Health promotion is a conscious effort by the government and related agencies to empower people to have more control over their health. Any role of health promotion is an aspect of governance. It guides governments, societies, and individuals in addressing and coping with health challenges. Health promotion becomes prevalent with the formulation and implementation of healthy public policies. It also enhances personal skills and community action to support preventive care.
How Health Promotion Boosts Preventive Care
The difference between health promotion and preventive care arises in their concepts. Health promotion aims to promote or improve resources around health. Preventive care addresses the avoidance of disease and the related risk factors.
However, there is a link between health promotion and preventive care-they have the same purpose. Their common aim is maintaining or improving health competencies and health in a community. Health promotion, therefore, focuses on supporting the resources of groups and individuals. It also aims to improve the resources in society. All these focus on preventive care.
The primary goal of preventive care is the early detection of diseases and the minimisation of their occurrence. The secondary target is the action taken to minimise the negative impact of disease and symptoms. All these efforts reduce the risk of developing chronic illnesses and potentially life-threatening conditions.
In that light, the relationship between health promotion and preventive care comes into perspective when the efforts focus on a target group. There are special target groups that the government gives priority due to health inequity that arises from social inequalities.
The government customises programs, policies and activities to address the risk issues that affect their health. Some of these priority groups include Aboriginal people, people with mental health issues, those living with disability and those residing in remote and regional areas.
In Australia, the government has taken on the following health promotion measures which have played a role in preventive healthcare:
- Developing Health Communication Strategies
The government formulates health communication models. These strategies include written and verbal communication that empowers and influences individuals and communities in their decision-making to achieve good health. The communication uses models and theories that promote behaviour and attitude change. It is a form of social marketing that uses solutions and activities that encourage behavioural change.
For this to succeed, the facilitators should understand the target population’s language, culture and circumstances. The implementers must also choose appropriate and effective modes of communication depending on those that the population can access and use.
These include TV broadcasts, digital tools, videos, social media posts, public service announcements, group discussions, newspaper articles and health fairs. The strategies can pass information on to people to shape their knowledge, attitude, and behaviour by reinforcing good behaviour and empowering people to improve their health conditions.
They can also increase knowledge of risks and improve the availability of necessary services. All these efforts come together in toolkits that address those problems. Such toolkits include the Suicide Prevention Toolkit, the Rural Community Toolkit and the Early Childhood Health Promotion Toolkit.
- Providing Health Education
Health education provides people with skills, tools, and knowledge on health topics to help them lead healthier lives. It targets individuals and society. It is conducted through home visits to reach out to patients and their families and through personal communication.
At the community level, lectures and workshops are held for meetings and groups to teach about health issues. An example of a health education strategy is the Mental Health in Rural Communities Toolkit. This approach also requires training and retention of educators and facilitators and the funding of the programs.
Conclusion The government is accountable for protecting and enhancing the health of all its citizens. It has a unique responsibility towards socially disadvantaged individuals and communities. Preventive healthcare saves costs that would have been incurred in containing and treating diseases.
