Health Promotion
Capability Statement (Dec 2005)
The School of Public Health and Community Medicine has a strong commitment to the promotion of health through most facets of its work. The School regards health promotion as an essential part of public health/population health policy and practice and consequently ensures that this content area is integrated through the teaching, research and service programs of the School.
Specific health promotion activity is undertaken in the following areas:
- Teaching
Within the postgraduate educational programs offered by the School, Health Promotion is a core course for the Master Degree of Public Health. A recent innovation is the opportunity for students to major in health promotion topics through undertaking the Master of Public Health in Health Promotion (see the SPHCM Postgraduate Student Handbook for details). Relevant electives in the general topic area include Community Development, Inequalities in Health, Qualitative Research Methods, Critical Debates in Health Sociology , among others. In addition, School staff members are contributing health promotion perspectives to the newly developing undergraduate medical curriculum which commenced in 2004. Health promotion workshops, seminars and short courses on discrete aspects of the topic are offered when required. An example of the latter is the recently offered short course on the topic of Globalisation and Health.
- Research
Health promotion research at the School focuses on two facets of the study of health promotion. The first approaches from a behavioural epidemiology view in researching risk factors, health and disease determinants, and trends in lifestyle behaviour patterns through quantitative research methods. The second focuses on studies that investigate community development approaches, socio-ecological contexts and policy changes for health. Here qualitative research methods and participatory action research techniques are particular strengths. An innovative perspective taken recently by the SPHCM is researching the role of health as a peace-building mechanism in countries that have suffered conflict or disasters. Research Masters and PhD students conducting a wide range of health promotion research projects are supervised by faculty members of the School.
- Service
The School works closely with government departments at federal, state and local levels, with non-government organisations such as the Cancer Council and the National Heart Foundation, and with community organisations and patient action groups. Staff members actively contribute to health promotion projects in countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
- Partnerships : National
Increasingly, partnerships are being developed with other groups to better promote health. The School works very closely with UNSW centres to achieve its goals. Close working relationships exist with the Centre for Equity and Primary Health Care, the National Centre for HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research, the Centre for HIV Social Research, the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, the Injury Risk Management Research Centre and the Institute of Environmental Studies.
- Partnerships : International
The School is actively engaged with the International Union for Health Promotion and Education (IUHPE). The School is host to the IUHPE Regional Bureau, is engaged in projects in development under the IUHPE’s Global Program on Health Promotion Effectiveness, and two staff members are on the IUHPE’s Regional and Global Board of Trustees. Faculty members also actively collaborate with WHO’s regional offices and represent Australia in conferences such as WHO’s recent 6th Global Conference on Health Promotion, contributing to the Bangkok Charter for Health Promotion (August 2005).
Faculty members are also active in health promotion activities of the Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium of Public Health.
For further information contact:
Anne Bunde-Birouste
Course convenor