Introduction to Health Promotion

This article provides an overview of health promotion, including opportunities, benefits, and challenges. It discusses the role of health promotion in achieving sustainable development goals and highlights the importance of community involvement. The article also addresses the challenges faced in promoting health and emphasizes the need for trust and cooperation among stakeholders. Overall, it emphasizes the holistic approach needed for health promotion and sustainable development.

Running head: INTRODUCTION TO HEALTH PROMOTION 1
Introduction to Health Promotion
Student’s Name
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Introduction to Health Promotion
Introduction
Sustainable development is one of the key aspects that is all talked of in almost every
field regardless of whether they are environmental or not. Sustainable development is looking
towards advancing health and equity by the year 2030. Health promotion strategies on the other
hand moves beyond the vertical approaches of the traditional and focusses by insisting on
involving more of the community in making decision. The statistics shows that every nation is
striving towards achieving sustainable development goals by the year 2030. As the number three
among the goals of sustainable development, it is aimed at ensuring that there is health and
promotion of wellness among all the ages by improving the reproductive, maternal and the child
health so that there would be an end to communicable diseases epidemics and reduction in non-
communicable and mental diseases. However, there are also setbacks and challenges affecting
the strive to propagate health promotion. Regarding this the paper attempts to provide a larger
scope on health promotion sector addressing all the sustainable development dimensions by
succinctly looking at the opportunities, benefits and the challenges.
Opportunities
One of the things that we need to understand first is that health promotion itself is a
dependent factor that cannot stand alone. Health promotion needs other factors of production or
other health associated factors to make it complete and to see to it that it addresses all the
dimensions of the sustainable development as required. It is exciting that as health promotion
addresses sustainable development there are many opportunities that are always presenting
themselves that if utilized very well the sustainable development will be something to achieve

INTRODUCTION TO HEALTH PROMOTION 3
easily. It is exciting to recognize that many government institutions all over the world are all
committed to making sure that health promotion for their respective countries is achieved and
enhanced (WHO, 2015). Looking at the international organizations like the World Health
Organization, it is impressing at how it is positively responding to the development of the
countries who are affiliated to it as member countries by giving and backing them up with their
support in promoting health and in the general developing of policies, programs together with the
activities that are related to promoting health (Steinberger, Daniels, Hagberg, Isasi, Kelly, Lloyd-
Jones ... & Urbina, 2016). Visiting of the health care for different purposes are all opportunities
for activities intentioned to providing health. This has been especially important in the instances
like those of maternal health where there is routinely reporting of women for antenatal care
(WHO, 2015). Such visits by women in hospitals can adequately be utilized to promote health
among these vulnerable group of individuals. Additionally, the visits that are all directed for
childhood vaccination and monitoring of growth can also be effectively used to promote health
among both those who bring the children and the children themselves and thus benefiting the
whole group. Such visits can be used as essential and one-time avenues to promote heath among
the adults and the children.
The other way by which an opportunity is presented is when those who have the chronic
diseases come for follow up visits. As they come for the check up and follow ups, they can be
educated among other health promotional activities as much as possible. More to that however, a
very good opportunity which can be redefined and described as a valuable opportunity is
particularly by the fact that there is availability of technology that is advanced together with the
electronic media of communication. The internet and by far the social media platforms has
broadened the scope of health care far beyond the initial traditional boundaries that were only

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limited with time and coverage (Steinberger et al., 2016). Mass media has been proved to be an
important factor and a contributing factor in role playing as health promotional factor. It is
obvious that mass media can communicate and transfer health messages anywhere, whenever,
wherever, and in whatever way without any interference whatsoever. The media has a capability
of reaching far and wide and to diverse group of individuals.
I believe that all these factors places health promotion at a place and a position where meeting all
the dimensions of sustainable development will be easy to achieve. The very essence of getting
to sustainable development is having an opportunity or opportunities that can facilitate and
provide a way that can easily reach the development that is sustainable.
Benefits
It is astonishing how sometimes people may think that some of the things they see around
them especially anything related to health, as having been brought to them is for free without
recognizing the benefit behind. According to Buse and Hawkes (2015), health promotion is very
relevant today. The world accepts that social wellness and health are determined by various
factors that are outside the heart system that includes among them socio economic conditions,
demographic factors and patterns of consumption. Similarly, Takeuchi, Sakagami & Perez
(2016) notes that over the past few decades, it has been considered that biomedical interventions
alone cannot and would never give a guarantee for a better health and thus health is heavily
dependent on factors outside the domain of health field. All these factors shape the way people
live, grow and interact (Takeuchi et al., 2016). Therefore, the attainment of the highest probable
standard for health which is the kind of the standard that would meet all the required dimensions
of health depends on a holistic and comprehensive approach that goes beyond the traditional
curative care.

