health education wilson

8/4/2019 Health Education Wilson

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Charles C. Wilsonand Elizabeth Avery Wilson

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THE discovery of educationas an instrument in preventive medicine. . . has proved almost as far-reachingin its results as the discovery of the germtheory of disease." So stated Dr. C.-E. A.Winslow, one of America's great publichealth statesmen. Evidence as to thetruth of Dr. Winslow's statement continues to accumulate. Education has beenan important instrument in bringingabout health improvement in every areainwhich suchimprovementhas occurred.The role of medical research in protecting and promoting the health ofpeople is well known. The scientificcuriosity of men and women in manycountries has provided mankind withbasic knowledge about health and disease. Smallpox, diphtheria, poliomyelitisand whooping cough are but a few ofthe diseases which have been found tobe preventable. The discovery of antibiotics and other chemical substanceshas aided greatly in the treatment ofdisease. Surgical techniques and meth-Charlee C. Wilson, M.D., it Professor ofEducation and Public Health, Yale University, Diem Haven, Connecticut; and ElizabethAvery Wilton teat formerly Assistant Executive Secretary and Consultant in HealthEducation, American Association for Health,Physical Education and Recreation. NEA.

ods of medical care are constantly being improved. Man's knowledge of thestructure and function of the. humanbody is being extended. Continued intensive research is inextricably linkedwith improvement in health and freedom from disease.Yet research is only the first step toward man's goal of health and happiness. The findings of the laboratory mustbe applied in useful ways. This is thetask of the thousands of workers in thehealth professions: physicians, dentists,nurses, technicians and numerous otherswhose concern is the providing of healthservices. Hospitals, clinics and healthdepartments are staffed with personsprofessionally prepared to utilize thefindings of research to protect life andprevent disease.A variety of healthservices is available throughout the life ofany individual One thinks immediatelyof the health services rendered by thephysician and dentist, but there aremany others of importance. For example,sanitary engineers safeguard the foodand water of a community and teclini-cians prepare and test vaccines for immunization purposes. Health services arethe link between the laboratory and thepeople who can benefit from medical research.


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Despite continuing medical researchand the availability of sufficient healthservices, limited progress can be madein promoting health unless people arewilling to make use of this research andthese services. Here education makes itsgreat contribution. Parents learn theneed for immunizing young childrenagainst various preventable diseases.Mothers willingly seek prenatal care.

Throughhealtheducation, people havelearned about such diseases as tuberculosis. They recognize the need for periodic chest X-rays, the importance of isolation of those sick with tuberculosis,and the value of rest, diet, drugs, andsurgery in treating the disease. Education has influenced the attitude of peopletowardtuberculosis, changing feelings ofdespair to confidence regarding itseventual elimination. Similarly, most educated people seek medical treatment atthe first sign of abnormalities whichmight be indicative of cancer or otherserious condition, thus greatly increasingthe likelihood of successfully curing thedisease. Persons who have developed apositive attitude toward medical carereadily seek help in cases of mental illness or alcoholism.

It is difficult to assess the exact valueof health education in the school andcommunity. Yet discussants at the plenary sessionofthe Twelfth WorldHealthAssembly stated, "Health education isthe key to the solution of many healthproblems involved in the humanitariantask of the World Health Organization."They also insisted that "Health education is the most powerful weapon wehave in the field of health." Instanceswere cited in which programs had succeeded because therehad been effectiveeducation, and others in which programshad failed because education had been

General of the World Health Organization, wrote: "It is fully recognized todaythat no lasting progress in health workcan be achieved without simultaneouslyundertaking to educate the populationon health matters."

Why Health Education?Health education for children and

youth helps them to better understandhealth problems and needs and to cooperate in prevention or treatment.Health education also helps build afoundation for intelligent parenthoodand informed community membership.Children and youth whohave developedrespect for scientific research and aknowledge of community resources forhealth services can become, as adults,intelligent consumers of health productsandservices. They are unlikely to be influenced by unscrupulous advertisers,quacks or faddists, or to neglect preventive care for themselves and their families.

The health problems of children ofelementary school age include sicknessessuch as colds, chicken pox, mumpsmeasles and digestive disturbances anddefects and disabilities such as impairedvision, impaired hearing, dental decayemotional and nutritional problems. Accidents resulting from motor vehiclesdrowning, burns, explosions and falls arethe leading causes of death among thisage group. Health education for childrenand youth must encompass their particular health needs and problems.

As with other subjects in the curriculum, health education must be related tothe interests and developmental characteristicsof children andyouth. Thus, theemphasis in dentalhealth in the primarygrades is placedon toothbrushing andon


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regular dental care. Stress in the intermediate grades is placed on the need forassuming responsibility for regular visitsto a dentist and understanding the function of teeth, how dental caries occursand how dentists can help to prevent thepremature loss of teeth and to maintainmouth health. Focus in the upper gradesis on understanding the relation of fluo-rides to the prevention of decay and thestructure and sequence of tooth eruption.In the high school years, interest centerson the economics of good dental healthand ways in which the community, thefamily and the individual can maintaindental health. As a result, then, of attention to the needs, interests and developmental characteristics of children andyouth, the instructional program inhealth can be stimulating and dynamicas well as essential to our welfare.

Scope of the ProgramWhat is the scope of a well plannedprogram in health education? In the pri

mary grades, attention should be givento a number of areas such as safety andfirst aid, emotional and social health,nutrition and food, cleanliness, clothing,and appearance; structure, function andcare of the body; the teeth and dentalhealth, human growth, physical fitness,exercise and recreation, sleep, rest andrelaxation; prevention and care of sickness; home and family living and community resources and community health.In the intermediate grades, to theseareas, may be added instruction in alcohol, tobacco and drugs; and consumereducation, and in the upper grades, historical highlights and health career opportunities. Thus, areas of instruction arestressed and developed in accordancewith the needs and interests of boys andgirls as they grow and develop.

Physical education is a related butseparate subject matter area in the curriculum. Regular physical activity is essential if the body is to grow and developfully. Participation in active sports, playing vigorously with others, is the heritage of every girl and boy. Learning theskills of sports and games appropriateto age, sex, and degree of coordination,and developing a favorable attitude toward regular physical activity are important outcomes of physical education.Instruction in health emphasizes theneed fo r learning and enjoying a varietyof activities requiring vigorous use of thebody. And conversely, physical education, science and other subject matterareas of the curriculum reinforce principles of health and safety. Experienced,well-oriented teachers and administratorstake advantage of the numerous opportunities afforded in all areas of the schoolprogram for correlation and integration.Effective health teaching is much likegood teaching in any other area. An attempt must be made to involve girls andboys in meaningful experiences so thatattitudes and behavior are positively influenced and knowledge is increased.Today's health education is distinctlydifferent from the memorization of insignificant facts of anatomy and physiology which constituted the "hygiene"of earlier times.

q~D=e~=q~A functional approach to health edu

cation utilizes the school environmentfo r teaching purposes and considersschool health services as pupil learningexperiences. It reaches out into the homeand community fo r situations which havehealth significance. Modern school healtheducation is functional and dynamic, ithas breadth and and it based


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on the needs and interests of boys andgirls.To illustrate this concept of health

teaching, let us select one of the specificareas of health teaching listed earlier,the prevention and care of sickness.How can children and youth be helpedto develop desirable attitudes towarddisease, and to learn suitable behaviorpatterns which will protect them againstdisease? How can they gain the knowledge necessary to use research findingsand available health services to protectthemselves and their families?

It is the goal of health teaching in theprimary grades to form and reinforcedesirable habits and attitudes towardthe prevention of disease. Parents andteachers work together to achieve theseends. No attempt need be made at thislevel to teach specific facts about disease. Children are helped to reinforcesuch desirable habits as washing handsbefore eating and after going to thetoilet, covering mouth and nose whencoughing or sneezing, reporting feelingsof illness to parent or teacher and keeping foreign objects out of the mouth.Children are helped to develop favorableattitudes toward staying home whensick, regular visits to the doctor and theneed for preventive immunization treatments. They learn to express sympathyfor those who are sick and to cooperatewith health personnel in receiving treatment. Real lifesituations at home and atschool offer many opportunities for discussions and practices which will establish desirable attitudes andhabits.

In the intermediate grades, childrenare full of questions about health anddisease. They want to know the "why"and "wherefore" of recommended practices. They are ready to learnhow germsgrow and how they are spread from one

tionof thescientific method inthe studyof disease and become familiar with therole of the health professions and healthorganizations in fighting disease. Theydiscover, for example, how food andwater are protected by public healthauthorities.

A varietyof teaching methods may bemployed in the intermediate gradesChildren may viewstainedslides of bacteria through a microscope. Committeemay visit the local health departmenand milk bottling plants, reporting theifindings tothe group. Childrenmay seeinformation from their parents anfamily physicians as to diseases thehave had and diseases they have beeimmunized against. Panel discussions otechniques for protecting the communitagainst disease are stimulating. Speciaresource visitors such as the publihealth nurseor sanitarian, invited to discuss particular subjects, debates, surveyand individual investigations help tmake significant learning experiences. Awell organized textbook and numerousuitable references enablepupils tobuila factualbackground against whichtheexperiences gain shape and substanceIn every respect the teacher tries tmake health education a "learning together" situation rather than a readinand tellingsession.

In learning about the prevention ancare of sickness, a group of junior higschool pupils conducted a survey to dicover the percentage of pupils who habeen immunized against diphtheriatetanus, smallpox, poliomyelitis anwhooping cough. Theydiscussed the results of the study with the school physcian andpublic health officer ; read abouand considered the contributions of Pateur, Lister, Klebs, Loeffler, Reed, Finlay, Jenner, Salk, Banting, Best an


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physical education programs will belargely determined by the administrative leadership of the school and community. Boards of education, superintendents of schools, principals and otheradministrative officials will decide theprestige these programs have in the eyesof the students. Their prestige is stronglyinfluenced by such factors as these:Whether credit is given to the subjectswhen calculating the requirements forgraduation, how much money is provided in the budget for their development, the attention given to girls as wellas boys, the degree of emphasis onphysically underdeveloped students ascompared to gifted athletes, and otheradministrative matters which affect thephysical fitness of students.CHARLES A. BUCHEH, P = =b ~I=k =v=r I=k =vI=k KKe~=b ~

E = =~=PSOFothers to the conquest of disease; anddebated the question, "Should immunization be mandatory for all?"

They invited special resource persons,such as representatives of voluntaryhealth organizations, a public healthnuise, and a sanitary engineer, to talkwith them about community diseasecontrol measures. They developed colonies of bacteria and observed stainedslides of disease germs. They surveyedtheir community for the presence of insects that might carry disease and discussed control measures. They visited thecommunity water and sewage disposalplants to observe protective measures.They discussed with the school physicianthe need for regular medical examinations. They surveyed community resources for the care of sick persons and

reported on types of treatment offered.Individuals investigated contributions

made by the State Health Departmentand the Public Health Service to thehealth and well-being of their community. They explored the role of the WorldHealth Organization. These activitieswere kept solidly rooted in fact throughconstant reference to texts and resourcebooks. Pupils who participate in this typeof learning experience not only gain infactual knowledge, but also in the abilityto make intelligent judgments aboutcommunity measures for the control ofdisease.

Well-known are figures citing increasing longevity of American men andwomen and the comparative freedomfrom disease which we enjoy. Credit isdue to widespread medical research, theavailability of health services and, notleast, to an educated citizenry impelledto take positive action in caring for itsown health.

In a recent publication, the Educational Policies Commission stated that:"Health . . . depends upon a reasonedawareness of the value of mental andphysical fitness and of the means bywhich it may be developed and maintained. Fitness is not merely a functionof living and acting; it requires that theindividual understand the connectionamong health, nutrition, activity and environment and that he take action to improve his mental and physical condition."

Modern health education helps children and youth gain understandings anddevelop attitudes that enable them tomaintain and improve their own healthand that of their families and communities. Health education contributes tothe attainment of the purposes of education. It is a basic component of the schoolcurriculum.

health education wilson

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