Community Health Public Health,

Wellness, Community
Empowerment, Components and
Dynamics
Development,Measurement
Development
GRNU 225

SHANTA S. QUIMBA., RN .,USRN

Reporter
 VIDEO
PRESENTATION
 Community
A group of people, often living in a defined geographical
area, who may share a common culture, values and norms,
and are arranged in a social structure according to
relationships which the community has developed over a
period of time. Members of a community gain their
personal and social identity by sharing common beliefs,
values and norms which have been developed by the
community in the past and may be modified in the future.
They exhibit some awareness of their identity as a group,
and share common needs and a commitment to meeting
them.-WHO
 HEALTH
The state of complete physical, mental, and social well-
being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
Health has many dimensions (anatomical, physiological and
mental) and is largely culturally defined. WHO
 WELLNESS
Wellness is an active, lifelong process of
becoming aware of choices and making
decisions toward a more balanced and
fulfilling life. Wellness involves choices about
our lives and our priorities that determine
our lifestyles. The wellness concept at ASU
is centered on connections and the idea that
the mind, body, spirit and community are all
interrelated and interdependent- Arizona
State Uninversity
 DEVELOPMENT
It is defined as economic growth and structural changes. It is
also considered as a process and as a state. All countries have
the desire to move from their present level to the next higher
level of development.
To be able to do this, it is necessary to analyse the six sets or
categories of conditions considered as making up the social
system of a country namely :
1.INCOME OR OUTPUT,
2.CONDITIONS OF PRODUCTIONS,
3.LEVELS OF LIVING,
4.ATTITUDES,
5.INSTITUTIONAL CONDITIONS AND
6. POLICIES.
 DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH
The health of the individuals and communities are ,to a
large extent affected by a combination of many factors.
A persons health is determined by his circumstances
and environment.
It is inappropriate therefore to blame or credits the
persons state of health to himself alone because he is
unlikely able to directly control many of these factors
however, knowledge of these factors is important in
order to effectively promote health and prevent
illnesses. It is also important to note that in
understanding the multidimensional nature of health,
the public health nurse will now be in better position to
plan and implement health promoting interventions for
individuals and communities
 THESE FACTORS OR THINGS THAT MAKE PEOPLE
HEALTHY OR NOT, KNOWN AS DETERMINANTS OF
HEALTH ARE LISTED BY THE WHO
1. Income and social status
2.Education
3. Physical environment
4. Employment and working conditions
5. Social Support networks
6.Culture
7. Genetics
8. Personal Behaviour and coping skills
9. Health Services
10. Gender
DETERMINANTS OF WELLNESS
 COMMUNITY HEALTH
Part of paramedical and medical
intervention/approach which is concerned on the
health of the whole population
Aims:

Health promotion
Disease prevention
Management of factors affecting health
 PUBLIC HEALTH
Public Health is directed towards assisting every citizen to
realize his birth rights and longevity. The science and art of
preventing disease, prolonging life and efficiency through
organized community effort for:
The sanitation of the environment
The control of communicable infections
The education of the individual in personal hygiene
The organization of medical and nursing services for the
early diagnosis and preventive treatment of disease
The development of a social machinery to ensure every one
a standard of living, adequate for maintenance of health to
enable every citizen to realize his birth right of health and
longevity (Dr. C.E Winslow)
 COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT
Community empowerment refers to the process of enabling communities to
increase control over their lives. "COMMUNITIES" are groups of people that
may or may not be spatially connected, but who share common interests,
concerns or identities. These communities could be local, national or
international, with specific or broad interests. 'EMPOWERMENT' refers to the
process by which people gain control over the factors and decisions that
shape their lives. It is the process by which they increase their assets and
attributes and build capacities to gain access, partners, networks and/or a
voice, in order to gain control. "Enabling" implies that people cannot "be
empowered" by others; they can only empower themselves by acquiring
more of power's different forms (Laverack, 2008). It assumes that people are
their own assets, and the role of the external agent is to catalyse, facilitate or
"accompany" the community in acquiring power.
 Community empowerment, therefore, is more than the
involvement, participation or engagement of communities.
It implies community ownership and action that explicitly
aims at social and political change.
Community empowerment is a process of re-negotiating
power in order to gain more control. It recognizes that if
some people are going to be empowered, then others will
be sharing their existing power and giving some of it up
(Baum, 2008). Power is a central concept in community
empowerment and health promotion invariably operates
within the arena of a power struggle.
Community empowerment necessarily addresses the
social, cultural, political and economic determinants that
underpin health, and seeks to build partnerships with
other sectors in finding solutions.
Communication plays a vital role in
ensuring community empowerment. Participatory
approaches in communication that encourage
discussion and debate result in increased
knowledge and awareness, and a higher level of
critical thinking. Critical thinking enables
communities to understand the interplay of forces
operating on their lives, and helps them take their
own decisions.
 COMPONENTS AND
DYNAMICS OF DEVELOPMENT
A national administration is primarily concerned
with the forward movement of the national
socio economic system. This system can be
viewed as consisting of a number of conditions
that are casually interrelated in that change in
one will cause changes in the others.
The national administration expresses its
concern through a series of well coordinated
policies which are designed to ensure the full
participation of the different sectors of the
economy in affecting positive changes.
 Output and income from the economic standpoint,
the most important characteristic of the
development state is the level of the average
output per worker in the economy and
consequently of the per capita national income.
Conditions of production this feature deals wtih
the techniques and methods
of production and capital.
Levels of living society can succeed in its
developmental effort only if a certain minimum
level of living can be assured for as many people as
possible
 Attitude towards life and work in the absence of
motivation, development cannot occur motivation
issues from an individuals aspiration for
improvement and crystallizes in the population of a
country as political will expressed through national
leadership.
Institutional Conditions in popular terms,
institutions are customary ways of living or
customary ways of society in getting things done.
Policies in the absence of governmental
intervention, the national community, as a result of
the interaction of the first five features mentioned
above, may stagnate, develop to a higher level or
regress to a lower level
MEASUREMENT OF DEVELOPMENT
Measurement of levels of development may be done through the
use of two sets of indicators: ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL. These
corresponds to its two components, growth and structural changes.
ECONOMIC COMPONENTS
The foremost measurement, which we considered as an aggregate
measure of development is the gross national product. It comprises
the value of all final goods and services produced annually the
components of which are weighted at market prices. It includes
earnings/ remittances from abroad. The indicator is called gross
domestic product (GDP) if earnings from abroad are excluded.
VIDEO PRESENTATION
 SOCIAL COMPONENT
-The United Nations Statistical Commision has suggested nine major
components of a satisfactory index of level living which maybe
regarded as a measure of development. Levels of living refer to the
real conditions of living of the population and should be confused
with the standard of living which refers to the living condition which
people seek to attain or which they regard as fitting and proper for
themselves
-Norms living on the other hand refers to conditions considered as
adequate as desirable conditions of living for specific purposes
arrived at by national and international agreement.