EUnetHTA Adaptation Glossary (beta)

Policy
A policy is a predefined plan of action to guide decisions and actions. The term may apply to governments, private sector organisations, groups, or individuals. The policy process includes the identification of different alternatives, programs or priorities, and choosing among them on the basis of the evidence about the impact they will have. Policies can be understood as political, management, financial, and administrative mechanisms arranged to reach explicit goals.
The goals of policy may vary widely according to the organisation and the context in which they are made. Policies are typically instituted in order to avoid some negative effect that has been noticed in the organisation, or to seek some positive benefit.
The policy cycle is a tool used for the analysing of the development of a policy item. It includes the following stages:
1. Agenda setting
2. Policy formation
3. Decision-making
4. Policy implementation
5. Policy evaluation (continue or terminate)

Policy Typology
Policies may be classified in many different ways. The following is a sample of several different types of policies broken down by their effect on members of the organization:
1.- Distributive policies extend goods and services to members of an organization, as well as distributing the costs of the goods/services amongst the members of the organization. Examples include government policies that impact spending for welfare, public education, highways, and public safety, or a professional organization's policy on membership training.

2.- Regulatory policies, or mandates, limit the discretion of individuals and agencies, or otherwise compel certain types of behavior. These policies are generally thought to be best applied in situations where good behavior can be easily defined and bad behavior can be easily regulated and punished through fines or sanctions. An example of a fairly successful public regulatory policy is that of a speed limit.

Policy-maker
A person with power to influence or determine policies and practices at an international, national, regional, or local level. Policy makers have the responsibility and commitment for making the appropriate use of the best available evidence for policy making and decision taking.
The policy maker is someone who sets the plan pursued by a government or organization. A person whose actions and opinions strongly influence the course of events.
Frequently the term “policy-maker” may be interchangeable by “decision-maker” in many situations and contexts. In some other instances policy making might be closer to the health planner or policy developer activities.

Policy question
Is a relevant question (gap) concerning policies and /or strategic issues or directions in an specific context (governments, organizations, etc.) that have to be addressed by a policy maker (decision maker) to affect the ‘real’ world, by guiding the decisions that are made. These policy questions may be formally written or not. Most organizations identify their gaps (policy questions) and define policies to solve them.