Health Impact Assessment vs. Other Assessments

According to the World Health Organization, health impact assessment refers to the means of determining the impact of projects, policies, and plans in an economic sector. The means used to establish such assessments include qualitative, quantitative and participatory analysis. In this case, health impact assessment can be utilized by policymakers on ways to improve and avoid diseases and to promote public health. HIA is designed to improve health in all the sectors of the economy such as housing, transport, and agriculture. Within the economy, the transport sector is the primary concern for health impacts. Pollutions, injuries, and noise are some of the significant risks that characterize the industry; however, to prevent such risks, adequate transport policies are needed. Similarly, in the agriculture sector, pesticides and fertilizers used are the major health hazards that communities that practice farming can be exposed to due to excessive or continuous use (Ernst & Figueras, 2007). Under this consideration, the paper will focus on conducting a health impact assessment based on the proposed waste management. Health impact assessment refers to a process that aims at examining and identifying both the negative and the positive health impacts. The assessment is usually done on new activities to provide policymakers with effective information on events that can affect the health of the community as a whole. Decision makers often base their proposals based on the outcome of the health impact assessment. Activities can be conducted but later result in unexpected health risks to the community. For instance, waste management can be beneficial to the intended community as it can create employment for the locals; however, it can lead to unanticipated health impacts like the growth of pathogens which may result in infections and many other life-threatening diseases like cancer Such health risks should be identified from the planning stage, and this aims at minimizing health risks and maximizing the benefits that accrue from such proposals. Health impact assessment should be carried out based on the intended project. The evaluation includes a series of steps that identify the negative and the positive health risk that is associated with a project. The information that is provided to the decision maker aims at mitigating the risks that are involved in conducting a project while maximizing the intended benefits. HIA is being carried out in the project development phase, and the findings and recommendations are presented to assist in the decision-making process (Scott-Samuel, 2006). A concurrent health impact assessment is usually conducted during the implementation of the project while after the implementation of the proposal; a retrospective health impact assessment is conducted. Therefore, the stages involved in HIA are listed below: 

 Project proposal 

 Planning stage 

 Project programming 

 Policy formulation 

 Operation 

 Project development 

Conducting a health impact assessment is beneficial as it ensures all the stages of the plan are reviewed for health consideration. Further, the health assessment is useful as it makes the decision-maker aware of all the health risks entailed in the proposed project; this reduces the impact of ill health on the community. Finally, HIA gives the stakeholders an opportunity to participate fully in executing the project's program and policy. Health impact assessment is concerned with the health impact of projects on the entire economic sector. Health impact assessment is usually conducted before the commencement of projects to determine and prevent unanticipated health risks. Whereas, community and environmental health assessment is done/ applies to programs, plans, and strategies and not to the project. In this case, this other forms of assessments other than HIA ensure risks are assessed, identified, and mitigated based on the area of interest rather than the entire economy. Depending on the nature of the waste involved, the management team should be able to obtain adequate information prior to the commencement of the project. Some of the critical information required includes the regulation and the available options for the acceptance of waste management by the community. Further, all information that relates to the project should be analyzed; this information is to whom and how the issues that relate to waste management will-will be handled. Finally, the waste management team must obtain prior information on the nature of waste for the intended project and the community’s participation in the project. To obtain long-term zero waste for the community, the management team should utilize expert advice from a consultant. The guidelines provided by the expert will serve as a map to incorporate waste management policies. For a positive health impact, the management should include a budget that aims at waste reduction. Further, incentives and programs should be provided to the community to use materials that can be recycled. The local people should also be educated on the importance of using products that are less toxic in their daily operations to prevent health hazards. Finally, the proposed waste management plan should consist of a well-studied waste master plan to realize its goal and at the same time prevent unintentional health risks to the local people. With a view to mitigating the health hazards that are associated with waste, the government should pass laws that punish those individuals and organizations that throw waste material haphazardly. Similarly, to minimize health risks, local governments should place a legal duty on those companies that manufacture products that can cause health hazards to the community. The community should also be involved in sensitization programs so that every individual is well-educated about the dangers that are associated with toxic waste. Further, the community should be educated on the importance of waste management (Birle & Ardern, 2001). Health impact assessment is frequently used by health experts, officers mandated with the issue of environmental and energy permits, and also the team involved in waste management. The information provided assists the stakeholders in the formulation of policies and also in decisions that relate to the project. In this case, the information provided is examined to determine the health impact of the projects on the communities. HIA enables decision-makers to make informed decisions. Additionally, the information above enables the decision-makers to make timely decisions based on the data presented. With the health impact assessment information, decision-makers can file expert health advice, scientific information, and public input; this is beneficial as it enables the stakeholders to identify the overlooked health effects of regulations, laws, and proposed projects. Further, the information discussed above offers the decision-makers recommendations on ways to minimize adverse health effects while maximizing the benefits of such projects to the community they are intended. Finally, the information and recommendations above can be used by the decision-makers to formulate better policies for a healthy community Kemm & Palmer, 2004).  

Summary and Conclusion 

Health impact assessment is a practice that utilizes useful theories to provide decision-makers with information regarding plans and projects to be undertaken by both the public and the private sectors. The information is basically on public health and the implication of individual projects on public health. The HIA is available to the stakeholders who will make decisions based on the health analysis to mitigate risk. Waste management is critical, and our health depends on clean soil, air, and water. When undertaking individual projects, such elements are not put into consideration, hence the need for health impact assessment. Overview, the paper has discussed the health impact assessment based on the proposed project. From the analysis, the paper has identified various recommendations that can be utilized to mitigate the health risk. Of the recommendations suggested is the sensitization of the community on the importance of waste management. In this case, a detailed assessment should be conducted before the commencement of the project to identify the health risks the community can be exposed to. Similarly, retrospective risk analysis should be carried out to mitigate the possibility of the community being injured as a result of the project. Therefore, the stakeholders and decision makers for this project will rely on the analysis provided by the health impact assessment experts to base their decisions on whether to pursue or drop the project. 

References  

Rojas-Rueda, D., de Nazelle, A., Tainio, M., & Nieuwenhuijsen, M. J. (2011). The health risks and benefits of cycling in urban environments compared with car use: health impact assessment study.  Bmj ,  343 , d4521. 

Wismar, M., Blau, J., Ernst, K., & Figueras, J. (2007).  The effectiveness of health impact assessment: scope and limitations of supporting decision-making in Europe . World Health Organization. 

Scott-Samuel, A. (2006). Health impact assessment.  BMJ: British Medical Journal ,  313 (7051), 183. 

Kemm, J., Parry, J., & Palmer, S. (2004).  Health impact assessment: concepts, theory, techniques and applications . Oxford University Press. 

Morrissey, A. J., & Browne, J. (2004). Waste management models and their application to sustainable waste management.  Waste management ,  24 (3), 297-308. 

Scott-Samuel, A., Birley, M., & Ardern, K. (2001).  The Merseyside guidelines for health impact assessment  (pp. 5-15). Liverpool: Impact.