Health promotion essay sample

Our willingness to seek help from a health care provider or abandon bad habits depends on such factors as awareness of the health hazards and the belief that a certain behavior will reduce this threat. Health belief model explains the reluctance of many young people to follow the rules of behavior that reduce the risks of serious illness or accident. They simply do not believe the threat is real; thus, do not want to change their behavior. For the same reason, many older people do not abandon bad habits, such as smoking because they do not believe that this will greatly reduce the threat to their wellbeing. The prevention of high-risk behavior is to prevent negative behavior, and the best way to change person’s behavior is his/her own evaluation of the problem and the desire to change this behavior. As a result, health professionals are being encouraged to target patients’ attitudes and beliefs to improve lifestyle choices.

Nursing, with its unique contributions to health care, represents a professional resource that can help facilitate these changes through health education strategies (Edelman, Kudzma, & Mandle, 2014, p. 215). In order to encourage a patient to make immediate and permanent behavior changes, the nurse must determine individual’s perception and understanding of the problem that affects the recovery. The patient must recognize that there is an issue and it has to be addressed, needs to have motivations to learn and overcome possible barriers, and be ready and open for changes that will take place in order to trigger the health-promoting behavior. The most fundamental aspects for the patient are the willingness and readiness to participate and as for the nurse is to formulate individual plan in assisting the patient to achieve the goals of lifestyle changes.

It is the degree of risk and the ability to determine its level allows a person and the nurse to balance and make the right decisions. Once the information is gathered, the nurse can create strategies on how to best provide teaching and better assist the patient in learning. Taking into consideration the characteristics of the population (developmental stage, age, and knowledge of the topic), the nurse selects teaching methods that best support the goals and theme of the educational program (Edelman, Kudzma, & Mandle, 2014, p. 225). Also, for the teaching method to be effective, the approach must be individual with different techniques such as written, verbal, and demonstrational, for positive feedback where the patient verbalizes and shows understanding for the nurse to evaluate and validate further strategies.

Reference
Edelman, C. L., Kudzma, E. C., & Mandle, C. L. (2014). Health Promotion Throughout the Life Span (8th Ed.). Retrieved from E-book-Pageburstls/Elsevier