Open AccessPolicy as intervention: environmental and policy approaches to the prevention of cardiovascular disease.
Author(s) -
Thomas L. Schmid,
Michael Pratt,
Elizabeth H. Howze
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.85.9.1207
Subject(s) - legislation , intervention (counseling) , disease , health policy , environmental policy , control (management) , public economics , disease prevention , political science , environmental health , business , economic growth , medicine , environmental resource management , economics , health care , management , pathology , law , psychiatry
This paper describes the evolution of efforts to prevent cardiovascular disease, from individual health education approaches to broader community education efforts and, finally, to comprehensive and integrated programs addressing environmental, policy, and individual behavior change. Policies are divided into two areas: legislation/regulation and organizational policy. Environmental strategies are measures that alter or control the physical or social environment. Dimensions along which these strategies might be implemented are provided. Policy and environmental approaches can be justified on economic, strategic, and theoretical grounds. Experiences from other fields and other countries provide a framework for conceptualizing cardiovascular disease prevention approaches.