School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Queensland, 288 Herston Road, Herston, QLD 4006, Australia.
MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine, Box 285, Institute of Metabolic Science, Cambridge Biomedicine Campus, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Jul 9;16(13):2440. doi: 10.3390/ijerph16132440.
Limited progress in nutrition policy action is often blamed on the close relationships the food industry has with health policy decision-makers. This analysis sought to examine this belief through the analysis of health ministers' diaries. Entries were downloaded from health ministers' diaries from two states in Australia from January 2013 to June 2018. Entries were coded according to which interest group met with the minister or whether general parliamentary business was undertaken. Coding was also undertaken for any meeting topics related to nutrition policy. Analysis of health ministers' diaries found that the food industry has limited documented interaction with the two state health ministers in Australia. Instead, medical associations, private hospitals and health services, and sporting associations (rugby league associations) had the most interactions with health ministers. Poor representation was seen on nutrition issues, and there was an apparent lack of nutrition advocates interacting with the health ministers. There are opportunities for nutrition advocates to increase their level of interaction with state health ministers. This could include building alliances with medical associations, as they are in a powerful position, to advocate directly to health ministers. Health ministers' diaries can provide valuable insights into who is meeting officially with ministers. However, there are also limitations with the dataset.
营养政策行动进展有限，往往归咎于食品行业与卫生政策决策者之间的密切关系。本分析试图通过分析卫生部长的日记来检验这一信念。从 2013 年 1 月至 2018 年 6 月，从澳大利亚的两个州下载了卫生部长的日记条目。根据与部长会面的利益集团或是否进行了一般议会事务，对条目进行了编码。还对任何与营养政策相关的会议主题进行了编码。对卫生部长日记的分析发现，食品行业与澳大利亚的两位州卫生部长的互动记录有限。相反，医学协会、私立医院和卫生服务机构以及体育协会（橄榄球联盟协会）与卫生部长的互动最多。在营养问题上的代表性很差，显然缺乏与卫生部长互动的营养倡导者。营养倡导者有机会增加与州卫生部长的互动水平。这可以包括与处于有利地位的医学协会建立联盟，以便直接向卫生部长宣传。卫生部长的日记可以提供有价值的见解，了解谁在与部长正式会面。然而，数据集也存在限制。
