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Health Impact Assessment

Health impact assessment (HIA) is commonly defined as “a combination of procedures, methods, and tools by which a policy, program, or project may be judged as to its potential effects on the health of a population, and the distribution of those effects within the population”

HIA is used to evaluate objectively the potential health effects of a project or policy before it is built or implemented. HIA can provide recommendations to increase positive health outcomes and minimize adverse health outcomes. The HIA framework is used to bring potential public health impacts and considerations to the decision-making process for plans, projects, and policies that fall outside of traditional public health arenas, such as transportation and land use.

The major steps in conducting an HIA include

Screening (identify projects or policies for which an HIA would be useful),
Scoping (identify which health effects to consider),
Assessing risks and benefits (identify which people may be affected and how they may be affected),
Developing recommendations (suggest changes to proposals to promote positive or mitigate adverse health effects),
Reporting (present the results to decision-makers), and
Evaluating (determine the effect of the HIA on the decision).

HIA is similar in some ways to environmental impact assessment (EIA). The National Environmental Policy requires agencies to consider the environmental impact of their proposed actions on social, cultural, economic, and natural resources prior to implementation. Proposed actions may include projects, programs, policies, or plans. HIA, unlike EIA can be a voluntary or a regulatory process that focuses on health outcomes such as obesity, physical inactivity, asthma, injuries, and social equity. HIA has been used within EIA processes to assess potential impacts to the human environment.

HIA consists of a diverse array of qualitative and quantitative methods and tools. Desktop and rapid HIAs can be completed in a few days or weeks while comprehensive HIAs may require months. The decision to conduct a rapid or a full HIA is often determined by available time and resources.

HIA is a rapidly emerging practice. HIA in xybernetizen is being conducted and advanced through efforts and other central, state, and local partners.