professionals, governmental bodies, and public consultations,
4. Stakeholder engagement for implementation: engaging with the stakeholders including public, private, healthcare sectors, and non-governmental organisations (Green et al., 2020). This is an important step to ensure that the policy is comprehensive, relevant, and achievable based on the identified health concerns.
5. Evaluation and Review: Finally, the effectiveness of the policy will be evaluated regularly, allowing for adjustment, and improvement based on outcomes and emerging data.

AC 1.2: Identify the potential groups who can influence public health policy

Public health policy in the UK is shaped by various groups and each of them contributes in different aspects:

1. Government: The Prime Minister and Cabinet have a significant influence in shaping public health policy by developing and implementing legislation, establishing organisations like Public Health England, and Funding Health Initiatives, the role of these organisations and the government are to set national health priorities and to implement policies to address a specific health concern.
2. Government Agencies: Government bodies like the Department of Health (DoH), and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) are responsible for developing guidelines, initiating funds for public health programs, and providing advice on health intervention and care standards (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2023).
3. International Organisations: Global entities including WHO, and the United Nations (UN) influence the development of UK public health policies by setting international health concerns, supporting disease controls, and providing guidance on global health crises.
4. Pressure Groups: The pressure groups include Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, Age Concerns, and Action on Smoking and Health or ASH, which advocate for specific public health causes (Grant, 2021). The role of these groups in public health policy development is to criticise governmental performance, facilitate health promotion campaigns spread awareness, and leverage media to influence public opinion and policy changes.
5. National Groups: Charities and research organisations like Cancer Research, UK, play an important role in conducting research, providing data-based recommendations and advocating public health reform policies based on the evidence (Hartman et al., 2020).

Therefore, in collaboration, these groups shape the direction and focus of public health policy in the UK.

AC 1.3: Explain how the government monitors the health of the nation

Monitoring public health is considered to be essential for understanding the current health status and key health concerns within a population. It entails monitoring metrics like birth and death rates as well as researching viruses to identify patterns in health.

Public health monitoring also focuses on critical issues like drug addiction rate, substance misuse (alcohol and drugs) and the effects of these on the physical and mental health of the population. For example, in 2020-21, the prevalence rate of drug use among the population aged 16 years to 24 years was 7.4 per cent, which indicated that in the country, approximately, 439,000 people are addicted to drug use (Office for National Statistics, 2023). On the other hand, from April 2020- to March 2021, the population number for substance misuse was 275,897. Therefore, in such a scenario the role of government is to collect the data and set up policy decisions. Another role of the government is to implement public health campaigns that aim to prevent and educate people about the negative impact of drug and substance misuse on physical and psychological health and well-being and measure the effectiveness of the campaign on public health. In the UK, the government monitors the health of the nation through Public Health Monitoring and Reporting, which works in collaboration with the bodies like European Public Health Association or EUPHA (European Public Health Association, 2024). The process is to collect and analyse the data on different health components to assess the current status of people as per health concerns and identify the key issues that used to affect a large section of society. Public health monitoring of the UK government can be categorised into two ways:

1. Comprehensive monitoring, where the board approaches to capture a wide range of health-related evidence and data across the entire population of the country to develop a complete scenario of the nation’s current health aspects.
2. Topical Monitoring, in this process, the government tries to focus on specific areas including child health women's health, and substance misuse rates among the population and adults (Mishra et al., 2022). These data can help the government to target a specific population for a specific health concern. For example, to implement anti-drug related policy, the government can target the young population between the ages of 16 to 25 years, as in the UK this population is highly prone to substance and drug use across the nation.

Once the data are collected, public health reports are prepared to communicate the state of the population’s health. These reports can be in the form of written articles, reports, or brochures and should be shared with relevant stakeholders like government agencies, healthcare providers, and policymakers. These reports provide clear guidelines and support the development of evidence-based public health policies. In this scenario, the government can use HIA or Health Impact assessment as a tool to evaluate the effect of health policies on public health and well-being. HIA assesses the potential health outcome of proposed policies and programs across different sectors like education, housing, and employment and ensures that the health considerations are integrated into the decision-making process (World Health Organization, 2022). By identifying the potential risks and benefits, HIA can help policymakers understand how different groups can be affected by health concerns, which allows policymakers to make essential adjustments to maximise the positive impacts and reduce health inequalities.

