Understanding the Spatial-Related Abstraction of Public Health Impact Goals and Measures: Illustrated by the Example of the Austrian Action Plan on Women’s Health

Tatjana Fischer
Additional contact information
Tatjana Fischer: Institute of Spatial Planning, Environmental Planning and Land Rearrangement, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna, Peter-Jordan-Straße 82, 1190 Vienna, Austria

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 2, 1-19

Abstract: The influence of spatial aspects on people’s health is internationally proven by a wealth of empirical findings. Nevertheless, questions concerning public health still tend to be negotiated among social and health scientists. This was different in the elaboration of the Austrian Action Plan on Women’s Health (AAPWH). On the example of the target group of older women, it is shown whether and to what extent the inclusion of the spatial planning perspective in the discussion of impact goals and measures is reflected in the respective inter-ministerial policy paper. The retrospective analysis on the basis of a document analysis of the AAPWH and qualitative interviews with public health experts who were also invited to join, or rather were part of, the expert group, brings to light the following key reasons for the high degree of spatial-related abstraction of the content of this strategic health policy paper: the requirement for general formulations, the lack of public and political awareness for the different living situations in different spatial archetypes, and the lack of external perception of spatial planning as a key discipline with regard to the creation of equivalent living conditions. Nonetheless, this research has promoted the external perception of spatial planning as a relevant discipline in public health issues in Austria. Furthermore, first thematic starting points for an in-depth interdisciplinary dialogue were identified.

Keywords: space–health nexus; older women; spatial planning perspective; interdisciplinary expert dialogue; retrospective qualitative study; knowledge transfer; health policy analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/2/773/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/2/773/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:2:p:773-:d:480544

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().