Advantages of promoting primary prevention in a community

Prevention is the action of stopping something from happening. In health, it comprises of a wide range of activities known as interventions aimed at reducing risks or threats to health. Primary Prevention is a category of prevention that is all about the promotion of health and keeping people from getting sick in the first place. It is designed to prevent disease from occurring and it’s aim is to prevent disease or injury before it occurs. There are two components of primary prevention which are Health Promotion and Specific Protection. Health Promotion includes health education, Nutritional Interventions, lifestyle and behavioural changes, Environmental modification etcetera while Specific protection includes Immunization, control of environmental hazards like air pollution and many others.

The importance of primary prevention is as follows

Incidence and Prevalence disease reduction: for example studies show that even a small reduction in the average blood pressure of a population would produce a large reduction in the incidence of cardiovascular disease. Another example is immunization which lowers future exposures and hence the incidence of new disease episodes over time.

Risk reduction: Primary prevention reduces risks for example careful weight control prevents obesity which in it’s self is a risk factor for many conditions like heart disease and diabetes.

Health maintenance and reduction of risky behavior: Health education as a measure of prevention teaches about physical, mental, emotional and social health which motivates people to improve and maintain their health and reduce risky behavior for example enabling them to make informed choices about their lives through living a safely sexuality life.

Herd immunity or population protection: the population is protected for example when children are immunized against measles; it reduces spread to those who are not immunized. Money saving: If a disease is prevented before it occurs maybe through performing safe sex, this prevents potential greater treatment cost in the future in case one is infected with HIV or Sexually transmitted diseases.

Clinical admissions reduction: Primary prevention reduces the number of facility admissions and the time people have to spend in hospitals because people avoid and protect themselves from injury and disease, an example is educating the community to wear helmets when using motorcycles to protect themselves against head injuries when accidents occur, this in turn reduces the number of accident causalities being admitted in hospitals as they could have sustained minor injuries that are easily manageable. Public health education as a measure of primary prevention encourages people to get regular medical check ups.

The majority of people in a community are able to access hospitals, clinics and doctor’s offices for disease prevention and the prevention and treatment of medical conditions. Without an effective public health education program, it is likely that people who feel healthy would not see the importance of having regular health check-ups. Being aware that you need to visit your doctor for wellness checks is something that is taught and encouraged by health care law degree online professionals. Hospitals and clinics offer flu shots and vaccines during the yearly flu season, or when there is an outbreak of an infectious disease. Public health education helps to ensure that the more people schedule an appointment at these facilities to get the necessary treatment the further spread of illness.

People adopt healthier lifestyles

Public Health Education also teaches members of the community how to reduce the risk of disease in their personal spaces. For example, they learn that keeping a cleaner house reduces the spread of disease, sickness and pest infestations. They also begin to realize that reducing or eliminating smoking can improve their health and increase their longevity. Public health education helps to dispel myths Public perception and myths are quickly dismissed when the community is given the proper information about an illness or disease. Public health education not only teaches illness prevention, it also helps to provide key details of how a disease is truly spread. This helps to change the way a person interacts and it also helps to promote empathy instead of discrimination. Public health educators are key members of a community who use education to advocate health.

This education helps to foster closer communities

Decline in the intensity of treatments: Immunization is the process whereby a person is made immune or resistant to an infectious disease, typically by the administration of a vaccine. Vaccines stimulate the body’s own immune system to protect the person against subsequent infection or disease. (WHO) It is done by either administering the vaccine through the mouth or by injection. Immunization is a measure of prevention under specific protection and is a key priority of the Uganda Minimum Health Care Package of the health sector.