Health Policy Brief
8 weeks · 0 milestones
Write a health policy brief for a specific decision-maker audience on a real public health issue. Proof requires a brief (maximum 4 pages) covering: the problem with epidemiological evidence, at least 2 policy options with documented trade-offs, a recommendation with implementation considerations, and a budget implication note. The audience must be specific — a named government department, health board, or named NGO — and the brief must be formatted and scoped for that audience. Reviewed by someone with health policy experience. Generic policy briefs on abstract topics are not accepted.
Milestone map
Milestone map
3 milestones
Choose a specific health policy problem (e.g. NHS waiting time targets, HPV vaccination uptake in boys, sugar tax effectiveness, opioid prescribing reduction, or equivalent). Conduct a structured literature search (PubMed, PHE, WHO, NICE, or equivalent) and synthesise the evidence: what does the evidence show about the scale of the problem, what interventions have been tried and what was their evidence of effect, and what are the key evidence gaps? Produce a 2-page evidence synthesis.
Proof required
Submit your 2-page evidence synthesis with all claims cited to published sources. The synthesis must cover: scale of the problem (with prevalence data), what interventions have evidence, and at least one key evidence gap.
What gets checked
- All prevalence claims are cited — 'this is a major problem' without figures and sources does not qualify.
- Intervention evidence section distinguishes what has strong evidence from what has weak or mixed evidence.
- Evidence gap is specific — not 'more research is needed' but identifying exactly what question is unanswered and why it matters for policy.