scholarly journals Strengthening health promotion practice: capacity development for a transdisciplinary field

2021 ◽  
pp. 175797592110617
Author(s):  
Stephan Van den Broucke
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Promotion ◽  
Organizational Capacity ◽  
Capacity Development ◽  
Reference Points ◽  
Disciplinary Boundaries ◽  
Prevention And Health Promotion ◽  
Public Health Discourse ◽  
Complementary Nature ◽  
Health Discourse

The growing burden of non-communicable and newly emerging communicable diseases, multi-morbidity, increasing health inequalities, the health effects of climate change and natural disasters and the revolution in communication technology require a shift of focus towards more preventive, people-centred and community-based health services. This has implications for the health workforce, which needs to develop new capacities and skills, many of which are at the core of health promotion. Health promotion is thus being mainstreamed into modern public health. For health promotion, this offers both opportunities and challenges. A stronger focus on the enablers of health enhances the strategic importance of health promotion’s whole-of-society approach to health, showcases the achievements of health promotion with regard to core professional competencies, and helps build public health capacity with health promotion accents. On the other hand, mainstreaming health promotion can weaken its organizational capacity and visibility, and bears the risk of it being absorbed into a traditional public health discourse dominated by medical professions. To address these challenges and grasp the opportunities, it is essential for the health promotion workforce to position itself within the diversifying primary care and public health field. Taking the transdisciplinary status of health promotion and existing capacity development systems in primary and secondary prevention and health promotion as reference points, this paper considers the possibilities to integrate and implement health promotion capacities within and across disciplinary boundaries, arguing that the contribution of health promotion to public health development lies in the complementary nature of specialist and mainstreamed health promotion.

The history and promise of holism in health promotion

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 824-832 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valerie Michaelson ◽  
William Pickett ◽  
Colleen Davison
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Promotion ◽  
Recent Literature ◽  
Holistic Health ◽  
Future Health ◽  
Conceptual Clarity ◽  
Public Health Discourse ◽  
Health Discourse

AbstractHolism is an ancient theme concept that has resurfaced in recent literature, and that requires informed and intentional use in order to preserve its utility. This paper provides a historical and conceptual reintroduction of the notion of holism as it relates to health, with the hopes of informing the term's use in public health discourse. It also addresses the challenges that a lack of conceptual clarity about holistic health imposes on public health and health promotion discussions. It describes how the use and conceptualizations of holism are shifting in health promotion and argues that failing to accurately define and delineate its scope risks diluting its utility for future health promotion applications. We address these two problems, and build an argument for a rediscovery of the theory of holism in public health and health promotion, globally.

scholarly journals Normal Island: COVID-19, Border Control, and Viral Nationalism in UK Public Health Discourse

2021 ◽  
pp. 136078042110494
Author(s):  
Des Fitzgerald
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Political Ecology ◽  
Border Control ◽  
Nation States ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Public Health Discourse ◽  
National Boundaries ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Health Discourse ◽  
The Relationship

In this contribution, I present emergent analysis of a preoccupation with managing COVID-19 through border control, among non-Governmental public health actors and commentators. Through a reading of statements, tweets, and interviews from the ‘Independent Sage’ group – individually and collectively – I show how the language of border control, and of maintaining immunity within the national boundaries of the UK, has been a notable theme in the group’s analysis. To theorize this emphasis, I draw comparison with the phenomenon of ‘green nationalism’, in which the urgency of climate action has been turned to overtly nationalistic ends; I sketch the outlines of what I call ‘viral nationalism,’ a political ecology that understands the pandemic as an event occurring differentially between nation states, and thus sees pandemic management as, inter alia, a work of involuntary detention at securitized borders. I conclude with some general remarks on the relationship between public health, immunity, and national feeling in the UK.

