Observatories of Public Health Policy are organizations dedicated to monitoring, tracking, and evaluating health systems and public policies through an analytical review of established national projects and strategies. At the University of Chile, the Observatory of Public Health Policy (OPPS) was created in 2011, inspired by the student’s movement in the Faculty of Medicine, on the basis of the idea that public universities must contribute to the social control of Public Health Policies through deliberation and citizen empowerment. Guided by this aim, the Organization was formed, along with its objectives and organizational structure. To date, the Organization has focused on four areas: 1) Literature review and analysis of public health policies, 2) Training in Health Policy and Systems, 3) Promoting debate on public policies, and 4) Coordination with other actors in the health sector. Given its student composition, the main limitations are the lack of effective training in critical thinking at the health schools in our country, and the academic overload of the students, which in the context of its extra-curricular character, hinders the fulfillment of its objectives. Strengthening and replicating this kind of organizations requires the participation of all Stakeholders in the university community, to permit the convergence of their diverse knowledge, experiences, and perspectives on the topics studied. In addition, its inclusion in the institutional structure would formalize the University’s commitment to the critical formation of future health professionals, in order to contribute to the national debate in public policy.
Keywords:
Public Policy, Community Participation, Social Control, Empowerment, Students
Author Biographies
Francisca Crispi, Universidad de Chile. Facultad de Medicina
Estudiante
Javiera Menay, Universidad de Chile. Facultad de Medicina
Estudiante
Cristián González, Universidad de Chile. Facultad de Medicina
Estudiante
Juan Viches, Universidad de Chile. Facultad de Medicina
Estudiante
Fernanda González, Universidad de Chile. Facultad de Medicina
Crispi, F., Menay, J., González, C., Viches, J., & González, F. (2017). Observatory on Public Health Policies: local experiences of social control in public policies. Revista Chilena De Salud Pública, 20(2), p. 131–137. https://doi.org/10.5354/0719-5281.2016.44949