Task 2 Examine factors that can affect health in the population.

AC 2.1: Discuss the factors affecting health across the nation

According to WHO, health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and it cannot be defined by a mere absence of disease or infirmities (World Health Organization, 2024). There are several factors that in combination can affect the health of individuals and communities. Health is determined by social, cultural, economic, and physical environment.

The social determinants of health can be of two types: structural determinants, and intermediary determinants. The structural determinants of health include the governing processes like national and local government policies which influence healthcare access, quality and equity, whereas economic and social policies refer to the income distribution, employment opportunities, and social welfare that can impact the overall health of the population (Holt-Lunstad, 2022). On the other hand, intermediary determinants refer to the material circumstances like income, housing, and basic household conditions which influence the access to healthcare, nutritional foods, and living conditions of the people in society. This also includes psychosocial factors like social support networks that can affect the mental health and stress levels of people. Apart from that, economic factors including the income rate of the population, gross domestic product rate and national income rate of a country can impact on health and wellbeing of the people of that country (Dawes, 2020). For example, low-income rates in areas like the Northeastern part of England experience high rates of chronic diseases due to limited access to nutrition; food, healthcare services, and poor health conditions. Unemployment can also be considered as an important economic factor on which the health and well-being of individuals and within society vary to a considerable extent.

Cultural factors refer to the cultural beliefs of the people which can shape health behaviours (Al-Bannay et al., 2013). For example, dietary practices in immigrant communities- or more specifically, in the case of South Asian communities in the UK are more vulnerable to Type 2 diabetes which is influenced by cultural dietary habits and genetic predispositions. Lastly, the physical factors refer to the rate of pollution, transportation, and access to healthcare service facilities, which impact heavily on the health and well-being of people. For example, Manchester and Birmingham contribute higher rates of air pollution in England, for which the prevalence rate of respiratory illness in these areas is higher than any other region with a low air pollution rate.

Addressing these factors in the UK is essential to identify the health disparities in the country.

AC 2.2: Discuss the potential benefits of improving health across the nation

There are a lot of benefits of healthy nations, which include an improved workforce, improved economy, decrease in health-related expenditures, and better health and well-being of children. According to Peabody et al. (2016), better health can yield numerous benefits, not only for an individual but also for the society and economy of an entire nation or country.

Considering the Economic benefit, it can be stated that, enhanced or improved health of the people of a country can reduce the healthcare cost of that nation, In 2020, the NHS spent more than £210 billion on healthcare services, which reduced £185 billion in 2022/23 and £178 billion in 2024/25 which represent the gradual improvement of public health and wellbeing in post COVID-19 era across the UK (NHS England, 2023). According to Modi (2022), good population health is considered to be important for sustainable economic growth. For example, in 2020, due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic the economic growth of the UK contracted by 9.4 per cent, however, in the post-COVID19 period, with the gradual improvement of health and well-being of the people, and productivity rate across the country, the UK’s economy has grown by 1.1% in 2024 (ONS, 2021). ONS, (2024) has mentioned that improved health and well-being of people within a country can contribute to social cohesion, and quality of life, according to (the ONS) Office for National Statistics, in 2020, the life expectancy rate in the UK was 81.2 years which has increased to 81.77 years in 2023 and 81.92 years in 2024. In this scenario, it can be stated that a healthy population can enhance the productivity level. In 2020, as per the data reported by Health Index, poor health cost the economy of the UK approximately £100 billion annually due to loss of productivity, whereas in the second quarter of 2024, as per ONS estimation report, the productivity rate is 0.1%, which was 0.6% in the first quarter of 2024 (ONS, 2024a). Lastly, improving health outcomes can also reduce the prevalence of preventable or non-communicable diseases across the country and can improve the overall quality of physical and psychological health of the people. As a whole, it can be stated that enhanced health across a nation can lead to substantial economic, social, and health benefits which can contribute to a more productive, economically viable and equitable society.

Task 3 Discuss how health promotion can influence individuals to adopt healthy lifestyles.

