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Achieving better health through health impact assessment.

OBJECTIVE
Health Impact Assessment (HIA) provides a method of predicting the health impacts of policies and activities, in order to recommend changes that would improve health. We piloted approaches to health impact assessment and made recommendations for its use as part of the planning and policy making processes in Scotland.


DESIGN
Two Health Impact Assessments were done as case studies. One assessed the City of Edinburgh Council's Local Transport Strategy. The other assessed North Edinburgh Area Renewal Housing Strategy. Both were done in partnership with the professionals responsible for developing the strategies.


RESULTS
The main health impacts of transport strategy were in the areas of: accidents, pollution, access to amenities, jobs and social contacts, opportunities for physical activity in walking and cycling and impacts on community networks. Overall, housing strategy impacted most on mental health, especially stress and depression. The recommendations of both HIAs are being used in developing the strategies further.


CONCLUSIONS
Health impact assessment can make explicit the health consequences of decisions in different sectors, including impacts on health inequalities. Health Impact Assessment should be done as part of community planning and other partnership activities. Consideration of health impacts should become part of routine decision making.