The effectiveness of health impact assessment

Health impact assessment (HIA) is a support tool for intersectoral decision- and policy-making. It is used to assess the potential health consequences of pending decisions and it feeds this information back into the decision-making process.

This book provides a detailed map of the use of HIA in the WHO European Region across a large range of sectors, including transport, environment, urban planning and agriculture, and at national, regional and local levels. It also reviews the implementation and institutionalization of HIA with specific focus on governance, financing, resource generation and delivery.

HIA's effectiveness is explored and analysed in 17 case studies using a common analytical approach. This research also identifies the factors that contribute to the effectiveness of HIA.

Overall the book demonstrates that HIA can be effective, while also revealing the uneven development and incomplete institutionalization of HIA across Europe.

The book is based on a European research project funded under the European Union Public Health Work Programme. The research was led by the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies and included research teams from 19 countries.