WCHM Health Promotion Framework Health promotion is central to the work of the Women’s Centre for Health Matters (WCHM). The Ottawa Charter defines health promotion as “the process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health.”1 Mirroring this definition, WCHM’s mission is to empower women to enhance their health and wellbeing. This framework outlines the ways that WCHM implements health promotion in the context of our aims, the Ottawa Charter and subsequent Charters. Evidence shows that the most comprehensive approaches to health promotion, those that combine the Ottawa Charter’s five key areas for action, are the most effective.2 WCHM works across these areas in an integrated approach, in order to achieve our vision of women choosing and accessing responsive, women-focused health and wellbeing services. Key principles of health promotion at WCHM The key principles of health promotion work at WCHM are outlined below. They reflect the three key strategies of health promotion as outlined in the Ottawa Charter: advocate, enable and mediate. Social determinants of health WCHM believes that the environment and life circumstances which each women experiences affects her health outcomes, and that “health is a complete state of physical, mental and social wellbeing, not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”.3 Gender sensitivity and person-centredness WCHM believes that gendered analysis and the collection of sex-disaggregated data are central to meeting women’s health and wellbeing needs. Health care should be tailored to meeting an individual’s circumstances through a person-centred approach. Empowering women, capacity building and supporting participation 1 World Health Organisation, Ottawa charter for health promotion, 1st International conference on health promotion: The move towards a new public health, Ottawa, 1986, http://www.who.int/hpr/NPH/docs/ottawa_charter_hp.pdf. 2 World Health Organisation, Jakarta declaration on leading health promotion into the 21st century, 4th International conference on health promotion: New players for a new era – leading health promotion into the 21st century, 1997, http://www.who.int/hpr/NPH/docs/jakarta_declaration_en.pdf. 3 World Health Organisation, 1958, in Wass, A, Promoting health: The primary health care approach, 2nd edition, Harcourt Saunders, Sydney, 2000, p. 7. 1 WCHM believes in empowering women and building their capacity to enhance their health and wellbeing. ACT women should be supported to participate in decision making processes around issues that affect their health and wellbeing. Collaboration and sustainability WCHM believes in developing collaborative and cooperative partnerships, and strengthening community relationships and skills. This aids in building sustainable programs, attitudes and approaches beyond our involvement. Evidence based practice WCHM believes that it is vital to collect the best available data and evidence through social research. Our work is based on continuous learning and knowledge development. Equity WCHM believes in the principles of access, equity and equal opportunity for all. “Equity... is not about the equal delivery of services, or distribution of resources, it is about recognising diversity and disadvantage and directing resources and services towards those most in need, to ensure equal outcomes for all.4” Health promotion in action at WCHM WCHM orients our work around the five key areas of action in the Ottawa Charter and the principles from many subsequent health promotion Charters. In practice, there is much crossover between the areas of action. 1. Building healthy public policy WCHM works across multiple levels of the ACT community to influence public policy to meet the health and wellbeing needs of women in a holistic and gender sensitive manner. Informing policy: Social research and data WCHM conducts social research on ACT women’s views, experiences of health, and the best ways to address their wellbeing needs. We are committed to facilitating the involvement of women in our research and validating women’s experiences of health. WCHM also collects existing data and evidence, and documents best practice initiatives. The purpose of WCHM’s social research agenda is to inform the planning, development and implementation of policy and/or improve service delivery. Influencing policy: Advocacy work 4 S Dyson, Gender and diversity: A workbook for an equity approach to practice, Women’s Health in the South East, Victoria, 2001. 2 WCHM advocates on issues identified as important to ACT women, and influences policy and program initiatives to better respond to the needs of women and remove barriers preventing women from leading healthy lives. WCHM conducts advocacy through relationships and coordinated actions with Government, policy makers, funders, health and information service providers and the wider community. 2. Creating supportive environments WCHM works to ‘make the healthy choice the easy choice’ for ACT women through advocating for and creating environments that facilitate women’s health and wellbeing. Providing health information: Increasing women’s control over their health and wellbeing WCHM provides women with access to reliable and broad ranging health related information, research and resources, including about the causes of health and illness. This allows women to make informed choices about their health and wellbeing and supports women to choose and access appropriate services. Providing health information creates a supportive environment for women’s health literacy and ability to manage their own health. Providing health education: Increasing service provider’s knowledge of women’s health and wellbeing WCHM promotes knowledge about women’s health and information needs, and barriers to good health and wellbeing to service providers and policy makers in the ACT. Through health education, WCHM aims to improve the understanding, motivation, skills and confidence of individuals and organisations, creating a supportive environment for them to take action on improving health and wellbeing outcomes for women. Advocating for environments that are supportive of women’s health WCHM aims to create social, built and natural environments that are supportive of women’s health and wellbeing through a number of projects that increase public awareness of issues and change community attitudes, highlight women’s safety in public spaces, and create links between health and everyday environments such as work and leisure. 3. Strengthening community action WCHM works within a community development framework that emphasises working with women and supporting women to take action on issues that affect their health and wellbeing. Awareness raising activities WCHM engages in activities with the aim of strengthening community action, such as public awareness campaigns, public lectures, political action (e.g. marches or rallies), publishing opinion pieces and other advocacy initiatives. The aim is to share information and influence community attitudes to drive policy shifts that benefit women’s wellbeing. 3 Capacity building activities WCHM identifies groups of women at risk of experiencing disadvantage and peer-led women’s groups, and works with them to build their skills, and provide them with learning and funding opportunities. The aim is to increase women’s ability to participate in decision making processes that affect their health, health service delivery, and broader health policy, planning and evaluation initiatives. This increases women’s ownership of their health and decisions that influence them, enhances wellbeing and social connectedness, recognises that women are the experts within their own lives, and respects and values the strength and diversity of women. WCHM also provides information, resources and support to the ACT health sector to increase their capacity to change systems to meet women’s needs. Collaboration WCHM builds and participates in networks with service providers, policy makers and consumers, not only in the health sector but across sectors and systems. We collaborate in order to share information, set priorities, make decisions, and plan and implement strategies in a coordinated and strong manner. This ensures that WCHM works with the community from a ‘bottom up’ approach to inform our advocacy agenda. 4. Developing personal skills WCHM engages in a number of community development and capacity building programs and relationships aimed at educating, enabling and empowering ACT women. Health literacy and self-advocacy WCHM helps women feel that they can create change in their own lives, that their voices can be heard, and that they can contribute to addressing the issues affecting their lives by working together and with others. We do this through providing health information and education, and capacity building activities. Social connectedness and personal development WCHM teaches women skills that build their personal, social and professional networks and capacities, enabling them to take action to create opportunities to improve their wellbeing. 5. Reorienting health services towards primary care WCHM works within multiple systems to ensure that both primary health care services and the wider community are oriented towards health promotion principles. Advocacy on key principles of health promotion WCHM advocates for a focus on health prevention and promotion to ensure a comprehensive approach towards ACT women’s health and wellbeing that focuses on the social determinants and increasing