Principal of health education and its content
- 1. Principal of health education and its content Presented by- Dr.Himanshu Gorawat Dental surgeon
- 2. Content- Principal of health education- 1. interest 2. participation 3. Comprehension 4. Motivation 5. Reinforcement 6. Known to unknown 7. Learning by doing 8. Soil, seed & sower 9. Community leaders 10. Good human relations Contents of health education- 1. Human biology 2. Nutrition 3. Hygiene 4. Family health care 5. Control of communicable & noncommunicable diseases 6. Mental health 7. Prevention of accidents 8. Use of health services
- 3. 1. interest 2. participation 3. Comprehension 4. Motivation 5. Reinforcement 6. Known to unknown 7. Learning by doing 8. Soil, seed & sower 9. Community leaders 10. Good human relations Principal of health education
- 4. Interest- It is most important principle of health education . If the health education topic is of no interest to the people , they will not listen to it. The health educator should identify the “felt needs” of the people , i.e. those needs the people feel for themselves and the prepare a programme that they can actively participate in to make it successful . Comprehension- This is the principle that refers to the level of understanding and the level of literacy of the people who receives the health education . The health educator should first of determine the level literacy and understanding of the audience and act accordingly . The language used for communication should be understandable to the audience. participation – After interest of the people , the next principle is participation . The health educator should encourage people to participate in health education programmes . Once the people are given a chance to take part in the programme. Certain methods like group discussions , panel discussions etc. provide opportunities for people s participation. Motivation- Motivation can be defined as “the fundamental desire for learning in an individual”. Motives in life are two types- Primary motivation Secondary motivation
- 5. Primary motivation- in life are inborn desires and are forces, which drives an individual into action. Food , clothing and housing are examples of primary motives. Secondary motivation- are desires that are results of outside forces. Examples for secondary motives are gifts , love , a word of praise, rewards etc. Reinforcement- this is the principle that refers to the repetition needed in health education . It is not possible for the people to learn new things in a short period of time . So , repetition is a good idea. This can be done at regular intervals and it helps people to understand new idea or practices better . This principle can be called as a “booster dose” in health education. Known to unknown- this is an important principle of health education where the health educator has to start with what the people already know and then give them the new knowledge. Before the health education programme starts, the health educator has to find out how much the people know about that particular programme. The existing knowledge of the people can be used as the basic step upon which the new knowledge of the people can be used as the basic step upon which the new knowledge can be placed . The process of taking the people from what they know to what they do not know is a long one and results will take a long time.
- 6. Learning by doing- just by listening to new ideas or seeing new things , it might be difficult to implement them . If the learning process is accompanied by doing the new things , it is better instilled in the minds of the people . This principle is based on the famous Chinese proverb “ if I hear , I forget ; if I see, I remember ; if do , I know “. Soil, seed & sower- these three from the important components of any health education programme . All the components are interdependent and result in dynamic interaction . The people to whom health education is given can be compared to the soil , the health facts to be given can be compared to the seeds and the media used to transmit the facts can be compared to the sower. For any health education programme to be successful , all the three element should be carefully and satisfactorily selected. Community leaders- Community leaders play an important role in health education. The leaders can be used to reach the people of the and to convince them about the need for health education . The leader can also be used to educate the people , as they will have a rapport and familiarities with the people of their community . The leader should have an understating of the needs of the community, and advise and guided them and also should be able to answer all their doubts and quell their fears.
- 7. Good human relations- This principle states that the health educator should have good personal qualities and should be able to maintain friendly relations with the people. The health educator should have a kind and sympathetic attitude towards the people and should always be helpful to them in clarifying their doubts or repeating what is new to them .
- 8. 1. principle of cumulative learning- 2. principle of multiple target- 3. principle of aggregating educational target- 4. principle of participation- 5. principle of situational specificity- 6. principle of intermediate target- 7. principle of multiple methods- 8. principle of diversity- 9. principle of health promotion- 10.principle of administration- 11.the media for communication- Green and Anderson have outlined principles for health education which are as follows:
- 9. Human biology Nutrition Hygiene Family health care Control of communicable & noncommunicable diseases Mental health Prevention of accidents Use of health services Contents of health education
- 10. Human biology- Teaching of human biology starts from the kinder garten itself. The children are taught about the parts of human body, and their functions . They are also taught the importance of good health and methods to keep physically fit. Teaching is also directed towards the need for exercise, adequate rest and sleep information is also provided about the adverse habits like smoking , use of alcohol , methods of first- aid etc. Nutrition- The eight WHO expert committee on nutrition stated that “education in nutrition is a major strategic method for the prevention of malnutrition”. The people should be taught about the nutrient value of foodstuffs , their methods of preparation and the methods of storage. The main aim of including nutrition as a content of health education is to help people choose optimum and balanced diets, which contain all the necessary nutrient, for optimal health. Hygiene- This constitutes another important content of health education. The people are taught about the important of hygiene and methods of marinating hygiene . The teaching of hygiene has two aspects-
- 11. personal hygiene – the aim is to promote good standard of personal cleanliness within the surroundings where the people live. Measure of basic hygiene are taught here lie bathing , washing ,grooming etc. Environmental hygiene- this comprises of two aspects – domestic and community. the domestic hygiene includes keeping the house and its surrounding clean , proper ventilation , adequate light and fresh air , proper disposal of waste materials avoidance of pests, insects etc. Community hygiene includes the care of the surroundings ensuring proper garbage disposal adequate sewage and drainage. Family health care- The people have to be taught about the importance of family health care . The main aim here is to strengthen and improve the health of the family as a unit rather than as an individual . Current family health care programmes are getting widespread attention especially in the filed of maternal and child health care , family planning , immunization , nutrition and other health related activities.
- 12. Control of communicable & noncommunicable diseases- people have to be taught about the widespread communicable and non- communicable disease. The aim is to provide elementary knowledge about the nature of the diseases and methods of preventing them . They have to be encouraged to participate in disease control programmes so that they can be better understand disease prevention , common signs and symptoms of disease thereby promoting health . Mental health- psychological problems like depression neurosis , mental anxiety and emotional disturbance are found to be increasing ,. The aim in including mental health as a content of health education is to provide basic knowledge of common psychological ailments, its detection , methods of prevention and treatment . This also helps to remove prejudices and misconceptions [prevalent in both the dental profession and populace. Prevention of accidents – accident have become a major feature of modern human life. The people have to be taught about basic safety rules and prevent. Common accidents, which takes place in their homes, in heir work place or on the road . Health education programmes can be conducted on safety measure to be adopted in factories , following proper traffic rules, prevention of fire etc.
- 13. Use of health services- this is one of the main aims of health education. The people have to be informed about the various health services and preventive programmes available to them . They have to be educated on the proper use of these services. The community should always be encouraged to participate in any health education programmes and preventive programmes.
- 14. Reference- Essential of preventive and community dentistry – soben peter (3rd edition)