Population Health: Health Promotion Framework for Childhood Obesity

This report delves into the principles of population health, specifically focusing on the Ottawa Charter and Te Pae Mahutonga frameworks, with the context of childhood obesity in New Zealand. It explores the Ottawa Charter's core principles: creating supportive healthcare environments, developing personal skills, building healthy public policy, strengthening community actions, reorienting health services, and moving into the future. The report then examines Te Pae Mahutonga, a framework with six stars representing Mauriora, Waiora, Toyota, Te Oranga, Nga Manukura, and Te Mana Whakahaere, and their roles in promoting health. The discussion highlights challenges in implementing health promotion strategies. The report emphasizes the importance of cultural awareness, environmental protection, healthy lifestyles, and social participation in achieving improved population health outcomes, offering valuable insights for healthcare professionals and policymakers.

Running Head: POPULATION HEALTH 1
Population Health (Ottawa charter and Te Pae Mahutonga as a framework for health promotion
to practical system approach)
Student’s Name
Institution Affiliate
Date

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Table of Contents
Abstract............................................................................................................................................3
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Ottawa principles in health promotion context................................................................................4
Creating supportive healthcare environments..............................................................................4
Developing personal skills...........................................................................................................5
Building healthy public policy.....................................................................................................5
Strengthening community actions................................................................................................5
Reorient health services...............................................................................................................6
Action plan.......................................................................................................................................6
The last principle is moving into the future.................................................................................6
Elements in which there are six stars...............................................................................................7
Mauriora implies to an access to Te Ao Maori............................................................................7
Waiora refers to environmental protection..................................................................................8
Toyota means living healthy lifestyles.........................................................................................8
Te Oranga implies participation in society..................................................................................9
Discussion........................................................................................................................................9
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................10
References......................................................................................................................................11

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Abstract
The rates of obesity and weight increase among children in New Zealand has increased since the
1990s. The overweight problem noted among the kids living in indigenous Maori people, the
disadvantaged groups and those who live in highly deprived towns. In trying to provide the
solution to this health problem, New Zealand came up with healthcare promotion and advocating
for equity in the distribution of healthcare resources across the country (Almlund, & Holm,
2015). Taking healthcare promotion as the main strategy, New Zealanders recognized the
importance of evaluation and the need to establish evidence based to support the future initiative
of healthcare activities. The health commission gave the mandate to the researchers so that they
can conduct an extensive research on this concern and then come up with the most viable way
forward.
Introduction
The health issue is an essential aspect that touches the lives of people across the globe
directly. New Zealand health leaders had to come up with visions of creating a healthier New
Zealand. Within this vision, there were several other goals, such as: improving the overall health
status of New Zealand's population, reducing health inequalities, improving the leadership styles
in the healthcare system, addressing the unemployment problem, housing, and drainage care
among others. This project aims to address the framework of childhood obesity that affects the
New Zealand people. Part one contains the principles, part two addresses the action plan and
finally talks about the action plan as seen in the six parts.
Ottawa principles in health promotion context
The healthcare principles addressed in the Ottawa Charter for health promotion in an
annual conference of 21st November 1986 are building healthy public policy and creating a
supportive healthcare environment, and strengthening community actions (Hicks, 2018). In

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addition, developing personal skills, reorienting health services, and moving into the future. Into
details, each principle is discussed as follows.
Creating supportive healthcare environments
New Zealand societies are interrelated and sophisticated, making it difficult for their
separation with the national goals of healthcare. People cannot be separated from their habitat
due to their links in the socioecological approach of a health basis. It the main standardized
principle for the world, nations, regions, and societies, in general, is to promote the give and take
maintenance which caters to each other in the community and the natural environment. The
global discussions have taken the lead in natural resources maintenance and utility (Thompson,
Watson, & Tilford, 2018). Technology has played a leading role in facilitating the transition in
patterns of life. The healthiness of the community is seen in terms of leisure and work they do.
To control obesity, children are taught how to utilize their times, the physical practice, heathy
feeding and minimized video gaming. Health promotion creates a working and living condition
that is stimulating, satisfying, and safe for a healthy living.
Furthermore, the systematic assessment of the health impact of the rapidly changing
environment, especially when compared to technology and urbanization, improved the quality of
life. As well, energy production, and work have been carried our help improve the human
experience (Spencer, Corbin, & Miedema, 2018). These are significant factors that, when are put
into action, can lead to bettering the community health situations. The conservations of natural
resources should be encouraged and supported in the strategy.
Developing personal skills
Health promotion is supported by individual and social development via providing
information, enhancing life skills, and providing education on health. When this is done, the
general public gets to know how to tackle childhood obesity as a health-related problems and

