Health Promotion

Book excerpt: `This book makes an important contribution to the growing literature in the health promotion arena, with its comprehensive coverage of contemporary philosophical, research and practice issues. The healthy public policy chapter provides the best treatment of this topic I have read' - Professor Maurice B Mittelmark, University of Bergen, Norway and President of the International Union of Health Promotion and Education `This book advances a fresh proposition, rather than rehashing the standard theories that we have read endless times... it sets out a "New Health Education", which has shaken off its victim blaming shackles, and focus on individual behaviour, to truly complement the aims of health promotion' - National Oral Health Promotion Group Journal `This book advances a fresh proposition, rather than rehashing the standard theories that we have read endless times... it sets out a "New Health Education", which has shaken off its victim blaming shackles, and focus on individual behaviour, to truly complement the aims of health promotion' `Keith Tones has, over the years, provided a solid theoretical framework for health promotion, with successive texts on the subject. This latest publication continues the trend, with a systematic layout and thorough review of health promotion issues... The text has a wide appeal to a wider audience, ranging from public health practitioners and health promotion specialists, to health and social care students at postgraduate level' - RCN Research Headlines 'Whether you area student exploring health promotion for the first time, or an experienced practitioner developing your knowledge, this text will provide you with a clear and comprehensive resource... this is not a heavy tome full of complex language; rather it is a very articulate examination of a wide range of aspects of health promotion, presented in a clear and easily understood way' - Journal of Community Nursing Health Promotion is written for all professionals who strive to improve the health of others. Beginning with a critical appraisal of the concept itself, the book outlines new models for defining `health promotion' and sets out the factors involved in planning health promotion programmes that work. The authors describe detailed strategies for action and show how these can be applied within a range of contexts and settings. In an attempt to bridge the gap that persists between ideological perspectives and practical implementations, they delve beyond the rhetoric of empowerment and show how it can be incorporated into practice. Focusing particularly on the synergistic relationship between policy and education, the book re-appraises the notion of health education - an idea which has become marginalised in recent years- and shows the fundamental importance of education in creating individual choice and generating effective advocacy for social change. The question of `evidence' is central to the text and the book concludes by examining methods of evaluation and the role it plays in creating more effective health promotion programmes.