Health Impact Assessment

Our health and wellbeing is influenced by much more than access to quality healthcare. The factors affecting our health (the determinants of health) are often much broader and more complex than what the health sector can address and it is the policies of councils and other non-health sectors that make an important difference to our health and wellbeing.

Health Impact Assessment (HIA) is a systematic way of identifying the potential impacts on the wellbeing and health of the population from any proposed policy, strategy, plan or project, early in the process.

HIA identifies potential impacts and makes evidence-based recommendations to enhance positive effects and to minimise or remove negative effects. This ensures people-centred outcomes and that everyone has the same opportunities to be healthy.

Ideally HIA should be considered for all significant policies. It is most effective when used early in the policy development process, where policy alternatives are being considered but before a commitment to any particular option has been made.

Where a Health Impact Assessment fits in the Policy Process:

HIA supports a Health in All Policies approach to keeping our community well. The Healthy Policies team at Toi Te Ora is able to undertake Health Impact Assessments and may be able to support your organisation through this process. Please contact Healthy Policies for more information.

Find out more:

Ministry of Health Information and resources about HIA including a library of completed HIAs, and a New Zealand ‘how to’ guide.
Quigley and Watts are Wellington based public health consultants with vast experience in HIA both in New Zealand and internationally
Centres for Disease Control US government information and resources about HIA
Human Impact Partners Private US site that contains helpful information, including a short video, for people new to HIA
Pew Charitable Trust A library of HIA undertaken in the US