health AOS 2 topic 7

• Health promotion


  The process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health
• Targets of health promotion in Australia

  • Smoking
• Why smoking is targeted

  • Smoking kills an estimated 15000 Australians and costs Australia $31.5 billion in social and economic costs each year
  • Smoking impacts vulnerable population groups such as Indigenous Australians and those living outside Australia's major cities disproportionately
  • Those in the lowest SES groups having smoking rates more than two times higher than the highest SES group
  • Half of all long term smokers will die from a smoking related cause
  • Exposure to tobacco smoke (passive smoking) also causes disease and premature death in adults and children who don't smoke
• The big 5 reasons why smoking is targeted

  • Mortality
  • Modifiable
  • Costs
  • Vulnerable groups
  • Passive smoking
• Effectiveness of health promotion in promoting population health

  1. Government laws and policies

  2. National Tobacco campaigns

  3. Quit Campaigns
• Government laws and policies

  • Increased taxation on tobacco and the resulting higher price of tobacco is associated with lower prevalence of smoking among all population groups
  • Laws banning smoking in pubs and clubs have been shown to have a bigger impact on lower socioeconomic status (SES) populations, with reductions in consumption reported by 40 per cent of smokers
  • Federal law bans smoking in all Australian Commonwealth Government buildings, on public transport, in airports and on all international and domestic flights
• Government laws and policies (continued)

  • Further bans are in place but are governed by individual states and territories
  • All Australian states and territories have banned smoking in enclosed public places, particularly workplaces and restaurants
  • From 1 April 2014, smoking was banned at areas commonly used by children and young people for recreational and sporting activities
  • Since January 2010, it has been an offence to smoke in a vehicle where there is a person under the age of 18 present
  • A ban on smoking in government school grounds became effective in July 2009
  • A restriction on smoking in enclosed public places has been in effect since July 2007
  • In 2006 smoking was banned in covered areas of train station platforms, tram stops and bus stops
• National tobacco campaigns


  • Highly emotional anti-smoking advertisements are perceived as being more effective. They influence smoking beliefs and increase quit attempts
  • People in low SES groups are particularly responsive to emotional or personal testimonial advertisements
• My Quit Buddy


  • A free smartphone app that provides feedback to users enabling them to track how many cigarettes they haven't smoked, how many grams of tar they've not inhaled, how much money they've saved each day and how many days they've been smoke free
  • Creates a supportive environment by allowing users to record personal goals and motivation using pictures, words and audio messages
  • Allows users to program danger times at which the app will send reminders of the health and wellbeing benefits of quitting
  • Games are provided to play during times of craving to provide a distraction
  • Allows the user to share their quit journey and success stories with others on Facebook and Twitter
• Quit campaigns


  • Public education using mass media advertising campaigns, public relations and downloadable information on its website
  • Quitline is a telephone service that people can use to receive qualified and individually tailored advice to influence behaviour change to quit smoking
  • Aboriginal Quitline is a telephone helpline service that provides advice and behaviour change support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who would like to quit smoking
  • Online support is also available in Victoria through QuitCoach and QuitText on the Quit website
  • Quit undertakes research and provides advice to the state government to implement healthy public policies
  • Quit provides a free online learning training program for health professionals
• Government laws and policies

  Build Healthy Public Policy
• Banning smoking in public places

  Create Supportive Environments
• Banning the display of tobacco products at point of sale locations

  Create Supportive Environments
• Banning smoking in a vehicle with a person under 18 present

  Create Supportive Environments
• Banning smoking in covered areas e.g. train platforms

  Create Supportive Environments
• Highly emotional anti-smoking advertisements are perceived as being more effective. They influence smoking beliefs and increase quit attempts.
• People in low SES groups are particularly responsive to emotional or personal testimonial advertisements.
• My QuitBuddy (free smartphone app)

  The app provides feedback to users enabling them to track how many cigarettes they haven't smoked, how many grams of tar they've not inhaled, how much money they've saved each day and how many days they've been smoke free.
• My QuitBuddy


  • Creates a supportive environment by allowing users to record personal goals and motivation using pictures, words and audio messages.
  • Allows users to program danger times at which the app will send reminders of the health and wellbeing benefits of quitting
  • Games are provided to play during times of craving to provide a distraction.
  • Allows the user to share their quit journey and success stories with others on Facebook and Twitter
• Action areas of the Ottawa charter


  1. Develop personal skills- by providing information on reducing the risk of smoking related diseases

  2. Create supportive environments- recording personal goals, motivating messages, community board where they can share with thousands of others quitting. Games to play and distractions. Sharing on facebook and twitter.

