10.3. Government policies

GOVERNMENT POLICIES

What is a policy?

Types of policies around the world

What is a government policy

Types of government policies

Policies in the medical field

Future directions to succeed for governmental policies

A POLICY is
a deliberate system of principles to guide decisions
and achieve rational outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent, and is
implemented as a procedure or protocol. Policies are generally adopted by
the Board of or senior governance body within an organization whereas
procedures or protocols would be developed and adopted by senior executive
officers. Policies can assist in
both subjective and objective decision making. Policies to
assist in subjective decision making would usually assist senior management
with decisions that must consider the relative merits of a number of factors
before making decisions

The term may apply to government, private sector
organizations and groups, as well as individuals. Presidential executive
orders, corporate privacy policies, and parliamentary rules of
order are all examples of policy. Policy differs
from rules or law. While law can compel or prohibit behaviors
(e.g. a law requiring the payment of taxes on income), policy merely guides
actions toward those that are most likely to achieve a desired outcome

There are multiple types of policies, here are the most
famous ones:

Company Policy

Communications and Information Policy is
under Information policy

Human resource policies

Privacy policy

Public policy

Government policies

Defense policy

Domestic policy

Medical policies

What is a government policy?

A government policy is the principled guide to action taken
by the administrative executive branches of the state with
regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent
with law and institutional customs. The foundation of public
policy is composed of national constitutional laws and regulations

Some other scholars view those as  a system of
"courses of action, regulatory measures, laws,
and funding priorities concerning a given topic promulgated by a
governmental entity or its representatives." Policy is commonly embodied
"in constitutions, legislative acts, and judicial decisions

The term government policies is very wide and can vary from
politics, business, social growth, civic laws

    For example there
are 2 governmental economical policies reigning over the world :

Capitalism is an economic system and
a mode of production in which trade, industries, and the means
of production are largely or entirely privately owned. Such private firms
and proprietorships are usually operated for profit, but may be operated
as private nonprofit organizations. Central characteristics of capitalism
include private property, capital accumulation, wage
labour and, in some situations, fully competitive markets. In a
capitalist economy, the parties to a transaction typically determine the prices
at which assets,For goods, and services are exchanged

Socialism is a social and economic system characterised
by social ownership of the means of production and
co-operative management of the economy, as well as a political theory and
movement that aims at the establishment of such a system."Social ownership"
may refer to cooperative enterprises, common
ownership, state ownership, citizen ownership of equity, or any
combination of these. There are many varieties of socialism and there is
no single definition encapsulating all of them. They differ in the type of
social ownership they advocate, the degree to which they rely
on markets or planning, how management is to be organised within
productive institutions, and the role of the state in constructing socialism

Or other types of policies like Foreign Policy:

Foreign policy is the policy of behavior between one
sovereign state and other sovereign states. A good example of this is the ban
that was put on trade between the United States and Cuba. This embargo was a
form of foreign policy.

Health policy can be defined as the "decisions, plans,
and actions that are undertaken to achieve specific health care goals within a
society." According to the World Health Organization, an explicit health
policy can achieve several things: it defines a vision for the future; it
outlines priorities and the expected roles of different groups; and it builds
consensus and informs people

There are many categories of health policies, including
personal health care policy, pharmaceutical policy, and policies related to
public health such as vaccination policy, tobacco control policy or
breastfeeding promotion policy. They may cover topics of financing and delivery
of health care, access to care, quality of care, and health equity.

Government

Health-related policy and its implementation is complex.
Conceptual models can help show the flow from health-related policy development
to health-related policy and program implementation and to health systems and
health outcomes. Policy should be understood as more than a national law or
health policy that supports a program or intervention. Operational policies are
the rules, regulations, guidelines, and administrative norms that governments
use to translate national laws and policies into programs and services. The
policy process encompasses decisions made at a national or decentralized level
(including funding decisions) that affect whether and how services are
delivered. Thus, attention must be paid to policies at multiple levels of the
health system and over time to ensure sustainable scale-up. A supportive policy
environment will facilitate the scale-up of health interventions.

There are many topics in the politics and evidence that can
influence the decision of a government, private sector business or other group
to adopt a specific policy. Evidence-based policy relies on the use of science
and rigorous studies such as randomized controlled trials to identify programs
and practices capable of improving policy relevant outcomes. Most political
debates surround personal health care policies, especially those that seek to
reform health care delivery, and can typically be categorized as
eitherphilosophical or economic. Philosophical debates center around questions
about individual rights, ethics and government authority, while economic topics
include how to maximize the efficiency of health care delivery and minimize
costs.

The modern concept of health care involves access to medical
professionals from various fields as well as medical technology, such as
medications and surgical equipment. It also involves access to the latest
information and evidence from research, including medical research and health
services research.

In many countries it is left to the individual to gain
access to health care goods and services by paying for them directly as
out-of-pocket expenses, and to private sector players in the medical and
pharmaceutical industries to develop research. Planning and production of
health human resources is distributed among labour market participants.

Other countries have an explicit policy to ensure and
support access for all of its citizens, to fund health research, and to plan
for adequate numbers, distribution and quality of health workers to meet health
care goals. Many governments around the world have established universal health
care, which takes the burden of health care expenses off of private businesses
or individuals through pooling of financial risk. There are a variety of
arguments for and against universal health care and related health policies.
Health care is an important part of health systems and therefore it often
accounts for one of the largest areas of spending for both governments and
individuals all over the world.

Economics: health care financing

Many types of health policies exist focusing on the
financing of health care services to spread the economic risks of ill health.
These include publicly funded health care (through taxation or insurance, also
known as single-payer systems), mandatory or voluntary private health
insurance, and complete capitalization of personal health care services through
private companies, among others.

future directions for government policies:

The construction industry organises its resources around
projects and although it is evident that considerable innovation occurs and is
funded within projects there is a problem with institutional learning to
capture this innovation for future projects. Sustainable development is
recognised as a particular challenge, with the need to reduce costs and
increase efficiency also important. New roles for the Strategic Forum and the
Construction Research and Innovation Strategy Panel are proposed. As industry
regulator, the government has a responsibility to establish and finance a
framework that anticipates emerging needs but protects a minimum building
standard. As sponsor for the industry, government policies should facilitate
change but not impose or secure control. As client, the government has a vital
role to stimulate innovation by demanding better value and fitness for purpose
from public buildings, and particularly to take account of the interests of the
eventual users of these buildings