This thesis is focused on recent developments in health policies in the two jurisdictions of Ireland - referred to here as North and South. The data are drawn from health policies published in Ireland since 1995 to the present day. The theoretical approach selected for the analysis of relevant policy documents is that of narrative. Health policy in any country covers a wide range of issues - however, it is usually the case that in every generation a relatively small number of problems and issues are identified as in need 9f special attention. Thus it is in Ireland where an emergent and growing problem is said to be 'obesity'. Obesity as a problem dominates quite a number of policy documents published since the mid 1990s and along with obesity a variety of other problems are said to be evident - such as low rates of physical activity, and attachment to unhealthy diet. A central aim of this thesis is to study how these things are interlinked and inter- related in policy narratives, and what the implications of the various storylines are for the structuring of health care in Ireland. Most of the relevant policy documents studied contain quite intricate narratives on the origins of obesity, its current distribution in the population, and on consequences of current rates for the future. However, the basis on which relevant storylines rest is never entirely clear. Evidence referred to is sometimes contradictory and at other times inappropriate. Very often the policy storylines are driven by extrapolations from uncertain current data into an unknown and unknowable future. Moreover, it seems clear that although the dominant narrative on obesity is a medical one, elements of moralizing (moral tales) are evident in the narrative mesh. It is such complexities that are explored within.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:679229 |
| Date | January 2014 |
| Creators | McCarry, F. J. |
| Publisher | Queen's University Belfast |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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