Health and Health Promotion Notes

Learning Objectives

  • Definitions of Health: Understand various definitions of health and wellness.
  • Characteristics of Health Approaches: Discuss medical, behavioral, and socio-environmental approaches to health.
  • Holistic Health Perspectives: Explore the holistic views on health and wellness including the role of spirituality.
  • Determinants of Health: Examine the various determinants of health and their interrelationships.
  • Health Promotion vs. Others: Differentiate between health promotion, risk reduction, and disease prevention.
  • Ottawa Charter Strategies: Identify and discuss five health promotion strategies outlined in the Ottawa Charter.

Health Promotion

  • Definition: Activities aimed at promoting optimal health across the lifespan focused on prevention and enabling active participation in health improvement (Burns, 2025).
  • Goals:
    • Motivate individuals to adopt healthy behaviors.
    • Encourage positive health contributions.
  • Relational Aspect: Health promotion is considered relational, meaning it often involves interaction and support from health care professionals and communities.

Types of Prevention

  • Primary Prevention:
    • Protects from disease before symptoms appear.
    • Focuses on risk reduction.
  • Secondary Prevention:
    • Aims for early disease detection.
  • Tertiary Prevention:
    • Involves activities during the recovery phase of an illness.
  • Application Across Domains: These levels can be applied beyond physical health to mental and social wellness.

Determinants of Health

  • Key Determinants:
    • Income and social status
    • Social support networks
    • Education and literacy
    • Employment and working conditions
    • Physical and social environments
    • Personal health practices
    • Healthy childhood development
    • Biology and genetics
    • Access to health services
    • Gender and culture
  • Comparison to Wellness Domains: An exploration of how these determinants compare to recognized domains of wellness and identifying the most influential factors.

Ottawa Charter (1986)

  • Significance: Foundational document in health promotion established at the first International Conference on Health Promotion.
  • Prerequisites for Health: Essential conditions include peace, shelter, education, food, income, a stable ecosystem, sustainable resources, social justice, and equity.
  • Health Promotion Strategies:
    • Build Healthy Public Policy: Implement policies that support health.
    • Create Supportive Environments: Foster environments that promote health and wellbeing.
    • Strengthen Community Action: Enhance community involvement in health initiatives.
    • Develop Personal Skills: Empower individuals through education and skill development.
    • Reorient Health Services: Shift focus to health promotion rather than purely healthcare.

Health Promotion Theories & Models

  • Health Promotion Model (Pender):
    • Emphasizes personal factors and perceived benefits in influencing health behaviors.
  • Transtheoretical Model (Prochaska & DiClemente):
    • Describes a continuum of behavioral change across 6 stages from precontemplation to maintained change.
  • Population Health Promotion Model (Hamilton & Bhatti):
    • Analyzes determinants of health in relation to population strategies and the Ottawa Charter.

Identifying Health Risks

  • Factors Influencing Risk Perception:
    • Psychological factors
    • Scientific data
    • Media influence
  • Identifying Vulnerable Populations: Recognizing which groups are most susceptible to health risks.
  • Lifespan Perspective: Understanding how awareness of health risks evolves throughout an individual's life.

Health Promotion Examples

  • Initiatives:
    • "Alcohol & Pregnancy Don’t Mix"
    • "COVID Loves the Holidays"
    • "Screening for Life Program"
    • "P.A.R.T.Y. Program"
    • "Oral Health Education for Children"

Characteristics of Effective Health Promotion Initiatives

  • Key Characteristics:
    • Focus on health optimization
    • Evidence-based
    • Patient/community-centered
    • Cultural considerations (enculturation)
  • Readiness: Consider how readiness for change affects health outcomes per the Transtheoretical Model.

Reflecting on the Role of the Nurse

  • Roles:
    • Advocate
    • Care provider
    • Educator
    • Researcher
    • Social activist
    • Policy developer

References

  • Astle, B. J., et al. (2019) Canadian fundamentals of nursing (6th ed.).
  • Burns, D. (2025) Health promotion. In J. Giddens (Ed.) Concepts of Nursing Practice (4th ed.).
  • Hubbard-Murdoch, N. L., & Crawford, J. (2020) Health, wellness, and illness. In D. Gregory, et al. Fundamentals: Perspective on the Art and Science of Canadian Nursing (2nd ed.).
  • Tiase, V., et al. (2022) Nurses’ role in addressing social determinants of health. Nursing, 52(4), 32-37.
  • Woods, A. (2022) Applying the principles of health promotion in nursing practice. Nursing Standard, 37(4), 40-45.