AC 3.1: Evaluate two models commonly used in health promotion

Health promotion is considered to be important as it can improve the health status of individuals, families, communities, the state and the nation. According to (), health promotion can also contribute to the development of health policies and programs that promote health and well-being within a community and at the national level. The aim or purpose of health promotion is to reduce the health disparities within a society by ensuring that all individuals can get equal access to the resources and information that they need to manage and maintain good health. There are two widely used health promotion models:

Health belief model- HBM is a theoretical framework which helps explain and predict health behaviour and it is often used as a guideline for health promotion and disease prevention programs in society. This model is used to explain and predict individual changes in health behaviour. The key elements of the Health Belief Model include the health conditions, which preduct individual health-related behaviour. This model refers to key factors that influence health behaviours as an individual’s perceived threat to diseases, belief of consequences, perceived barriers to action, potential positive benefit of action, and confidence in the ability to succeed (Anuar et al., 2020). This model is effective in addressing preventive behaviours like vaccination, smoking cessation, and health screening. For example, public health campaigns that target smoking cessation can emphasise the potential harms and risks related to the consumption of nicotine for physical and psychological health, and the benefit of smoking cessation practice. In such a campaign, leveraging this model can provide a guideline to target the potential population and develop a blueprint for motivating the targeted population for smoking cessation, an adaptation of a healthy lifestyle through a change of diet, livelihood and health behaviour approaches (Limbu et al., 2022). This model can help the targeted population of the campaign to understand the perceived threat related to their current behaviour and understand the benefit of preventive action.

Theory of reasoned action- This is a cognitive theory and mathematical model that can help to predict and explain health behaviour. The theory of reasoned action was developed by Martin Fishbein and Icek Ajzen in 1975 and used widely to predict and understand health behaviours by focusing on an individual’s intentions to perform specific actions (Hagger, 2019). The key component of TRA is behavioural intention which is influenced by attitude toward the behaviour which refers to the personal positive or negative evaluation of performing behaviour. On the other hand, subjective norms refer to the perceived social pressure to perform the behaviour influenced by the opinions of significant others. The TRA is an important model in health promotion, as it emphasises the role of social influences and personal beliefs in shaping health behaviours, for example, campaigns aimed at smoking cessation among adolescents can use the Tra model by addressing the behaviour of the young adults towards smoking habits and highlight the peer norms to discourage that behaviour (Lueck and Spiers, 2023). This model is considered to be effective for modifying health-related behaviours, particularly among the young population as this model takes social context to foster health decisions.

AC 3.2: Discuss approaches commonly used to increase public awareness

Increasing public health awareness is considered to be important to promote health, safety and social change. There are several approaches that can be used for health promotion across the globe. For example, Public Health Campaigns are where the government and non-governmental organisations initiate mass media campaigns on TV, radio, and social media platforms to disseminate information on specific health issues like smoking cessation, vaccination, and mental health (de Vere Hunt and Linos, 2022). For example, in the UK, the ‘Change4Life’ campaign was initiated by the NHS to make people aware of choosing healthy lifestyles through physical activities and a balanced diet. The significance of this approach is extended reach to a large population through social media and print media. Community engagement is another health promotion approach, where the local organisations try to engage directly with the communities to raise awareness on specific public health issues (Durrance-Bagale et al., 2022). This includes workshops, town hall meetings, and public forums, and the aim of this approach is to make the people educated about local health concerns like disease prevention and managing air pollution or waste management process. Social media and digital platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are other health promotion approaches through which information can be spread to a wide audience. Healthcare organisations can leverage this approach to create interactive campaigns like hashtags, and viral challenges to engage the young generation.

Task 4 Develop a health promotion event and analyse its effectiveness.

4.1 Produce health promotion materials for a target audience

“Healthy Heart, Healthy You”-it is a health promotion campaign that seeks to aware adults aged 30-50 years about the risks related to CVD or cardiovascular diseases. The objective of this campaign is to make people aware of how to keep the heart healthy through lifestyle change.

Fact:

6. Number of people with CVD: 6.8 million people in England living with Cardiovascular disorder,
7. In 2022, more than 39,000 people in England died prematurely from CVD, which is the highest since 2008 (British Heart Foundation, 2024).
8. About 12.5 million adults in England have high blood pressure, and half of them are undiagnosed or not receiving treatment (Office for national statistics, 2023).
9. In 2022, 1.18 million people admitted to hospital due to CVD in the UK
10. The estimated economic burden due to CVD in the UK is £19 billion (Office for national statistics, 2023).

Target audience:

This campaign targets the audience aged 30 to 50 years, as the prevalence rate of CVD among this population is significantly high in the UK (British Heart Foundation, 2024).

