Health Promotion – What does it mean?

Health Promotion can be defined as 'the process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health'. To reach a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing an individual or group must be able to identify and to realise aspirations, to satisfy needs, and to change or cope with the environment. Health is therefore, seen as a resource for everyday life, not the objective of living. Health is a positive concept emphasising social and personal resources, as well as physical capacities. Therefore, health promotion is not just the responsibility of the health sector but goes beyond healthy lifestyles to wellbeing.

The World Health Organisation was the first to introduce the notion of ‘Health Promotion’ into the Primary Health Care sector. The WHO’s focus on health promotion aimed to develop an approach that built on the same values as Primary Health Care and applied those issues that would be seen as directly pertinent to the industrialised world.

How can Health Promotion be achieved? 
The Ottawa Charter for health promotion states that health promotion action must occur on five fronts. These are as follows:

• Promoting health by building healthy public policy
• Promote health by creating environments that support healthy living
• Promote health by strengthening community action
• Promote health by helping people develop personal skills
• Promote health by reorientating the health care system

To ensure effective work in these five areas the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion emphasizes the need for health workers to be effective in advocacy and mediation in order to enable people to gain greater control over their lives. Furthermore, to achieve effective health promotion action, there needs to be a variety of interventions. The Department of Human Services created five key health promotion interventions that include:

• Screening, risk factor assessment and immunisation. For example, medical screening procedures for pap smears.
• Health Education and skill development. For example, health education on healthy eating in a primary school setting.
• Social marketing and health information. For example, providing information in a form of a pamphlet, internet or using the media to get the health message across.
• Community action (for social and environmental change). For example, a parent group lobbying to have a lolly pop person outside their kindergarten.
• Settings and supportive environments. For example, tobacco legislation that has a ban on smoking in restaurants and pubs.

The key requirement for quality-integrated health promotion program delivery is the implementation of a variety of health promotion interventions which encompassing a balance of both individual and population wide interventions.

LIST OF PRIORITY AREAS
Promoting Nutritious and Accessible Foods 

• Food Security mapping project.
• Health promoting schools project.
• School canteen managers network.
• Kids Go For Your Life

Mental Health and Wellbeing 

• Real Life program.
• Mind Matters program.
• Building Blocks for Life program.
• Violence against women social marketing campaign.

Sexual and Reproductive Health 

• Chlamydia social marketing strategy.
• Sexual health service mapping project and resource.
• Sexual health promotion school conference.

Health Promoting Health Services 

• Various projects planned that aim at building the capacity of the organisation to respond to health promotion.

To access the Integrated Health Promotion Plan 2009-2012 click here