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Because of this understanding, it is apparent that the benefits accrued from the health
promotion are worth seeing substantial dimensions of sustainable development grow. Health
promotion improves the health status of the people. This is evident in various platforms and
statistics presented periodically. It is estimated that places where there have been robust and
intense health promotion campaigns ad education, there has been significantly reduction in the
people ailing from specific diseases or illnesses (Greenhalgh, Jackson, Shaw & Janamian, 2016).
It has been always a simple saying to so many people but I consider it a fact: knowledge is
power. When individuals are made to have knowledge, then they risk falling victims of certain
diseases. As they reduce chances of falling sick, then it also means that there is a reduction in
chances of spreading the diseases to other people and therefore well-being of the society.
Additionally, when chances for people falling sick are reduced, then it means there will be
increased in productivity in other sectors of the economy because people are healthy, this is the
contributing factor to sustainable development. A community that is healthy is more productive
than a community dominated with unwell individuals.
It therefore means that health promotion plays a very big role in reaching the sustainable
development that our societies, countries, regions and the world needs. The whole world is
dependent on the health of individual as WHO (2016) notes that the well-being of the individuals
is the greatest asset of a society. Promotion of heath is that unique phenomenon. The result of the
health promotion is wellbeing and improvement in health and therefore enhancement of all
aspects of sustainable development.
Challenges
Like any other given component or factor, promotion of health has its challenges even as
it strives to address all areas of sustainable development dimensions. There are multiple

INTRODUCTION TO HEALTH PROMOTION 6
challenges that are associated with health promotion. A metaanalysis review revealed that many
countries struggle with the practice of health promotion since some of the countries have no
capacity to build the workforce, organization and the infrastructure for promoting health (Wold,
& Mittelmark, 2018). Another identifiable challenge is that there are certain groups of
individuals that have vested interest and they are always at the verge of taking the advantage.
This has always left so many people wondering why particular group of individuals’ only
intention is to see other people suffer and not that they don’t have whatever they need, they have
but still they want to amass even whatever does not belong at the detriment of others. Industries
of influence like those for food chains selling junk food, tobacco and alcohol companies and
industries are among those having vested interest. There is however increasing recognition in the
role of ethics in health promotion, it should be based on individuals reflecting on the health
benefits that are tied into the health promotion for the better sustained future development.
A major future challenge however is how it can be possible to develop and maintain trust
of the communities particularly those that are poverty stricken and marginalized- the youths and
the migrants (Jelsøe, Thualagant, Holm, Kjærgård, Andersen, From... & Pedersen, 2018). These
groups can hardly be receptive to health promotional messages thus there are certain dimension
of sustainable development that we all look towards that will not be addressed.
Conclusion
It is notable that sustainable development in health is achievable since there are many
opportunities that are available for promoting health in different avenues depending on time and
place. It is also notable that as health promotion strives to address all the dimensions of
sustainable development, there are numerous benefits that it come along with which in broader
sense are very critical. Finally, it is notable that one of the major challenges in health promotion

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is developing and maintaining the trust of the communities even as we strive to address all
aspects of sustainable development. Considering the proposed ideas, they are at a better position
to ensure that all dimensions of sustainable development get addressed, however it will still
depend on political good will and cooperation of different stakeholders in health promotion, the
government and the community. Researches must be carried out to explore the role of promotion
of health in enhancing the public health and sustainable development. Health promotion research
and practice should be integrated and holistic.

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References
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