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first-aid skills, thus help in making a decisive decision and improving personal health (Hapeta,
Palmer, & Kuroda, 2019). This involves training people throughout their lifetime on how to cope
with certain chronic diseases. The guiding lessons are given in schools by health specialists, in
community centers by the public health tutors and in religious centers.
Building healthy public policy
Health promotion is a universal agenda that puts health at the forefront of every level and
sector regionally. The policymakers bring the public to the attention of the outcomes of their
decisions and the acceptance of the healthcare responsibilities (Sebar, Morgan, & Lee, 2016).
The health policy has narrowed down the legislations together with the complementary
approaches into standard strategies such as taxation, fiscal measures, and organizational changes.
The social systems have, in several ways, fostered the health quality that has improved the lives
of the general public. The policies also catered for safe and healthier services, cleaner and
enjoyable healthy surroundings. As well, the health promotion policy led to the identification of
the barriers of the robust programs and came up with the most probable solutions. As a result,
there will be improved public health services, a more enjoyable and cleaner environment to
dwell in.
Strengthening community actions
Health promotion operates on well-defined and effective community action in setting
priorities, planning strategies, setting priorities, and implementing them to attain an elevated
health system. The core role of this plan is to empower every community. The community
personnel, resources, and health experts have been utilized in helping to create a better society.
As a consequence, the town has provided social support and has enhanced a flexible system for
upholding public participation concerning the matters of health (Came, & Tudor, 2016). For this

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to happen, there should be a stable financial aiding, continuous access to information, and
increased learning opportunities for health.
Reorient health services
The community groups, individuals, health service institutions, health professionals, and
the local government all have shared responsibilities for promoting health services to the local
people. Due to the purposes of health pursuit health, the mentioned avenues all have contributed
immensely in putting the health system at a better position in the community (Ryks, Kilgour,
Whitehead, & Rarere, 2018). There focus is geared towards improving the direction of health
promotion rather than just providing the clinical and curative services. Their willingness to
embrace sensitive and cultural needs have transformed the entire look of the health programs.
Their mandates supported the requirements and links between the health sector, economic,
political, and cultural perspectives of individuals and their environment.
Action plan
A stronger orientation to health research has been utilized in reorienting the health
service concept, which has been used in training the health students in various institutions. The
outcomes of these moves yielded a positive change of attitude of people to view their lives
constructively.
The last principle is moving into the future.
Health is a generational problem that can never be stopped. Several health issues that
affected the people of the past were concurred by several types of research done timely to better
the race of humankind and minimize childhood obesity. The result of everyday life in a setting is
measured in terms of good health. Good health has yielded love, the learning institutions, and the
nature of work in the community (Sebar, Morgan, & Lee, 2016). Ecology, caring, and holism are
substantial issues in developing strategies for health promotion. Nonetheless, the parties involved