4.2 Small health promotion campaign

Medium To address the target audience:

Social media campaigns using Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter can be used to make people aware of this campaign. In this case, hashtags like “#healthyheart can be used. Apart from that posters and banners can be placed in community centres, and healthcare facilities to, make people aware of this campaign.

4.3 Analyse the effects of the campaign

The effectiveness of the campaign can be measured by determining the improvement in health metrics like blood pressure, BMI and cholesterol level of the target audience. The campaign can be deemed successful if the majority of participants report changing to better habits and health testing reveals a decline in CVD risk factors (Francula-Zaninovic and Nola, 2018).
In addition, the degree to which the community connected with the campaign's messaging will be gauged via participant involvement on social media. Positive poll findings and active participation in the #HealthyHeartChallenge would suggest that the workshops and promotional materials were well-received.

Conclusion

To conclude this assessment, it can be stated that promoting health among the population is essential to make people aware of disease prevention, enhancing quality of life, and decreasing overall health expenditure. By considering the entire analysis it can be stated that the development of public health policy follows a systematic, evidence-driven process influenced by multiple stakeholders, including governmental bodies and international organizations. In this discussion, two health promotion models have been used along with an in-depth discussion about different approaches to health promotion. Lastly, it can be concluded that health promotion is important to make people aware of health concerns and improve the health and well-being of the population of a country.

