HSCI 130 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Ottawa Charter For Health Promotion, Population Health, Homeostasis
19 Feb 2017
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HSCI 130 Lecture 2 Notes
Defining Health
● Because we spend so much money getting there, we should know what it is and help direct us
● Germanic roots-whole
● Old english-”haelth”-safe, sound, whole
● Soundness of body or mind
● (EQ) Health as…..
1. Normality:
Health ≠ illness; illness as deviation from normality
i) what is normal
ii) is normal always healthy?
iii) range?
2. Balance or Homeostasis
a) The idea that the natural state of the body is order AND
b) Body will heal itself-capacity to sustain equilibrium as a measure of health
i) Plato & Galen, First Nations, African, Indian, Chinese systems of medicine, role of the
host
3. Health as Function
a) Being able to do things
b) Being adapted to the environment
c) The ability to reach desired goals
d) Fitness
i) fitness for….? The activities of daily living?
ii) dis/ability?
● WHO says “health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the
absence of disease or infirmity”
○ State vs. process?
○ Complete
○ Expectations for care
○ Medical Dictionary says “the absence of disease” “the normal physical state, the
state of being free from mental and physical disease or pain, so that the parts of the body can
continue their functions”
○ Ottawa Charter: emphasized a positive definition of health
○ U of T Workshop on Mental Health: “positive sense of emotional, spiritual well-
being that respects the importance of equity, social justice, innerconnections”
● Health state: present health of an individual
● Health status: characteristic of being healthy/unhealthy; longer term attribute
● Personal health: the physical and psychological functioning of an individual, medical history, tests
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
● Population health: who is the population, comprehensive measurement of a range of issues
○ Information is collected from individuals, but the level of analysis is the population
○ Goals: maintain/improve health status of the entire population, reduce health
disparities
Self Reported Health
● “In general would you describe your health as…?
○ Excellent/Very Good/Good/Fair/Poor
● Most canadians say excellent/very good
● Minimal gender differences
● Self-reported health declines with age
● Predictor of health among older adults
Multiple Measures
● Assesses physical, psychological health
● Preventative health practices, smoking/drug/alcohol use, physical activity, leisure time activity, injury,
stress, self-esteem
● Health utility index: measures health of: Vision, Hearing, Speech, Mobility, Dexterity, Cognition, Emotion,
Pain & Discomfort
● The Canadian government keeps track of canadian health through surveys like the Canada Health
Survey (1978) & The Canada Sickness Study (1950)
● Domains of Health (Labonte, 1993)
○ A is Health/Wellness
○ B is Illness
○ C is a meh. Day, not feeling great
○ D is Illness + Disease = Sickness
○ E all 3
○ F is Disease
○ G is Diseased body, but feels Health/Wellness
Illness as a Subjective Experience
● Illness defined as perception of ill health, based on a person’s response to particular symptoms that
cannot be directly observed
○ Metaphors in descriptions (invader, fighter)
○ In illness, the body is often separated from self
○ Moral character judged by response to illness
○ Understanding cause is key
Illness Behaviour
● Other factors that influence perception of symptoms: gender, age, education. Occupation, health
status/previous experiences of the symptom, family lore, culture, how other people interpret the symptom
● Illness Iceberg:
○ We only see the top, people don’t go around constantly talking about how ill they
are, underlying mass of unwellness
● People look for causal explanations to make sense of their experiences of illness and disease
● Most see disease with specific cause or a combo of causes
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Because we spend so much money getting there, we should know what it is and help direct us. Soundness of body or mind (eq) health as . : normality: Who says health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity . Medical dictionary says the absence of disease the normal physical state, the state of being free from mental and physical disease or pain, so that the parts of the body can continue their functions . Ottawa charter: emphasized a positive definition of health. U of t workshop on mental health: positive sense of emotional, spiritual well- being that respects the importance of equity, social justice, innerconnections . Health state: present health of an individual. Health status: characteristic of being healthy/unhealthy; longer term attribute. Personal health: the physical and psychological functioning of an individual, medical history, tests. Population health: who is the population, comprehensive measurement of a range of issues.
