Stretton Health Equity Policy Lab

Translating our research: Rapid summaries for busy policy actors.

The Stretton Health Equity Policy Lab brings together policy briefs and summaries of key findings from our research to inform practice and policy in Australia and internationally.

Stretton Health Equity undertakes research focused on what can be done about the underlying factors that determine the distribution of health and wellbeing outcomes. We produce knowledge on why health inequities exist, what can be done about them and how population health overall can be improved.

We will continue to develop and add to the Stretton Health Equity Policy Lab with more policy-relevant research outputs, so bookmark this page and visit us again soon.

The Southgate Institute for Health, Society, and Equity (2008 - 2021)

Stretton Health Equity staff were previously members of the Southgate Institute for Health, Society, and Equity at Flinders University, which was also headed by Director Prof. Fran Baum until the team moved to Stretton Health Equity at the University of Adelaide in 2022.

The policy briefs produced by the Southgate Institute are listed below.

  • Action on social determinants of health in Australian early childhood education policy

    This 12-month research project involved a desktop analysis of Australian federal and state/territory early childhood education policies current in 2019 to understand the extent to which they recognized and proposed action on the social determinants of health and health equity.  This policy brief identifies strengths and weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement.

    View policy brief

  • Action on social determinants of health

    This policy brief summarises key findings from policy and qualitative research on the uptake of evidence on social determinants of health and health equity in Australian governments’ health policies.

    View policy brief

  • Belonging begins at home

    This policy brief summarises research on the experience of refugees and asylum seekers in South Australia who had been in Australia for seven years or less, and presents recommendations to facilitate positive housing outcomes for asylum seekers and refugees in ways that promote social inclusion and health and wellbeing.

    View policy brief

  • Commercial determinants of health during COVID-19

    This policy brief summarises the policy implications from our research on the influence of commercial determinants of health during the COVID-19 pandemic, with proposals for the health system, as well as other sectors and whole of government approaches to ensure we are in the strongest position possible to respond to future pandemics.

    View policy brief

  • Digital equity

    The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated a shift towards online health services, and has highlighted the importance of digital access for social connectedness, access to services, and access to resources such as education, employment, and housing that are critical to people’s health. However, resources including equipment, finances, and digital literacy are not distributed equitably in the population, and so some groups will have more access to digital services than others. This policy brief presents findings from research examining equity in access to, use of and benefits from digital health services.

    View policy brief

  • Evaluating the effectiveness of comprehensive primary health care

    This policy brief summarises the “Evaluating the Effectiveness of Comprehensive Primary Health Care in Local Communities” project. The aim of the research was to study different models of comprehensive primary health care services. The research examined how the services are putting primary health care principles into practice, and what barriers and challenges they face.

    View policy brief

  • Health in All Policies

    This policy brief presents key messages from a five year research project to examine the adoption and implementation of Health in All Policies in South Australia, to determine its effectiveness in motivating action across sectors to improve population health and health equity.

    View policy brief

    In 2022, Stretton Health Equity produced a review of intersectoral collaboration models to address social determinants.

    View report on intersectoral collaboration models

  • Healthy South executive briefing

    The Healthy South project has examined the feasibility of a whole-of–community approach in the southern area of Adelaide to support health, wellbeing and environments that minimise the risk of non-communicable diseases. This policy brief outlines what the research found is required for health and wellbeing to flourish in southern Adelaide and list strategies below that could be adopted or adapted to guide a Healthy South initiative.

    View policy brief

  • The Healthy Urban Neighbourhood Transition Tool (HUNTT)

    The quality of home area neighbourhoods is a foundation of healthy cities and locational advantage or disadvantage. A well designed and connected ‘liveable’ neighbourhood has the potential to facilitate physical activity and satisfy instrumental and existential needs; the degree they do so significantly affects the health and wellbeing of residents. This policy brief describes the development of the Healthy Urban Neighbourhood Transition Tool (HUNTT) to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the liveability of suburbs.

    View policy brief

  • Health impacts of transnational corporations

    This policy brief summarises research on the health impacts of transnational corporations, and the development of a Corporate Health Impact Assessment framework.

    View policy brief

  • Reform of Primary Health Networks

    This policy brief outlines research-based recommendations for the reform of Primary Health Networks to better achieve the vision of comprehensive primary health care.

    View policy brief

  • Social determinants of health and psychological wellbeing

    This policy brief presents the main findings and recommendations from the research project ‘The Social Determinants of Health and Psychological Wellbeing: Improving the mental health of all through broad based policy and intersectoral action’, which examined state-based policy for strategy that enabled population mental health.

    View policy brief

  • Social determinants of Indigenous health

    This policy brief summarises the findings from the Centre for Research Excellence on Social Determinants of Health Equity related to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, arguing for the need for policy action on the social and cultural determinants of Indigenous health.

    View policy brief

    This policy brief provides a short overview of literature on the social determinants of Indigenous health, the Closing the Gap strategy, and how policy makers can act on the social determinants of Indigenous health.

    View policy brief

  • Vision for comprehensive primary health care - 10 point plan

    This policy brief outlines a 10 point plan based on research to reform primary health care in Australia to better achieve the vision of comprehensive primary health care.

    View policy brief