References

• Al-Bannay, H., Jarus, T., Jongbloed, L., Yazigi, M. and Dean, E. (2013). Culture as a variable in health research: perspectives and caveats. Health Promotion International, [online] 29(3), pp.549–557. doi:https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/dat002.
• Anuar, H., Shah, S.A., Gafor, H., Mahmood, M.I. and Ghazi, H.F., (2020). Usage of Health Belief Model (HBM) in health behavior: A systematic review. Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences, 16(11), pp.2636-9346.http://medic.upm.edu.my/upload/dokumen/2021010809001826_2020_0366_.pdf
• British Heart Foundation (2024). Early heart disease deaths rise to 14-year high. [online] www.bhf.org.uk. Available at: https://www.bhf.org.uk/what-we-do/news-from-the-bhf/news-archive/2024/january/early-heart-disease-deaths-rise-to-14-year-high#:~:text=Latest%20figures%20show%20that%20in.
• Buse, K., Mays, N., Colombini, M., Fraser, A., Khan, M. and Walls, H., (2023). Making Health Policy, 3e. McGraw Hill.https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=OgHVEAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=process+for+developing+a+public+health+policy+in+UK&ots=l5RiBxMPVS&sig=4q25jjFgI5mSnXx5y30jX1needg
• Dawes, D.E., (2020). The political determinants of health. Johns Hhttps://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=XijNDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR7&dq=health+determinant+factors&ots=cbhcloCdah&sig=7UgAK1RtJANujg19kmt5X2wl3VM
• de Vere Hunt, I.J. and Linos, E. (2022). Social media for public health: a framework for social media-based public health campaigns (Preprint). Journal of Medical Internet Research, [online] 24(12). doi:https://doi.org/10.2196/42179.
• Durrance-Bagale, A., Marzouk, M., Tung, L.S., Agarwal, S., Aribou, Z.M., Ibrahim, N.B.M., Mkhallalati, H., Newaz, S., Omar, M., Ung, M., Zaseela, A., Nagashima-Hayashi, M. and Howard, N. (2022). Community Engagement in Health Systems Interventions and Research in conflict-affected countries: a Scoping Review of Approaches. Global Health Action, [online] 15(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/16549716.2022.2074131.
• European Public Health Association (2024). Section: Public Health Monitoring and Reporting. [online] eupha.org. Available at: https://eupha.org/public-health-monitoring-and-reporting.
• Francula-Zaninovic, S. and Nola, I.A. (2018). Management of Measurable Variable Cardiovascular Disease’ Risk Factors. Current Cardiology Reviews, 14(3), pp.153–163. doi:https://doi.org/10.2174/1573403x14666180222102312.
• Grant, W., (2021). Pressure groups. In Politics UK (pp. 266-288). Routledge.https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781003028574-18/pressure-groups-wyn-grant
• Gray, S.F. and Evans, D., (2018). Developing the public health workforce: training and recognizing specialists in public health from backgrounds other than medicine: experience in the UK. Public health reviews, 39, pp.1-9.https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40985-018-0091-x
• Green, L., Ashton, K., Edmonds, N. and Azam, S., (2020). Process, practice and Progress: a case study of the health impact assessment (HIA) of Brexit in Wales. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(18), p.6652.https://reshare.ukdataservice.ac.uk/id/eprint/855274
• Hagger, M.S. (2019). The Reasoned Action Approach and the Theories of Reasoned Action and Planned Behavior. [online] obo. Available at: https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/display/document/obo-9780199828340/obo-9780199828340-0240.xml.
• Hartman, T., Kennedy, H., Steedman, R. and Jones, R., (2020). Public perceptions of good data management: Findings from a UK-based survey. Big Data & Society, 7(1), p.2053951720935616.https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/2053951720935616
• Holt-Lunstad, J., (2022). Social connection as a public health issue: the evidence and a systemic framework for prioritizing the “social” in social determinants of health. Annual Review of Public Health, 43(1), pp.193-213.https://www.annualreviews.org/content/journals/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-052020-110732
• Limbu, Y.B., Gautam, R.K. and Pham, L., (2022). The health belief model applied to COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy: a systematic review. Vaccines, 10(6), p.973.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-393X/10/6/973
• Lueck, J.A. and Spiers, A., (2023). Which beliefs predict intention to get vaccinated against COVID-19? A mixed-methods reasoned action approach applied to health communication. In Vaccine Communication in a Pandemic (pp. 51-59). Routledge.https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1477-9552.12408
• Mishra, M., Lourenço, P.B. and Ramana, G.V., 2022. Structural health monitoring of civil engineering structures by using the internet of things: A review. Journal of Building Engineering, 48, p.103954.https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0926580522000413
• Modi, N. (2022). Valuing health: why prioritising population health is essential to prosperity. [online] The British Medical Association is the trade union and professional body for doctors in the UK. Available at: https://www.bma.org.uk/what-we-do/population-health/addressing-social-determinants-that-influence-health/valuing-health-why-prioritising-population-health-is-essential-to-prosperity.
• National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (2023). National Institute for Health and Care Excellence: Clinical Guidelines. [online] Nih.gov. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK11822/.
• NHS England (2023). NHS England - NHS Long Term Workforce Plan. [online] NHS England. Available at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/nhs-long-term-workforce-plan-2/.
• Office for National Statistics (2023). Drug misuse in England and Wales - Office for National Statistics. [online] Office For National Statistics. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/drugmisuseinenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2023.
• Office for national statistics (2023). Risk factors for undiagnosed high blood pressure in England - Office for National Statistics. [online] www.ons.gov.uk. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/healthandwellbeing/articles/riskfactorsforundiagnosedhighbloodpressureinengland/2015to2019.
• ONS (2021). GDP and Events in history: How the COVID-19 Pandemic Shocked the UK Economy - Office for National Statistics. [online] www.ons.gov.uk. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/articles/gdpandeventsinhistoryhowthecovid19pandemicshockedtheukeconomy/2022-05-24.
• ONS (2024a). GDP first quarterly estimate, UK - Office for National Statistics. [online] www.ons.gov.uk. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/bulletins/gdpfirstquarterlyestimateuk/januarytomarch2024.
• ONS (2024b). National Life Tables – Life Expectancy in the UK - Office for National Statistics. [online] Office for National Statistics. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/lifeexpectancies/bulletins/nationallifetablesunitedkingdom/2020to2022.
• Peabody, J.W., Taguiwalo, M.M., Robalino, D.A. and Frenk, J. (2016). Improving the Quality of Care in Developing Countries. [online] Nih.gov. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK11790/#:~:text=Social%20Macroeconomic%20Benefits&text=Higher%20quality%20of%20care%20for [Accessed 27 Sep. 2024].
• World Health Organization (2022). Health Impact Assessment. [online] www.who.int. Available at: https://www.who.int/health-topics/health-impact-assessment#tab=tab_1.
• World Health Organization (2024). Constitution of the world health organization. [online] World Health Organization. Available at: https://www.who.int/about/governance/constitution.

Author Bio

Rosa Evans   9 Years | MD

Hello, I am Rosa and I have an MD in medical studies. I have been working as a professional academic writer for more than 9 years. I have expertise in various fields of medical science so no topic from health studies is difficult for me to research about. I can assure your assignments will drafted with excellent knowledge of medical science.