Children's Health

Question 1

What is health promotion?

Answer 1

Any planned activity designed to enhance health or prevent disease.

• Can effect access, environment and lifestyle
• Includes prevention, education and protection
• May be planned or opportunistic.

Question 2

How is health promotion achieved?

Answer 2

• Legislation
• Preventative services eg immunisation
• Developing activities

Question 3

What are the three theories of health promotion action?

Answer 3

• Educational
• Socioeconomic
• Physcological

Question 4

What is health education?

Answer 4

An activity involving communication with individuals or groups aimed at changing knowledge, beliefs, attitudes and behaviours to improve health

Question 5

What is health protection?

Answer 5

• Collective activities directed at factors which are beyond the control of the individual.
• Tend to be regulations or policies, or voluntary codes of practice aimed at the prevention of ill health

Question 6

Why is health care promotion an essential tool for modern healthcare provision?

Answer 6

• Preventing burden of chronic disease by improving lifestyle factors - exercise, diet etc
• Growing healthcare costs managing disease and its complications.
• Benefits of prevention of disease rather than treating established disease.

Question 7

What advantages do we have in the UK to enable effective health promotion?

Answer 7

• Organised primary care system, health visitors, chronic disease clinics, network of pharmacies – all able to deliver health promotion.
• Use of media and ability to organize and advertise national programmes

Question 8

Are there any disadvantages to a Health Promotion program?

Answer 8

• Medicalising healthy individuals
• Possible increased worry,
• May not effectively target the most at risk groups e.g. those in more deprived areas - can widen the care gap.
• May not deliver the required benefits leading to further increased cost. Difficult to assess impact.

Question 9

What is the definition of empowerment?

Answer 9

-Generation of power in individuals and groups which previously considered themselves unable to control situations etc

Question 10

What are some of the benefits of empowerment?

Answer 10

• Ability to resist social pressure
• Ability to utilise effective coping strategies when faced by an unhealthy environment.
• Heightened consciousness of action

Question 11

What are the steps involved in the cycle of change?

Answer 11

Precontemplation
Contemplation
Ready for Action
Action
Maintenance
(Regression)
Maintaining healthier lifestyle

Question 12

Why is the cycle of change useful in practice?

Answer 12

May indicate whether someone is ready to change behaviour

Question 13

What are some examples of planned health promotion in primary care?

Answer 13

Posters
Chronic disease clinics
Vaccinations
QOF
Travel clinic
Screening measures

Question 14

What are some examples of opportunistic health promotion in primary care?

Answer 14

Advice within consultation (Smoking, BP, Alcohol, Diet)

Question 15

What are some government methods of health promotion?

Answer 15

• Legislation
• Economic
• Education

Question 16

What is primary prevention?

Answer 16

• Measures taken to prevent onset of illness or injury
• Reduces probability/severity of illness or injury

eg Smoking cessation or immunisation

Question 17

What is secondary prevention?

Answer 17

-Detection of a disease at an early (preclinical) stage in order to cure/prevent/lessen symptomatology

Question 18

What are Wilson’s criteria fro screening?

Answer 18

Illness – important, natural history understood, pre-symptomatic stage

Test – easy, acceptable, cost effective, sensitive and specific

Treatment – acceptable, cost effective, better if early

Question 19

What is screened for in Scotland?

Answer 19

• Cancers - Breast, Bowel, Cervical
• AAA
• Diabetic retinopathy
• Pregnancy screening (Pre-eclampsia, diabetes, Anaemia, blood-group, Viral infections, Down’s syndrome, Baby/placental position
• New born screening - hearing, cataracts, congenital heart disease, hip dysplasia, undescended testes, Guthrie test

Question 20

What is screened for in New born Guthrie test?

Answer 20

• PKU
• Hypothyroidism
• Sickle cell
• CF

Question 21

What is tertiary prevention?

Answer 21

Interventions after disease onset to limit distress/disability

Question 22

What are some common reasons for a young child to see GP/health visitor?

Answer 22

-Feeding problems, pyrexia, URTI, coughs/colds, rashes, otalgia, sore throat, vomiting +/- diarrhoea, abdominal pains, behavioural problems

Question 23

What are some important aspects of consultations with a young child?

Answer 23

Listening, watching, observing, examining properly, putting child at ease as well as parent / guardian, being seen to take it seriously, parental understanding, explain in clear language what your thinking is and plans are.

Question 24

How much moderate to vigorous exercise is recommended for teenagers?

Answer 24

60 minutes of moderate/vigorous exercise

Question 25

What is the rough estimate for how much sleep teenagers need to function best?

Answer 25

8-10 hours of sleep