Concepts of Health & Health Promotion
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- Category: Politics: Moral Issues
- Date Submitted: 08/24/2011 07:48 AM
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Critically analyse the concepts of health and health promotion and apply your understanding to the development of health work with young people/communities.
Within this essay, I aim to discuss, critically evaluate and demonstrate an understanding of the concepts of health and health promotion and apply my understanding to the development of health work with young people and communities.
The Cambridge Advanced Learners Dictionary (2006) gives one definition as “the condition of the body and the degree to which it is free from illness, or the state of being well”. The perception of health as described by the World Health Authority in 1948 (citied by Naidoo & Wills 1994) “ is a state of complete physical mental and social well-being, not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”. This definition, I believe, is impractical to achieve, as a “complete” state of health means that all factors affecting one’s health must be positive and in balance at all times.
In 1986 the definition of health was expanded by the World Health Authority to include a community concept of health and stated that “Health is the extent to which an individual or group is able, on the one hand, to realise aspirations and satisfy needs; and on the other hand, to change or cope with the environment. Health is therefore seen as a resource for everyday life, not an object of living; it is a positive concept emphasising social and personal resources, as well as physical capacities ”, citied by Naidoo & Wills 1994. This definition places responsibility on individuals or the community to maximise, achieve and use resources effectively and demonstrate a strength of mind when facing new circumstances and I believe that this is a better-quality definition.
Health in my understanding concerns the physical, emotional and psychological aspects of well being within one’s self. Social issues surround the concept of health making it difficult to limit it to only one definition and perspective, as...
Within this essay, I aim to discuss, critically evaluate and demonstrate an understanding of the concepts of health and health promotion and apply my understanding to the development of health work with young people and communities.
The Cambridge Advanced Learners Dictionary (2006) gives one definition as “the condition of the body and the degree to which it is free from illness, or the state of being well”. The perception of health as described by the World Health Authority in 1948 (citied by Naidoo & Wills 1994) “ is a state of complete physical mental and social well-being, not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”. This definition, I believe, is impractical to achieve, as a “complete” state of health means that all factors affecting one’s health must be positive and in balance at all times.
In 1986 the definition of health was expanded by the World Health Authority to include a community concept of health and stated that “Health is the extent to which an individual or group is able, on the one hand, to realise aspirations and satisfy needs; and on the other hand, to change or cope with the environment. Health is therefore seen as a resource for everyday life, not an object of living; it is a positive concept emphasising social and personal resources, as well as physical capacities ”, citied by Naidoo & Wills 1994. This definition places responsibility on individuals or the community to maximise, achieve and use resources effectively and demonstrate a strength of mind when facing new circumstances and I believe that this is a better-quality definition.
Health in my understanding concerns the physical, emotional and psychological aspects of well being within one’s self. Social issues surround the concept of health making it difficult to limit it to only one definition and perspective, as...