Health Promotion
Question Received:
Response:
Can you please tell me why health promotion in health care is so important?
5th April 2000
"Health promotion activities motivate people to act positively to reach the goals of more stable levels of health. Illness prevention activities motivate people to avoid declines in health or functional levels." (Potter and Perry, 1995) "Health promotion activities motivate people to act positively to reach the goals of more stable levels of health. Illness prevention activities motivate people to avoid declines in health or functional levels." (Potter and Perry, 1995)
Nurses, along with other members of the health care team, play a key role in helping patients/clients to maximise their potential for good health. It is important to help people understand the value of health and freedom from disease, and to understand the known causes of disease, both physical and psychological. With this knowledge individuals can reduce the risk of certain diseases and develop a healthy lifestyle - health is a shared responsibility involving prevention as well as treatment when things go wrong.
Activities that promote health can be either passive or active (Potter and Perry, 1995). With passive strategies individuals obtain benefit through the intervention of others. Normally this is through state intervention, for example the provision of services ranging from public health measures such as the monitoring of food and food outlets, air quality, and infection control through to primary health care: vaccination programmes and advice on parenting, diet, alcohol consumption, smoking and safe sex. Private companies can also make a contribution towards health promotion. For example, the privatised water companies should provide uncontaminated water and safe sewage disposal, while the food industries should provide food that is free from contamination and correctly labelled and packaged. Employers in general can show their support of health promotion: many companies now provide facilities to enable employees to take part in health-related activities. Stress in the workplace is receiving more attention and serious attempts are being made to reduce the time lost through stress-related disorders.
By contrast active strategies are those that individuals actively seek out and adopt for themselves, for example regular exercise and keep-fit activities (either alone or as a group member), cessation of smoking, weight watching, stress reduction, and of course keeping the mind active (particularly important as age advances).
The concept of a health care setting can be widely interpreted, ranging from the general environment in which individuals work, rest and pursue leisure, to settings that exist specifically to provide health care. Centres for providing health care, whether they are large hospitals or small community health centres, have the responsibility to actively promote health and to provide health education facilities, and not simply provide treatment to those who are ill. Some of these health promotion activities stem from initiatives developed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and also by central government. Others are a response to local ideas and suggestions. Health care settings can be viewed as a resource from which the public can draw in order to maintain and achieve good health practices.
Edelman and Mandle (1990) looked at the WHO definition of health, a "state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." They identified three key features that lead towards a positive concept of health:
A concern for the individual as a total system
A view of health that identifies internal and external environments
An acknowledgement of the importance of an individual's role in life.
It is generally accepted that those who are engaged directly in the delivery of health care will possess knowledge of health promotion and illness prevention. Such people are therefore in a good position to provide information and advice on how to lead a healthy lifestyle, at the same time enabling patients/clients to see the benefits behind such advice. Taking this a stage further it can also be argued that a health care worker is in a good position to set an example as someone who values the perceived benefits of leading a healthy lifestyle.
References
Endelman, C.L., and Mandle, C.L. (1990) Health promotion throughout the life span (2nd edition). St Louis: Mosby.
Potter, P.A., and Perry, A.G. (1995) Health promotion and illness prevention. In: Foundations in nursing theory and practice, edited by H.B. Heath. Turin: Mosby (Chapter 9 p184).
Suggested further reading:
Ewles, L., and Simnett, I. (1985) Promoting health: a practical guide to health education. Chichester: Wiley.
World Health Organisation (1985) Health promotion. Journal of the Institute of Health Education, 23(1), 431-435.