Assessment Task 3: Ministerial Briefing Paper
You are employed by the Australian Government Department of Health. The Minister for Health, the Hon Greg Hunt, has requested a series of briefing papers that will provide a clear overview of selected health issues and guide his decisions in relation to recommended actions, including policy, funding and/or service delivery concerning these issues.
You have been asked to prepare a briefing paper for the Minister and his advisors on ONE of the following issues:
Topic 1: Thunderstorm asthma and public health
The Minister would like to be briefed on the recent outbreak of thunderstorm asthma in Victoria which claimed several lives. The Minister wants to ensure that the Australian public health system is adequately prepared to prevent, where possible, and respond to any significant incidents in the future. What actions can we take to enhance our readiness?
Topic 2: Dengue fever and public health
Dengue Fever has traditionally troubled residents in northern Australia where tropical climates prevail, however it would appear that it is poses a significant public health threat further south as well now. The Minister requires you to provide an overview of the actions taken by Australia in dealing directly with this threat, contrasting this with international guidelines and protocols for preparedness, and to consider what further actions we should be taking in prevention and response.
Topic 3: Nutrition deficiencies (e.g. vitamin A deficiencies) and public health The Minister wishes to be advised on the latest evidence about Vitamin deficiencies in Australia. Who is most affected and why? Have there been changes in recent years (for instance due to migration patterns, changes in dietary trends, or other reasons)? What are the potential consequences of these deficiencies? What is currently being done about it in Australia (e.g. supplementing through foods such as breads, cereals and milk), and what else could we in Public Health be doing to ease the burden that Vitamin deficiencies inflicts?
NOTE
A framework for a Ministerial Briefing Paper is provided on the CloudDeakin site for this unit, in the Assessment Tasks section of the Resources. Ensure that you read this framework document before beginning work on this assignment.
Your paper is to be 3000---3500 words in length. This includes the annotated list of sources of information used in the preparation of the Briefing Paper (max of 500 words for this section).