  3. Strengthens community action by providing support network of people quitting across different states and territories- users can access in their location
• Quit campaigns are run in each state and territory, sometimes as a joint venture between the state or territory government and the Cancer Council for the respective state or territory, although other organisations may be involved.
• Quit Victoria is a program of the Cancer Council Victoria, which is funded by the Victorian Government and VicHealth.
• Quit campaigns


  Public education using mass media advertising campaigns, public relations and downloadable information on its website.
• Quitline


  A telephone service that people can use to receive qualified and individually tailored advice to influence behaviour change to quit smoking
• Aboriginal Quitline


  A telephone helpline service that provides advice and behaviour change support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who would like to quit smoking.
• QuitCoach and QuitText


  Online support is also available in Victoria through QuitCoach and QuitText on the Quit website. Both QuitText and QuitCoach are provided free of charge to Victorians, while Quitline is available for the cost of a telephone call
• Quit Victoria website


  Provides a range of materials to assist smokers in recognising reasons to quit, preparing to quit, staying smoke free and managing setbacks.
• Quit undertakes research and provides advice to the state government to implement healthy public policies


  1. Quit provides a free online learning training program for health professionals.

  2. Quit Victoria's Smoking Cessation Essentials course and Smoking Cessation Brief Intervention videos provide health professionals with knowledge and skills to: highlight the important role of health professionals and the effectiveness of smoking cessation interventions, inform of the effects of smoking and the benefits to patients/clients in quitting, provide an understanding of smoking behaviour, help health professionals carry out brief smoking cessation interventions and assist them to help smokers quit in individual settings, provide information about Quit Victoria's support services for smokers and how Quit can support the health professionals in assisting their patients/clients.
• Action areas of the Ottawa charter


  • Strengthens community action
  • Building healthy public policy
  • Reorient Health Services
  • Develop personal skills
  • Create supportive environments
• In March 2008, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), which includes Australian, state, territory and local government representatives, along with Indigenous leaders, agreed 'to work together to achieve equality in health status and life expectancy between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians by the year 2030'. This commitment is known as 'Closing the Gap'
• COAG has committed $4.6 billion.
• Targets of the 'Closing the Gap' initiative

  • Close the gap in life expectancy within a generation
  • Halve the gap in mortality rates for Indigenous children under five within a decade
  • Ensure all Indigenous four-years-olds in remote communities have access to early childhood education within five years
  • Halve the gap for Indigenous students in reading, writing and numeracy within a decade
  • Halve the gap for Indigenous students in year 12 attainment or equivalent attainment rates by 2020
  • Halve the gap in employment outcomes between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians within a decade.
• 'Nairm Marr Djambana' (By The Bay)


  A program aiming to create a safe and accessible space for the Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander community of Frankston to participate in social, cultural and recreational activities to improve their health and wellbeing.
• They have a range of programs which are targeted to specific groups within the community such as youth group, womens group, mens group.
• The cooking workshop included in the 'By the Bay' program

  Teaches participants how to use fresh, healthy ingredients to prepare nutritious meals, by receiving adequate nutrition this can assist in maintaining adequate energy levels, promoting physical health and wellbeing.
• The youth group in the 'By the Bay' program


  Gives people aged 12-19 a space where they can meet and talk about issues such as mental health, this could encourage people to gain a supportive network of friends, promoting social health and wellbeing.
• Action areas of the Ottawa Charter reflected in the 'By the Bay' program


  1. Develop personal skills- participants are involved in activities such as 'life skills workshops and computer courses', giving them skills to improve health.

  2. Create Supportive Environments- the community garden involves creating 'walking trails', providing a physical environment that promotes physical activity.
• The 'Care For The Kid's Ears' initiative provides information in 22 indigenous languages, making the key health ear information accessible to those who may struggle with a language barrier.
• 91% of aboriginal and torres straight islander children in a rural community present with this type of ear infection.
• As a result of this program, four in ten mothers were able to identify the campaign and have an increased knowledge on symptoms and prevention, therefore improving their physical health and wellbeing by decreasing cases of this illness.