Week 2 - Health Promotion and Disease Prevention

Question 1

How does the World Health Organization (1946) define health?

Answer 1

a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity

Question 2

How does the Community Health Nurses Association of Canda (2008) define health?

Answer 2

a resource for everyday life that is influenced by circumstances, beliefs, and the determinants of health

Question 3

Define social justice in the context of health

Answer 3

living in a just and fair society where equitable distribution of resources can support universal education, access to equitable health care, and the freedom to contribute as a full member of society with equal rights, privileges, and rewards

Question 4

How do the social determinants of health inform nursing practice?

Answer 4

• By understanding that serious illness and early death related to poverty are connected to low social standing.
• Poor health and early death then are linked to social determinants of health, not just to accessibility to health care.

Question 5

According to WHO, what is health promotion?

Answer 5

Health promotion is the process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health.

To reach a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, an individual or group must be able to identify and to realize 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 emphasizing 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 well-being.

Question 6

What are the five key actions of the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion?

Answer 6

• Build healthy public policy.
• Create supportive environments for health.
• Strengthen community action.
• Develop personal skills.
• Reorient health services toward preventing diseases and promoting health.

Question 7

What is an upstream approach to health promotion?

Answer 7

• Upstreaminterventions and strategies focus on improving fundamental social and economic structures in order to decrease barriers and improve supports that allow people to achieve their full health potential
• structural determinants such as social status, income, racism, and exclusion
• Upstream approaches are often prevention and promotion strategies focused on policy interventions that benefit the whole population

Question 8

What is a midstream approach to health promotion?

Answer 8

• Intermediary determinants, or material circumstances such as housing conditions, employment and food security
• Midstream helps people access the resources that are available to them

Question 9

What is a downstream approach to health promotion?

Answer 9

• Downstreaminterventions and strategies focus on providing equitable access to care and services to mitigate the negative impacts ofdisadvantageon health
• Downstream is more individual focused and is more about the immediate health needs of populations that are marginalized
  Ex. acute care services