The public health system in France and the structural developments during the last ten years

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
P Arwidson
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Promotion ◽  
Health System ◽  
National Health ◽  
Health Agency ◽  
Control Program ◽  
Tobacco Control Program ◽  
Health Strategy ◽  
National Public Health ◽  
Prevention And Health Promotion

Abstract In 2009, the hospitals, health and territories act has entrusted the responsibility for care and public health to the regional health agencies. This decentralisation aims to adapt strategies to local situations. These regional agencies have a very strong autonomy. In 2013, it was stated in the national health strategy that it was necessary to develop a scientifically based prevention. Two tracks are to be followed: either by importing and adapting validated or promising programs by identifying effective programs in the international literature; or from existing French initiatives (tobacco, alcohol, psychoactive substances, physical activity). The high prevalence of smoking motivated the establishment of a National tobacco reduction program in 2014, which was then relayed by a national tobacco control program. In 2016, the Health System Improvement Act created a major national public health agency combining surveillance, prevention, health promotion and emergency response. The motivation was to achieve greater synergy and collaboration between the different functions in public health. A report from the Inspectorate General of Social Affairs has recommended that this agency should establish a national portal with evidence-based prevention and health promotion programmes. Established in 2018, the Priority Prevention Plan is a major interdepartmental project to improve the health of the population, and is part of the National Health Strategy. This interdepartmental approach reflects the Government’s desire that all ministries should be able to contribute to prevention and health promotion. The increased investment in prevention and health promotion is starting to bear fruit with 1.6 million fewer smokers between 2016 and 2018. Immunisation coverage has also been improved. NutriScore, a nutritional information on the front of food containers, very easy to understand, has been put in place with partnership with 100 companies.

scholarly journals Analysing local public health action plans: development of a tool for the French CLoterreS Study

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Y Le Bodo ◽  
R Fonteneau ◽  
C Harpet ◽  
H Hudebine ◽  
F Jabot ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Health Promotion ◽  
Social Determinants Of Health ◽  
Social Determinants ◽  
Social Care ◽  
Local Health ◽  
The Social ◽  
Prevention And Health Promotion ◽  
Living Circumstances

Abstract Background The potential contribution of local authorities to prevention and health promotion is well recognized. In France, since 2009, Local Health Contracts (LHCs) are mobilising Regional Health Agencies, local elected officials and stakeholders to intervene in 4 areas: health promotion, prevention, health care and social care. LHCs remain poorly documented policy instruments. Methods As part of the CLoterreS study, a multidimensional coding tool was developed and tested by two coders to explore the place of prevention and health promotion in LHCs. Its development was based on the WHO conceptual framework for action on the social determinants of health and the Self-assessment tool for the evaluation of essential public health operations in the WHO European Region. Preliminary results concern a random sample of 17 LHCs from as many French regions selected among the 165 LHCs signed between 2015 and March 2018. Results On average, the LHCs featured 26 action forms (AF) (min: 5; max: 56). In a LHC, the average proportion of AF addressing either the social determinants of health, living circumstances or other determinants targeted by health protection, promotion or primary prevention interventions (SDoH-HPP-P1) was 79% while 44% of the AF address secondary/tertiary prevention, social care or the organization of health care and services. Among the SDoH-HPP-P1 themes (double coding permitted): psychosocial life circumstances were addressed in the 17 LHCs and concerned, on average, 31% of their AF; material living circumstances were addressed to a lesser extent (16 LHCs, 13%); other key themes include environmental health (12, 14%), mental health (16, 12%), alcohol abuse (15, 11%), drug use (14, 11%), smoking (13, 9%), physical activity (13, 12%), healthy eating (12, 12%). Conclusions This work confirms that LHCs are instruments with prevention and health promotion at their core. Explanation of the differing investments in this area across our sample will be further explored. Key messages Local Health Contracts are promising instruments to address locally a broad range of health determinants. The CLoterreS analytical tool has proven effective in capturing multiple themes and shedding light on differences between Local Health Contracts’ action plans.

Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter D Hurd ◽  
Justinne Guyton ◽  
Ardis Hanson
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Promotion ◽  
Disease Prevention ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Sexual Behaviors ◽  
Consumer Health ◽  
Prevention And Health Promotion ◽  
Lack Of Exercise ◽  
Long Term Impact

Changing human behavior is challenging; however, having a long-term impact on the improved health of a population is a compelling reason for an increased public health commitment by individuals in pharmacy. Any of the activities that individuals and populations pursue have a direct effect on their health, from drinking clean water to breathing fresh air. Health behaviors mitigate or exacerbate chronic diseases, such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and stroke, and human behaviors can affect the resurgence of infectious diseases (and the emergence of new infectious diseases). Other behavioral factors, such as tobacco use, poor diet, lack of exercise, alcohol consumption, at-risk sexual behaviors, and avoidable injuries, contribute prominently to increased morbidity and mortality. This chapter addresses basic public health principles of disease prevention and health promotion, looking at consumer health education, health literacy, social media, and program design and evaluation.

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