Health Promotion & Disease
Prevention
Nurses as health role models
Nurses have the opportunity to role model healthy behaviour
Health Promotion
“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 realise aspirations to satisfy
needs and to change or cope with the environment.” – the Ottawa Charter, 1986
Health promotion focuses on the lifestyle choices made to prevent illness and to strive
towards high levels of wellness
Many preventative measures either protect the person’s health or prevent loss of health
A healthy attitude along with cultural beliefs and practices support mind, body and
spiritual wellness
Physical variables include nutrition, rest/sleep and nutrition
Psychosocial variables include coping mechanisms (of stress, depression etc.), self-
concept, recreation and cultural practices
Spiritual variables include beliefs and values
Holistic nursing care is the aim to care for patients not only for their physical needs but
also for their mental and spiritual needs
Strategies for health promotion
There are many advocacy contexts
Politics: policies and regulations
Economical
Social
Cultural
Environmental
Biological
Enablement
Equity: equity is not equality
Accessibility: accessibility is not availability
Effectiveness
Efficiency
Outcome: the community is to take charge of the redistribution of resources for
effective health care delivery
Mediation
Intersectoral collaboration
Different stakeholders (NGOs, economic and social sectors)
Local authorities and private sectors
Outcome: social contract that permits the sectors to promote health
Prevention
Nurses as health role models
Nurses have the opportunity to role model healthy behaviour
Health Promotion
“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 realise aspirations to satisfy
needs and to change or cope with the environment.” – the Ottawa Charter, 1986
Health promotion focuses on the lifestyle choices made to prevent illness and to strive
towards high levels of wellness
Many preventative measures either protect the person’s health or prevent loss of health
A healthy attitude along with cultural beliefs and practices support mind, body and
spiritual wellness
Physical variables include nutrition, rest/sleep and nutrition
Psychosocial variables include coping mechanisms (of stress, depression etc.), self-
concept, recreation and cultural practices
Spiritual variables include beliefs and values
Holistic nursing care is the aim to care for patients not only for their physical needs but
also for their mental and spiritual needs
Strategies for health promotion
There are many advocacy contexts
Politics: policies and regulations
Economical
Social
Cultural
Environmental
Biological
Enablement
Equity: equity is not equality
Accessibility: accessibility is not availability
Effectiveness
Efficiency
Outcome: the community is to take charge of the redistribution of resources for
effective health care delivery
Mediation
Intersectoral collaboration
Different stakeholders (NGOs, economic and social sectors)
Local authorities and private sectors
Outcome: social contract that permits the sectors to promote health
