Dataset Information

Level of implementation of best practice policies for creating healthy food environments: assessment by state and non-state actors in Thailand.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To determine and compare the level of implementation of policies for healthy food environments in Thailand with reference to international best practice by state and non-state actors.

Design

Data on the current level of implementation of food environment policies were assessed independently using the adapted Healthy Food Environment Policy Index (Food-EPI) by two groups of actors. Concrete actions were proposed for Thai Government. A joint meeting between both groups was subsequently held to reach consensus on priority actions.

Setting

Thailand.

Subjects

Thirty state actors and twenty-seven non-state actors.

Results

Level of policy implementation varied across different domains and actor groups. State actors rated implementation levels higher than non-state actors. Both state and non-state actors rated level of implementation of monitoring of BMI highest. Level of implementation of policies promoting in-store availability of healthy foods and policies increasing tax on unhealthy foods were rated lowest by state and non-state actors, respectively. Both groups reached consensus on eleven priority actions for implementation, focusing on food provision in public-sector settings, food composition, food promotion, leadership, monitoring and intelligence, and food trade.

Conclusions

Although the implementation gaps identified and priority actions proposed varied between state and non-state actors, both groups achieved consensus on a comprehensive food policy package to be implemented by the Thai Government to improve the healthiness of food environments. This consensus is a platform for continued policy dialogue towards cross-sectoral policy coherence and effective actions to address the growing burden of non-communicable diseases and obesity in Thailand.

SUBMITTER: Phulkerd S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10261628 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Level of implementation of best practice policies for creating healthy food environments: assessment by state and non-state actors in Thailand.

Phulkerd Sirinya S Vandevijvere Stefanie S Lawrence Mark M Tangcharoensathien Viroj V Sacks Gary G

Public health nutrition 20160913 3

<h4>Objective</h4>To determine and compare the level of implementation of policies for healthy food environments in Thailand with reference to international best practice by state and non-state actors.<h4>Design</h4>Data on the current level of implementation of food environment policies were assessed independently using the adapted Healthy Food Environment Policy Index (Food-EPI) by two groups of actors. Concrete actions were proposed for Thai Government. A joint meeting between both groups was ...[more]

PMID: 27618938

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundBenchmarking the implementation of healthy food environment public policies against international best practices may accelerate the government response to prevent obesity and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the countries. The aim of the study was to determine the extent of food environment policy implementation in Guatemala and to identify and prioritize actions for the government to accelerate their implementation.MethodsThe INFORMAS Healthy Food Environment Policy Index (Food-EPI from the International Network for Food and Obesity/NCDs Research, Monitoring and Action Support) was used. Evidence of implementation for 50 good practice indicators within the seven food policies and six infrastructure support domains was compiled, and subsequently validated by Guatemalan government officials. A national civil society expert panel on public health and nutrition performed an online assessment of the implementation of healthy food environment policies against best international practices. The level of agreement among evaluators was measured using the Gwet second order agreement coefficient (AC2). The expert panel recommended actions for each indicator during on-site workshops and those actions were prioritized by importance and achievability.ResultsThe expert panel rated implementation at zero for 26% of the indicators, very low for 28% of indicators, low for 42%, and medium for 4% of indicators (none were rated high). Indicators at medium implementation were related to the use of evidence for developing policies and ingredient list/nutrition information panels on packaged foods. Seventy-seven actions were recommended prioritizing the top 10 for immediate action. The Gwet AC2 was 0.73 (95% CI 0.67-0.80), indicating a good concordance among experts.ConclusionsIn the Food-EPI of Guatemala, almost all indicators of good practice had a low or less level of implementation. The expert panel proposed 12 priority actions to accelerate policy implementation to tackle obesity and NCDs in the country.

Project description:BackgroundClinical trial participants have a right to be informed throughout the entire process of human subject research. As part of this pillar of research ethics, participants and other stakeholders should be made aware of research findings after a trial has been completed. Though participants have both a right, and a desire to be informed of research outcomes, studies show that they rarely receive communication about study findings. Our aim was (1) to understand what, if any, role communication plans play in current global health clinical research protocols and (2) to use our findings to develop a communication plan template tailored to clinical research carried out in low-and-middle-income countries (LMIC) while minimizing colonial assumptions. While the template was drafted in the LMIC context, the principles are universally applicable and should be considered best practices for all global health clinical trials.MethodsWe carried out a mixed-method study over a period of 6 months to understand the role of communication with study participants and other stakeholders in clinical trials. The semiquantitative analysis included mining publicly available clinical trial protocols for communication-related language. Qualitative interviews (n = 7) were used to gather knowledge and insight from clinical trial experts to inform the development of a communication plan template.ResultsNone of the 48 mined clinical trial protocols included a communication plan. Of the 48, 21% (n = 21) protocols included communication-related language, and 10% (n = 5) described plans to share trial results with participants.ConclusionThe use of communication plans in global health clinical trials is lacking. To our knowledge, this is the first in-depth analysis of communication plans in clinical trials to date. We recommend that researchers utilize the developed communication plan template throughout the entire research process to ensure a human-centered approach to participant communication. This communication plan should apply to all phases of a research trial, with a particular emphasis on plans to share results in an accessible and engaging manner once the trial has been completed.

Project description:ObjectivesEffective government policies are essential to increase the healthiness of food environments. The International Network for Food and Obesity/non-communicable diseases (NCDs) Research, Monitoring and Action Support (INFORMAS) has developed a monitoring tool (the Healthy Food Environment Policy Index (Food-EPI)) and process to rate government policies to create healthy food environments against international best practice. The aims of this study were to pilot test the Food-EPI, and revise the tool and process for international implementation.SettingNew Zealand.ParticipantsThirty-nine informed, independent public health experts and non-governmental organisation (NGO) representatives.Primary and secondary outcome measuresEvidence on the extent of government implementation of different policies on food environments and infrastructure support was collected in New Zealand and validated with government officials. Two whole-day workshops were convened of public health experts and NGO representatives who rated performance of their government for seven policy and seven infrastructure support domains against international best practice. In addition, the raters evaluated the level of difficulty of rating, and appropriateness and completeness of the evidence presented for each indicator.ResultsInter-rater reliability was 0.85 (95% CI 0.81 to 0.88; Gwet's AC2) using quadratic weights, and increased to 0.89 (95% CI 0.85 to 0.92) after deletion of the problematic indicators. Based on raters' assessments and comments, major changes to the Food-EPI tool include strengthening the leadership domain, removing the workforce development domain, a stronger focus on equity, and adding community-based programmes and government funding for research on obesity and diet-related NCD prevention, as good practice indicators.ConclusionsThe resulting tool and process will be promoted and offered to countries of varying size and income globally. International benchmarking of the extent of government policy implementation on food environments has the potential to catalyse greater government action to reduce obesity and NCDs, and increase civil society's capacity to advocate for healthy food environments.

Dataset Information

Level of implementation of best practice policies for creating healthy food environments: assessment by state and non-state actors in Thailand.

Objective

Design

Setting

Subjects

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Level of implementation of best practice policies for creating healthy food environments: assessment by state and non-state actors in Thailand.

Similar Datasets

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