43 research outputs found
Hunting for health, well-being, and quality of life
Health, well-being, quality of life, and lifestyle are central concepts within health science, although generally accepted definitions are still lacking. Lifestyle can either be seen as an independent variable and the cause of unhealthy behaviour or as a dependent variable, which is affected by conditions in the society. In the first case, the attention is directed on each individual case: maintaining or improving health requires changes in lifestyle and living habits. In this perspective, diet and physical activity are important features for health promotion. In the second case the attention is rather directed on structural conditions in society, for example the food industry, the lunches for children at school, and the âfast foodâ industry should be influenced to protect human health. The structural perspective has, so far, received restricted impact when it concerns prevention and promotion of health. Processes of individualisation in the society have to an increasing extent viewed health as an affair for the individual. The benefits of physical activity, healthy food and beverage, social support, and joy are documented scientifically. In general, the trend towards increasing responsibility for one's lifestyle and health is positive, but might reinforce the inequality in health. With an even harder climate in society there might be a risk that individual health projects undermine the solidarity and the will to accept costs for medical treatment and care for people who risk their health through an unhealthy and risk-taking lifestyle. However, we argue that peoplesâ well-being and quality of life presupposes a society that stands up for all people
Health promoting settings in primary health care - "hÀlsotorg": an implementation analysis
Background
Sweden, like many other western countries, faces increasing rates of lifestyle
related diseases and corresponding rise in costs for health care. To meet these
challenges, a number of efforts have been introduced at different societal
levels. One such effort is "HĂ€lsotorg" (HS). HS is a new health promotion
setting that emerged in collaboration between the Swedish County Councils and
Apoteket AB, a state-owned pharmacy company. HS's overall aim was to improve
population health and facilitate inhabitants' responsibility for self-care. A
new National Public Health Policy, introduced in 2008, emphasizes more focus on
individual's needs and responsibility as well as strong need for county
councils to provide supportive environment for individual-centred health
services and increased health literacy among the population. In light of this
policy, there is a need to examine existing settings that can provide
supportive environment for individuals at community level. The aim of this
study was to explore HS's policy implementation at local level and analyse HS's
activities, in order to provide a deeper understanding of HS's potential as a
health promoting setting.
Methods
Materials included a survey and key documents related to the development and
nature of HS on local and national levels. A policy analysis inspired by Walt
and Gilson was used in data analysis. In addition, an analysis using the
principles of health promotion in relation to HS policy process and activities
was also carried out.
Results
The analysis illuminated strengths and weaknesses in the policy process, its
actors, contextual factors and activities. The health communication approach in
the analysed documents contained health promoting intentions but the health
promoting approach corresponding to a health promoting setting was neither
apparent nor shared among the stakeholders. This influenced the interpretation
and implementation of HS negatively.
Conclusions
The analysis indicates that HS has potential to be a valuable health promotion
setting for both population and individuals, given the strong intentions for a
health and empowerment building approach that is expressed in the documents.
However, for a more sustainable implementation of HS, there is need for an in-
depth understanding of the health promotion approach among HS stakeholders
Molecular medicine and concepts of disease: the ethical value of a conceptual analysis of emerging biomedical technologies
Although it is now generally acknowledged that new biomedical technologies often produce new definitions and sometimes even new concepts of disease, this observation is rarely used in research that anticipates potential ethical issues in emerging technologies. This article argues that it is useful to start with an analysis of implied concepts of disease when anticipating ethical issues of biomedical technologies. It shows, moreover, that it is possible to do so at an early stage, i.e. when a technology is only just emerging. The specific case analysed here is that of âmolecular medicineâ. This group of emerging technologies combines a âcascade modelâ of disease processes with a âpersonal patternâ model of bodily functioning. Whereas the ethical implications of the first are partly familiar from earlierâalbeit controversialâforms of preventive and predictive medicine, those of the second are quite novel and potentially far-reaching
Behavior Change or Empowerment: On the Ethics of Health-Promotion Strategies
There are several strategies to promote health in individuals and populations. Two general approaches to health promotion are behavior change and empowerment. The aim of this article is to present those two kinds of strategies, and show that the behavior change approach has some moral problems, problems that the empowerment approach (on the whole) is better at handling. Two distinct âideal typesâ of these practices are presented and scrutinized. Behavior-change interventions use various kinds of theory to target peopleâs behavior, which they do through information, persuasion, coercion and manipulation. Empowerment is a collaborative method where those âfacilitatedâ participate in the change process. Some ethical problems with the behavior change model are that it does not sufficiently respect the right to autonomy of the individuals involved, and that it risks reducing their ability for autonomy of the individuals involved and risks increasing health inequalities. Empowerment, on the other hand, respects the participantâs right to autonomy, tends to increase the ability for autonomy, as well as increasing other coping skills, and is likely to reduce inequalities. A drawback with the method is that it often takes longer to realize