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should contribute to the planning, implementation, and evaluation of health promotion activities,
and promote equality among men and women in health service provision.
As the name suggests, Te Pae Mahutonger refers to the collection of stars known as the
Southern Cross. During the night, this star is visible and can be used to define the southern
magnetic pole. This concept has brought together the components of modern health promotion in
a progressive manner, which can be used to analyze the natural celestial body. Eventually, the
discovery of Aotearoa and New Zealand was facilitated with the navigation of Te Pae
Mahutonga (Puras, 2016). The arrangement of the four central stars placed into a cross-like
shape. The four centrally placed stars have been symbolically used to represent four critical tasks
of health promotion and might be named following the specific health promotion: Mauriora,
Waiora, Toyota, and Te Oranga. Besides, the two pointers are called Nga Manukura and Te
Mana Whakahaere.
Elements in which there are six stars
Mauriora implies to an access to Te Ao Maori.
The health promotion in this aspect is derived from cultural identity which seeks to create an
abase free society. It argues that good health depends on many factors contributed by cultural
awareness of the health program. From this ideology, the supporting fact is that acculturalization
is associated with good health, while deculturation is related to poor hygiene (Waterworth, &
Thorpe, 2017). Thus, the aim of health promotion, in this case, was to promote the security of
identity. Unfortunately, people living in Maori have minimal access to the Maori world due to
land degradation and deforestation. Oneness does not only depend on the sense of belonging, but
it lays its full emphasis on the group's social, cultural, and economic resources. Some of the

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cultural activities are physically demanding especially when aimed at improving the physical
health of children in the society. As a result, Te Ao Maori refers to:
 Access to the societal domain of being facilitated, not hindered as a Maori.
 Access to culture and cultural institutions such as Marae
 Access to social resources for example fisheries, land and forests
 Access to language and knowledge
Waiora refers to environmental protection
In this case, Waiora provides for a link between the spiritual elements and the external world
that brings the human willingness to cosmic, terrestrial, and water environments (Puras, 2016).
Good health can never be attained with a polluted environment, contaminated water supply, or
unhealthy social existence. Thus it is necessary to maintain the spiritual connection between the
people and their environment. The health promotion thus attempts to harmonize their
environment, and this can be done by:
 Keeping water free from pollutants
 Keeping the abundancy of vegetation
 Reducing the noise levels
 Creating opportunities for people to experience the natural environment.
Toyota means living healthy lifestyles.
In most cases, human health is determined by the kind of lifestyle they live. The
consequences of a risk-laden lifestyle have well-known and largely preventable outcomes. These
risks have been sported in the foods and drinks we take, drug and substance abuse, careless
driving, unprotected sex, and so forth (Leaming, & Willis, 2016). Physical injuries and self-harm
have as well contributed to loss or direction towards one's life. To minimize these from
happening, the health departments, together with the victims, should check on:

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 Harm minimization,
 Risk management
 Positive development
 Conduct targeted interventions and
 Focus on cultural development
Te Oranga implies participation in society.
The relationship between health and socioeconomic circumstances are inseparable. As
mentioned earlier, well-being comprises many things that are either internally or externally
placed in society. Te Oranga entirely depends on the participation of people in social activities
and relate well with the outcomes (Wold, & Mittelmark, 2018). To have a stable lifestyle, there
should be strengthened families, and societal activities are accepted and appreciated by every
member of that society. In promoting the levels of well-being, Te Oranga has increased the
length of Maori's participation in the community through:
 Involvement in decision making
 Participation in employment
 Participation in the economy
 Participation in education and so on.
Discussion
There have been several challenges that health promotion has faced on the way in the process
of its implementation. Depending on the type and location, there are no specific methods that can
be applied to settle them, but a study can be conducted to help address these challenges. The two
prerequisites are Nga Manukura (leadership) and Te Mana Whakahaere (autonomy).
In Nga Manukura (leadership), we can focus on community leadership, communication systems,
health leadership, allying with leaders and groups. Besides initiating a tribal leadership to help in

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analyzing the cultural dimension of health (Waterworth, & Thorpe, 2017). In Te Mana
Whakahaere (anatomy), fitness can be promoted by internalizing the anatomy of self-
governance, relevant processes, control, sensible measure and indicators, and recognition of
group aspirations.
Conclusion
In conclusion, when considering health promotion in New Zealand, a few parameters
should be considered as opportunities. On the contrary, the health promotion forum has not
provided an opportunity. That is why, through this research, I have studied and come up with the
critical components of health promotion that helps to counter childhood obesity and how it has
been applied in Maori. Out of the extended studies and comparisons, the conference arranged the
preferred amicable ways of discussing the health promotion issues in New Zealand to create a
pathway to healthcare advancement and creating a free society that is obesity free.

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