Health Impact Assessment and the Relationship with the Environment: An Integrating Review

Abstract

ObjectivesTo identify the approach of scientific literature on Health Impact Assessment related to the environmental theme.MethodIntegrative literature review with search for studies with the terms health impact assessment and environment in the Portal of Periodicals of the Coordination of Improvement of Higher Level Personnel following the steps of the protocol elaboration and external validation, data collection, selection and critical evaluation of the studies, analysis of data and results that were organized into thematic categories.Results38 studies were included, and the period with the highest number of publications was between 2012 and 2014, with studies developed mainly in Europe and North America. The categories that resulted were the practice of Health Impact Assessment, Health Impact Assessment and Urban Planning, Environmental Impact Assessment and Health Impact Assessment and Environment and Health.ConclusionsThe Health Impact Assessment is an important decision-making process, evidencing the need to expand its scientific production, discussions and results on the evaluation of health impacts of enterprises, public policies or programs resulting from the process of economic development. There is a movement for the inclusion of health in all policies, including in defense of the institutionalization of the integration between health impact assessment and environmental impact assessment, since it already has its consolidated legal base.