Health Policy: Systems and Society - HEA00149M

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  • Department: Health Sciences
  • Credit value: 20 credits
  • Credit level: M
  • Academic year of delivery: 2025-26

Module summary

This module provides an understanding of the development, delivery and evaluation of health policy, and how societies interpret and respond to health and illness. The module will apply scientific methods to health policy and its reform, drawing on behavioural science and covering key concepts relating to health equity and health care delivery.

Module will run

Occurrence Teaching period
A Semester 2 2025-26

Module aims

The module provides an understanding of the development, delivery and evaluation of health policy, and how societies interpret and respond to health and illness. The theoretical content of the module will develop academic skills, and the emphasis on self-directed learning, reflection and critical thinking will develop graduate skills. The specific aims of the module are to:

  • introduce key conceptual behavioural approaches in explaining how individuals and societies understand, interpret and respond to health and illness;
  • ensure students understand the social patterning of health and illness;
  • provide an appreciation of the principles and objectives guiding health policy and health reform and their application.
  • appraise published evidence of the effectiveness and efficiency of health policy interventions and their impact on equity and expenditure control.
  • identify and apply methods of evaluating health policy interventions using the principles of health services research.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students will be able to demonstrate:

  1. Confidence in understanding and applying core behavioural concepts to the experience of health and illness and to healthcare policy and practice.

  2. An indepth understanding of the social patterning of health and illness and the resulting health inequalities.

  3. A critical understanding of the development of public policy, intended and unintended consequences of change and the role of evidence in forming and implementing policy.

  4. An understanding of the methods for evaluating policy interventions and appraising critically published opinion and evidence.

  5. The ability to synthesise complex debates in a concise way when presenting structured assignments.

Module content

The module will apply scientific methods to health policy, covering key concepts associated with behavioural science and health equity, principles of health care delivery and reform. Sessions will include:

  • discussions about the role of theory and the implications of applying theoretical perspectives to help us better understand the social patterning and experience of health and illness as well as policy and practice.
  • empirical case studies of behavioural responses to interventions such as the use of incentives in health care, and behavioural approaches to chronic and long standing conditions;
  • explaining the nature and patterning of health inequalities; and developing interventions aimed at reducing inequalities.
  • theory and application of methods of quantitative evaluation of health policy interventions.

Teaching normally takes place within weekly 3-hour sessions. Sessions will be a mix of formal lectures, workshops and seminars with student participation and small group work.

Indicative assessment

Task % of module mark
Essay/coursework 80
Groupwork 20

Special assessment rules

None

Indicative reassessment

Task % of module mark
Essay/coursework 80

Module feedback

Written feedback for the summative assessment is provided on the standard proforma, within the timescale specified in the programme handbook.

Indicative reading

The scope of the module requires several key texts:

Bartley, M. (2017). Health Inequality: An Introduction to Concepts, Theories and Methods, 2nd edn. Cambridge: Polity Press.

Buse, K., Mays, N., Walk G. (2012). Making Health Policy. 2nd edn. Maidenhead: Open University Press.

Ogden, J. (2019). Health Psychology. 6th edn. Maidenhead: Open University Press.

There will be list of additional recommended reading, which the students will be encouraged to read, along with reading lists associated with each case study.

Detailed reading lists are provided for each lecture. For UK health policy you can usefully browse web pages of the King’s Fund, Health Foundation and Nuffield Trust.

You should also keep on top of current developments in health policy using, among other sources: