Philosophically, I am an idealist, meaning that I believe ideas are the driving form of reality and the two spheres that we experience are the internal spiritual world and the external physical world. 

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I define health in my own words to be a state in which the body is comfortable in the various dimensions of wellness: physical, mental, social, intellectual, emotional, and spiritual. I consider wellness to be a continuum of what an individual views to be their own subjective ‘comfort’ within these various realms. That being said, I do not view the continuum of wellness to be categorized as fully well or unwell, but instead as a wide range differing per persons subjective views, pain levels, and standards of health. As for health education, I define it to be the teaching of ways to achieve comfort of the body in these various realms of wellness along with the preventative actions to do so. 

 

The purpose of health is to get an individual to reach a point of contentment in the realms of wellness conditions and overall comfort. Once this point of contentment with health is reached, overall contentment of life can be best accomplished if no other serious crises are occurring. If an individual is living a content life, they will be ready to spread that joy to individuals they interact with, playing into the overall purpose of life and highlighting the importance of health and health education.

 

There is a variety of health education philosophies I support, however, the ones that truly resonate with me are behavior change philosophy, freeing philosophy, and social change philosophy. As a health professional, I would want to push for individuals to have the autonomy and power to make the best personal health choices for themselves, following the freeing philosophy. However, I must still acknowledge the social change philosophy and that no matter how hard educators try, society will always have an impact on the patients decisions, so health educators must continue to combat overall societal views on health as well. As for behavior change philosophies, I am big on setting clear goals and making a straight forward plan to achieve those goals; directly following this theory. My background as a behavior technician plays a great role in my value for goal setting and clear steps for health behavior changes.

 

Health education; as defined by Kent State University is “a social science that draws from the biological, environmental, psychological, physical and medical sciences to promote health and prevent disease, disability and premature death through education-driven voluntary behavior change activities" (n.d.). 

 

A significant benefit to health education is awareness. There are so many topics that individuals can be quick to make assumptions on or be ignorant towards, yet with health education individuals are able to broaden their awareness on different health issues across the world. With awareness, individuals can then make the best informed choices for their own individualized health. 

 

Unfortunately, limitations still pose a threat in health education. Limitations include individuals of low socioeconomic status and minority groups that lack access to health education programs, lack health literacy, and have less access to health resources. Further, ignorance and denial towards change hold large limitations on health education as individuals will never allow themselves to become educated in certain areas of health unless they are genuinely receptive to absorbing the information given and changing. 

 

As for the responsibilities of a health educator, they are expected to educate individuals from various groups on aspects of health, treatment, and preventative care. Health educators are meant to keep society up to date with current health issues and conflicts. On top of this, they must assist society and individuals in taking the necessary steps to make positive improvements in regards to health. 

 

The purpose of health education is to make an impact on individuals and society and how they view health, and further, the actions they take to remain healthy after being educated. 

 

A person is health educated when they are aware of prevalent health issues and can make conscious health decisions based on their current awareness and education.

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Kent State University. (n.d.). Health education and promotion. https://www.kent.edu/ehhs/hs/hedp