Health Education

• Health education involves the communication of information about knowledge, skills, and values of society to each succeeding generation
• The purpose of health education is to help individuals acquire the intellect and practical methods to function effectively in society
• Teaching is the process of stimulating the brain, organizing data, guiding, and managing learning activities towards effecting desirable changes in behavior
• Learning is a mental activity through which knowledge, skills, habits, attitudes, ideas, and appreciation are acquired, retained, and utilized in the progressive adaptation and modification of behavior
• Health education is a process whereby learning situations and experiences are created to influence individuals to change their undesirable attitudes and knowledge for the improvement of personal, family, and community health
• Health promotion is the process of increasing the level of well-being and self-actualization of individuals or groups, which includes health education, identification and reduction of health risks, empowerment, advocacy, preventive health care, and health policy development
• Health literacy implies achieving a level of knowledge, personal skills, and confidence to take action to improve personal and community health by changing personal lifestyles and living conditions
• Patient teaching is one aspect of the teaching-learning process that ensures the safe transfer of care responsibility to the patient
• Barriers to change in health education can include cultural barriers, social barriers, psychological barriers, and language difficulties
• Learning is unique and individualized, not directly observable
• A person learned when there is a change in the behavior
• Health education involves giving information and teaching individuals, and communities

  how to better achieve health activities which raise an individual’s

  awareness, giving the individual health knowledge required to enable

  him or her to decide on a particular health action.
• Health education are activities that seek to inform the individual on the nature and causes of

  health/illness and individual’s personal level of rik associated with their

  lifestyle behavior (Whitehead, 2004)
• Aspects of Health Education:

  1. Information
  2. Communication
• Information is provision of confirmation about health to people
• Communication is how information is provided or disseminated
• Purpose and Categories of Health Education:

  1. Promote health - Primary
  2. Prevent disease - Secondary
  3. Preserve health - Tertiary
• Health promotion is Identification and reduction of health risks
• health literacy is critical to empowerment
• Dimensions/Elements of the Teaching-Learning Process:

  • Teaching Objectives and Learning Needs:
  • Identify what the patient needs to know/learn
  • Consider the patient's interests to adjust the teaching approach
  • Objectives should be timely and relevant
  • Teaching-Learning Process:
  • Involves an exchange of information
  • Important to gather feedback from the patient
  • Instructional Content:
  • Tailored based on timeframe, learning needs, and capabilities of the patient
  • Teaching Strategies:
  • Flexibility in strategies based on the patient's capabilities
  • External Conditions:
  • Surroundings can impact the patient's health
  • Inter-Intra Personal Relationships:
  • Involve people in the patient's life
  • Influence and motivate caregivers
  • Outcome of Health Education Process:
  • Evaluate if the teaching objectives were achieved
• Outcomes of Health Education Process:

  1. Cognition Change
  2. Attitude Change
  3. Behavior Change
• Cognition change is the knowledge or perception of a person or group (how they think)
• Attitude change is beliefs, predisposition, intentions, and tendencies (How you present yourself/react to a certain topic)
• BEHAVIOR CHANGE

  • individual/group practice

  • the change will be more on the way that you move

  • long-term change compared to attitude change
• 4 PROCESSES THAT DETERMINE THE EXTENT TO WHICH A PERSON MAY BE PERSUADED TO CHANGE

  • ATTENTION

  o Be a role model to the patient

  o Practice what you preach

  • COMPREHENSION

  o Does the patient understand you?

  o Give them what they need to change and tell them why so they can think about it

  • ACCEPTANCE

  o Give them a reason to change and accept

  • RETENTION

  o What the patient remembers from what was taught

  o Repeat what was taught and conduct a follow up if they remember something