1,721,085 research outputs found
Quando I partiti falliscono: I comitati cittadini come organizzazioni politiche effimere
No full textPolitical parties are increasingly less representative of civic society. Currently traditional party organisations prove to be inactive and ineffective as they cannot solve the dilemma between defending local interests and pursuing more general aims. The party crisis favours the emerging of alternative forms of political representation, such as citizens' committees. These committees are ephemeral organisations which prove to be very effective in supporting political expectations (concerning both identity and interests) of local communities, therefore successfully affecting the policy-making process. Since these committees are rooted in the local culture, they embody issues which are considered politically relevant by the local population and fill the representation vacuum left by the parties. This article is based on three empirical cases, describing how the public authorities have attempted to rationalise the health network by closing down (or simply moving) a city hospital
La sanità
No full textIl sistema sanitario italiano è riconosciuto a livello internazionale come uno dei più efficienti, equi ed efficaci.
Le criticità principali riguardano i lunghi tempi d’attesa, l’incidenza della spesa privata out-of-pocket e soprattutto il profondo divario tra Nord e Sud del Paese.
Le priorità d’intervento dovrebbero riguardare il miglioramento dei servizi sanitari nel Mezzogiorno, la riduzione delle liste d’attesa, e l’aumento del finanziamento del SSN
The Public/ Private Sector Mix in the Italian Healthcare System. Some Issues of Equity and Quality of Care
No full textThis chapter focuses on the Italian healthcare system. Special attention is paid to the mix of public and private (at the level of both financing and service provision) and the consequences in terms of the equity and quality of healthcare.
The concept of health equity is analyzed with respect to four dimensions: (1) equity in financing; (2) equity in resource allocation; (3) equity in access to healthcare; and (4) equity in healthcare utilization.
The aim of the chapter is to evaluate the extent to which the Italian NHS succeeds in guaranteeing the equity and quality of healthcare in actual practic
The politics of COVID-19 experts: comparing winners and losers in Italy and the UK
Full text linkThis article analyzes the "politics of experts"-or the struggle between scientific advisers to gain visibility and influence-in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy and the UK. Modifying classic studies of policy communities of interest groups and civil servants, we classify relevant policy experts in the two countries into the following categories: "core insiders," "specialist insiders," "peripheral insiders," and "outsiders." Within these categories, we distinguish between "high-profile" and "low-profile" experts, depending on media exposure. The comparison between the UK and Italian cases helps to identify how actors interpret and follow formal and informal "rules of the game." We identify a contest between experts to influence policy with reference to two competing "rules of the game." The first set of rules comes from government, while the second comes from science advice principles. These rules collide, such as when governments require secrecy and nonconfrontation and scientists expect transparency and independent criticism. Therefore, experts face dilemmas regarding which rules to favor: some accept the limits to their behavior to ensure insider access; others are free to criticize the policies that they struggle to influence
L'amministrazione a rete: Retorica o realtà? L'esperienza delle agenzie ambientali
No full textSummary: The idea of network is widely misused, and both scholars and practitioners often refer to it in an inaccurate meaning. Reviewing a wide number of sociological, economical and administrative theoretical studies, the aim of this paper is to outline the distinctive features of the network organisation model. The network model is then applied to Italian environmental agencies. As the system of environmental agencies has been thought since its origin as a network, it certainly represents a unique case in the realm of Italian public administration. The authors aim at showing that Italian environmental agencies not only fit the network model, but they can also be qualified as a network of networks. In order to pick out the causes that may have fostered the emergence of a network-like administration, the characteristics of environmental agencies are thus assessed
The Yellow-Green Government and the Thorny Issue of Childhood Routine Vaccination
No full textDuring recent years, routine childhood vaccination has become a divisive and politically salient topic in Italy. Dur- ing the spring of 2017, for example, the Lorenzin decree (No. 73 of 2017), which contained urgent provisions on vaccination prevention, divided public opinion and national political forces. In particular, both the League and the Five Star Movement immediately opposed the introduction of ten mandatory vaccinations. Moreover, the routine child immunization topic was once again at the centre of the political debate during the summer of 2018. The aim of this article is to present the contours of the problem relating to childhood vaccinations in Italy, and to reconstruct the current debate on mandatory vaccinations. It is not yet clear how the newly elected yellow-green government intends to tackle the problem: in the conclusions we will try to formulate some hypotheses
Come i gruppi di interesse scelgono «il campo di battaglia»: il caso del decreto Lorenzin sui vaccini
Full text linkIn 2017, the decree issued by Ms Lorenzin Secretary of health increased the number of compulsory vaccinations, divided public opinion and the main political forces. Two coalitions faced each other. The first one, in favour of compulsory vaccinations, was led by institutional actors and supported by the majority of the scientific community. The rival coalition was composed of many associations and informal groups in favour of «vaccine freedom».The groups supporting mandatory vaccination relied mainly on their technical resources, while the no-vaccine movement made greater use of political resources. The institutional actors played a major role in framing the problem and drafting the decree. The opponents to the Lorenzin decree started mobilizing during the parliamentary debate, but they became more combative after the conversion law was passed
The 2017 Italian reform on mandatory childhood vaccinations: Analysis of the policy process and early implementation
Full text linkBackground: The data on vaccination coverage for the year 2016 were a cause of concern for the Italian government. For some years, in fact, there has been a growing mistrust of vaccines in the Italy, and consequently vaccination coverage rates have been decreasing. The number of cases of measles has been particularly high. Aim: The purpose of this article is to examine the content and the preliminary outcomes of the Lorenzin Decree, which was passed in 2017. This reform embodies a ‘hard’ approach to the issue of childhood vaccinations, based on their mandatory nature and on the intensification of the sanctions against non-compliant subjects. Results: The Lorenzin decree provides for an increase in mandatory infant vaccines from four to ten. Following the reform, unvaccinated children are denied access to nurseries and kindergartens. Parents who do not have their children vaccinated are liable to pay a financial penalty. Data on the preliminary outcomes of the reform show an increase in vaccination coverage. Conclusion: The Italian experience provides some policy recommendations, and could be a source of inspiration for European countries that are tackling vaccine hesitancy and declining vaccination coverage rates. At least for the short term, the 'hard' approach adopted by the Italian government is, in fact, bearing fruit, having reversed the negative trend in vaccination coverage rates
The Italian civil service system
No full textThe chapter describes how the civil service is organised and regulated in Italy. Particular attention is paid to recruitment, career paths and remuneration of Italian civil servants
Thinking outside the box, improvisation, and fast learning: Designing policy robustness to deal with what cannot be foreseen
Full text linkPolicies are continually subjected to turbulence and crises. Interest in policy robustness as a fundamental way to deal with what cannot be foreseen is increasing. Thus, there is a flourishing stream of literature suggesting that policies need to be designed to be agile and flexible. However, the associated characteristics remain undeveloped. This article fills this gap by drawing on lessons obtained from the unplanned behaviors that were adopted in the management of the COVID-19 pandemic. Individual and organizational behaviors characterized by outside the box thinking, improvisation, and fast learning yielded solutions to unexpected problems. In this article, some of these emblematic unplanned behaviors are assessed, and the research builds on the literature on policy robustness, crisis management, and organizational theory to identify three enabling conditions to design more robust policies: coordinated autonomy, training for unplanned responses, and political institutional capacity
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