The Health Education

Friday, September 5, 2014

Influential Individuals in Health Education: Past and Present

Dorothy Bird Nyswander
Dr. Nyswander was born September 29, 1894. She earned her Bachelor's and Master's degree at the University of Nevada and received her Doctorate in educational psychology at Berkeley. She is a founder of the School of Public Health at the University of California at Berkeley. Dr. Nysawnder pursued her interest in public health at the Works Progress Administration during the depression. She served with the Federal Works Agency contributing to the establishment of nursery schools and child care centers to accommodate young mothers working in defense plants. She set up these centers in 15 northeastern states. This did not happen quickly so she advocated all over the nation to train people to act as foster parents for the children of working women. Dr. Nyswander became the director of the City health Center in Astoria, Queens in 1939. She spent her time as director promoting the idea of New York City keeping an eye on the health of children. They would do this by keeping records that would follow them to whatever school they might move to. She wrote "Solving School Health Problems" which is an analysis of the health issues in New York children. This is still used in public health education courses today.

National Organizations for Public Health/Health Education

American Public Health Association (APHA) APHA is the main voice for public health advocacy that is the oldest organization of public health sine 1872. The American Public Health Association aims to “protect all Americans and their communities from preventable, serious health threats and strives to assure community-based health promotion and disease preventions.” Any individual can become a member and benefit in online access and monthly printed issues of The Nation’s Health and the American Journal of Public Health
Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) The mission of SOPHE is to provide global leadership to the profession of health education and health promotion and to promote the health of society through advances in health education theory and research, excellence in professional preparation and practice, and advocacy for public policies conducive to health, and the achievement of health equity for all. Membership is open to all who have an interest in health education and or work in health education in schools, medical care settings, worksites, community based organizations, state/local government, and international agencies. Founded in 1950, SOPHE publishes 2 indexed, peer-reviewed journals, Health Education & Behavior and Health Promotion Practice.
American School Health Association (ASHA) The American School Health Association was founded in 1972 by a group of physicians that already belonged to the American Public Health Association. This group specializes in school-aged health specifically. Over the years it has snowballed and now includes any person that can be a part of a child’s life, from dentists, to counselors and school nurses. The American School Health Association mission “is to protect and promote the health of children and youth by supporting coordinated school health programs as a foundation for school success."
American Association of Health Education/American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (AAHE/AAHPERD) The AAHE/AAHPERD is said to be the largest organization of professionals that supports physical education; which includes leisure, fitness, dance, and health promotion. That is only a few; this incorporates all that is physical movement. This organization is an alliance with five national associations and six districts and is there to provide a comprehensive and coordinated array of resources to help support practitioners to improve their skills and always be learning new things. This organization was first stated in November 1885. William Gilbert Anderson had been out of medical school for two years and was working with many other people that were in the gymnastic field. He wanted them to get together to discuss their field and this organization was created. Today AAHPERD serves 25,000 members and has its headquarters in Reston, Virginia

Health Education Code of Ethics Full Text

PREAMBLE The Health Education profession is dedicated to excellence in the practice of promoting individual, family, organizational, and community health. The Code of Ethics provides a framework of shared values within which Health Education is practiced. The responsibility of each Health Educator is to aspire to the highest possible standards of conduct and to encourage the ethical behavior of all those with whom they work.
Article I: Responsibility to the Public A Health Educator’s ultimate responsibility is to educate people for the purpose of promoting, maintaining, and improving individual, family, and community health. When a conflict of issues arises among individuals, groups, organizations, agencies, or institutions, health educators must consider all issues and give priority to those that promote wellness and quality of living through principles of self-determination and freedom of choice for the individual.
Article II: Responsibility to the Profession Health Educators are responsible for their professional behavior, for the reputation of their profession, and for promoting ethical conduct among their colleagues.
Article III: Responsibility to Employers Health Educators recognize the boundaries of their professional competence and are accountable for their professional activities and actions.
Article IV: Responsibility in the Delivery of Health Education Health Educators promote integrity in the delivery of health education. They respect the rights, dignity, confidentiality, and worth of all people by adapting strategies and methods to the needs of diverse populations and communities.
Article V: Responsibility in Research and Evaluation Health Educators contribute to the health of the population and to the profession through research and evaluation activities. When planning and conducting research or evaluation, health educators do so in accordance with federal and state laws and regulations, organizational and institutional policies, and professional standards.
Article VI: Responsibility in Professional Preparation Those involved in the preparation and training of Health Educators have an obligation to accord learners the same respect and treatment given other groups by providing quality education that benefits the profession and the public

Health Education Code of Ethics

The Health Education Code of Ethics has been a work in progress since approximately 1976, begun by the Society of Public Health Education (SOPHE). Various Public Health and Health Education organizations such as the American Association of Health Education (AAHE), the Coalition of National Health Education Organizations (CNHEO), SOPHE, and others collaborated year after year to devise a unified standard of ethics that health educators would be held accountable to professionally. In 1995, the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing, Inc. (NCHEC) proposed a profession-wide standard at the conference: Health Education Profession in the Twenty-First Century: Setting the Stage. Post-conference, an ethics task force was developed with the purpose of solidifying and unifying proposed ethical standards. The document was eventually unanimously approved and ratified by all involved organizations in November 1999 and has since then been used as the standard for practicing health educators.
"The Code of Ethics that has evolved from this long and arduous process is not seen as a completed project. Rather, it is envisioned as a living document that will continue to evolve as the practice of Health Education changes to meet the challenges of the new millennium.

National Health Education Standards

The National Health Education Standards (NHES) are written expectations for what students should know and be able to do by grades 2, 5, 8, and 12 to promote personal, family, and community health. The standards provide a framework for curriculum development and selection, instruction, and student assessment in health education. The performance indicators articulate specifically what students should know or be able to do in support of each standard by the conclusion of each of the following grade spans: Pre-K–Grade 12. The performance indicators serve as a blueprint for organizing student assessment

Teaching

In the United States some forty states require the teaching of health education. A comprehensive health education curriculum consists of planned learning experiences which will help students achieve desirable attitudes and practices related to critical health issues. Some of these are: emotional health and a positive self image; appreciation, respect for, and care of the human body and its vital organs; physical fitness; health issues of alcohol, tobacco, drug use and abuse; health misconceptions and myths; effects of exercise on the body systems and on general well being; nutrition and weight control; sexual relationships and sexuality, the scientific, social, and economic aspects of community and ecological health; communicable and degenerative diseases including sexually transmitted diseases; disaster preparedness; safety and driver education; factors in the environment and how those factors affect an individual's or population's Environmental health (ex: air quality, water quality, food sanitation); life skills; choosing professional medical and health services; and choices of health careers.

Credentialing

Credentialing is the process by which the qualifications of licensed professionals, organizational members or an organization are determined by assessing the individuals or group background and legitimacy through a standardized process. Accreditation, licensure, or certifications are all forms of credentialing.

In 1978, Helen Cleary, the president of the Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) started the process of certification of health educators. Prior to this, there was no certification for individual health educators, with exception to the licensing for school health educators. The only accreditation available in this field was for school health and public health professional preparation programs.