Course Project: Community Advocacy Project—Health Policies

Course Project: Community Advocacy Project—Health Policies

To prepare for this section of the Course Project:

• Review the Windome et al. article. Reflect on the authors’ seven lessons and how the lessons apply to advocacy work and policy formation.
• Consider existing policies that impact the public health issue (TOBACCO USE) you selected in Week 1.. For instance, if you have identified tobacco use as an issue within your community, think about community policies that would curtail tobacco use such as tobacco-free zones and high taxes on tobacco products.
• View the media titled “Improving Public Health Policy.” Think about new policies that might be enacted to address your selected public health issue. These policies must be able to be implemented. Do not suggest, for instance, that smoking should be made entirely illegal.
• Identify potential stakeholders in the development and passage of ideas for health policy change within your community.

The Project (1–2 pages)
To complete this section of your Course Project, address the following:
• Describe existing policies that impact your selected public health issue (TOBACCO USE). Explain whether these existing policies are adequate or need to be revised based on their strengths and limitations, and why.
• Describe new policies that you consider important for addressing your selected public health issue, and explain why.
• Describe potential stakeholders in the development and passage of ideas for public health policy change within your community, and explain why their role is important.
Support your Project with specific references to all resources used in its preparation. You are asked to provide a reference list for all resources, including those in the Learning Resources for this course.

Readings
• Widome, R., Samet, J. M., Hiatt, R. A., Luke, D. A., Orleans, C. T., Ponkshe, P., & Hyland, A. (2010). Science, prudence, and politics: The case of smoke-free indoor spaces. Annals of Epidemiology, 20(6), 428–435.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
• National Prevention Council. (2011). National prevention strategy: America’s plan for better health and wellness. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General, 25–50.

National Prevention Council, National Prevention Strategy, Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General, 2011
• Oliver, T. R. (2006). The politics of public health policy. Annual Review Of Public Health, 27, 195–233.
THE POLITICS OF PUBLIC HEALTH POLICY. Annual Review of Public Health by Thomas R. Oliver. Copyright 2006 by Annual Reviews Inc. Used by permission of Annual Reviews Inc. via the Copyright Clearance Center.
• United Nations. (2010). Millennium development goals. Retrieved from
http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2012). Healthy people 2020: Improving the health of Americans. Retrieved from http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/default.aspx
Media
• Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2012). Improving public health policy. Baltimore, MD: Author.
“Improving Public Health Policy” Transcript
Optional Resources
• Puska, P., & Ståhl, T. (2010). Health in all policies—The Finnish initiative: Background, principles, and current issues. Annual Review Of Public Health, 31, 315–328.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.