Healthcare promotion has been described by the American Journal of Health promotion as “the science and art of helping people change their lifestyle to move toward a state of optimal health”. As many of you know, there are immense disparities in the provision and access to healthcare services globally. These can be attributed to differing community and individual risk factors when it comes to the prevalence of diseases and illnesses, and gaps in knowledge between healthcare providers and members of the community. This new and burgeoning field attempts to bridge these disparities and accommodate the various tensions that resource scarcity imposes on us when tackling healthcare issues and provide people with the tools to help themselves improve their quality of life.

 

This week on Health Justice Radio we have a very special guest here to talk to us about her own personal journey in the field of healthcare promotion. A recent graduate of McMaster University, Pari Chowdhary has held a variety of positions in the non-profit sector ranging from a stint with Free the Children as a Program Coordinator for a Youth Media program to her current role as a health promotion coordinator with Halton Healthcare services in Oakville, Ontario. Her multiple positions in diverse disciplines has allowed her to witness firsthand the aforementioned disparities in socioeconomic indicators across communities. She recognizes the critical importance of health promotion as a facet of healthcare delivery and could help shed some light into the challenges that await training clinicians and educators as they step into the workforce.

If you would like more information about Health promotion research you can visit the American Journal of Health promotion’s website at www.healthpromotionjournal.com. If you wish to learn more about our collective, you can visit our website at www.healthjusticeradio.com. Thank you for listening to Health Justice Radio.