Abstract
This article is part of a series written for people responsible for making decisions about health policies and programmes and for those who support these decision makers.Policymakers and those supporting them often find themselves in situations that spur them on to work out how best to define a problem. These situations may range from being asked an awkward or challenging question in the legislature, through to finding a problem highlighted on the front page of a newspaper. The motivations for policymakers wanting to clarify a problem are diverse. These may range from deciding whether to pay serious attention to a particular problem that others claim is important, through to wondering how to convince others to agree that a problem is important. Debates and struggles over how to define a problem are a critically important part of the policymaking process. The outcome of these debates and struggles will influence whether and, in part, how policymakers take action to address a problem. Efforts at problem clarification that are informed by an appreciation of concurrent developments are more likely to generate actions. These concurrent developments can relate to policy and programme options (e.g. the publication of a report demonstrating the effectiveness of a particular option) or to political events (e.g. the appointment of a new Minister of Health with a personal interest in a particular issue). In this article, we suggest questions that can be used to guide those involved in identifying a problem and characterising its features. These are: 1. What is the problem? 2. How did the problem come to attention and has this process influenced the prospect of it being addressed? 3. What indicators can be used, or collected, to establish the magnitude of the problem and to measure progress in addressing it? 4. What comparisons can be made to establish the magnitude of the problem and to measure progress in addressing it? 5. How can the problem be framed (or described) in a way that will motivate different groups?
Highlights
For policymakers (Scenario 1), this article suggests a number of questions that they might ask their staff to consider when preparing a briefing note about a problem. For those who support policymakers (Scenarios 2 and 3), this article suggests a number of questions to guide the clarification of a problem based on the best available local and global evidence
Reflect an awareness of concurrent developments related to policy and programme options, and
Problem clarification can all too be skipped over entirely, or else done too rapidly, or in too cursory a way. It may not be done iteratively when additional data and research evidence are found regarding indicators and comparisons, or when policies and programmes encounter challenges or fail to yield results. Any such failures in problem clarification may mean that further resource investments based on existing conceptions of a problem will be misguided
Summary
Address: 1Centre for Health Economics and Policy Analysis, Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and Department of Political Science, McMaster University, 1200 Main St. West, HSC-2D3, Hamilton, ON, Canada, L8N 3Z5, 2Health Research Methodology PhD Program and Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, 1200 Main St. West, HSC-2D1 Area, Hamilton, ON, Canada, L8N 3Z5, 3Norwegian Knowledge Centre for the Health Services, P.O. Box 7004, St. Olavs plass, N-0130 Oslo, Norway, 4Norwegian Knowledge Centre for the Health Services, P.O. Box 7004, St. Olavs plass, N-0130 Oslo, Norway; Health Systems Research Unit, Medical Research Council of South Africa and 5Norwegian Knowledge Centre for the Health Services, P.O. Box 7004, St. Olavs plass, N-0130 Oslo, Norway; Section for International Health, Institute of General Practice and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway. Published: 16 December 2009 Health Research Policy and Systems 2009, 7(Suppl 1):S4 doi:10.1186/1478-4505-7-S1-S4. FmNoriosnesievoidnoe’fsnt6chteh-ifnuFfrnoadrmemresewdhoahrdekaaIlNtrhoCPleOoilnipcyrdomrgaarfktaiinmnggm, (reSe,TvcPiso)icrt3v9inoAnrtwnedenygtiOaonfxtAmhgaisennsaecnyrdiefosSloHpdlseheftrotipers:/H/owefawalrtwhti.cbPlieooslmicweyadascnpedrnetSrpyaaslrt.ceomdmsas/Rcpoeasnretteaorncfth/tp,hdaefn/S1dU4t7Ph8Pe-O4M5Ri0lTb5a-pn7rk-oSj1e-ct, This article is available from: http://www.health-policy-systems.com/content/7/S1/S4 pdEiPtuiPorOnoapRleTfaunnTdoCionoglms. fmNoriosnesievoidnoe’fsnt6chteh-ifnuFfrnoadrmemresewdhoahrdekaaIlNtrhoCPleOoilnipcyrdomrgaarfktaiinmnggm, (reSe,TvcPiso)icrt3v9inoAnrtwnedenygtiOaonfxtAmhgaisennsaecnyrdiefosSloHpdlseheftrotipers:/H/owefawalrtwhti.cbPlieooslmicweyadascnpedrnetSrpyaaslrt.ceomdmsas/Rcpoeasnretteaorncfth/tp,hdaefn/S1dU4t7Ph8Pe-O4M5Ri0lTb5a-pn7rk-oSj1e-ct, This article is available from: http://www.health-policy-systems.com/content/7/S1/S4
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
