David V. McQueen – författare

Pandemics, substance abuse, natural disasters, obesity, and warfare: the line that once separated health crisis from social crisis no longer exists. Yet while social theories are implied in today’s public health arena, they are rarely acknowledged. Now an international panel of leaders in world health explores this vital but understudied aspect of health promotion.

Health and Modernity proceeds from the thesis that contemporary health promotion is, by definition, inextricably linked to its social context. The authors discuss global challenges in terms of cultural capital, risk and causality, systems theory, and the dynamic between individual and community. In the process, they define an entity that:- Understands the centrality of health to all areas of human life- Is committed to equity in access to health-promoting resources- Applies a multidisciplinary approach to public concerns- Looks beyond quick fixes and simple answers to complex issues - Employs a variety of political and social agents to accomplish health objectives- Is dedicated to empowerment, facilitation, and inclusiveness

The insights found in Health and Modernity are certain to raise the level of debate among professionals, researchers, and the academic community in the global/public health and health promotion fields. This visionary volume guides readers from the immediacy of doing toward the deeper meaning that makes such doing possible.

As health improvement initiatives take center stage worldwide, public health professionals face an ongoing challenge to prove that the programs are worthwhile and that interventions make an impact. The Global Programme on Health Promotion Effectiveness (GPHPE) of the International Union for Health Promotion and Education takes on this challenge in Global Perspectives on Health Promotion Effectiveness. Fifty-five contributors representing six continents come together to analyze major programs around the world and evaluate their effectiveness. The result is a symposium in a book, the first in a series, representing the best critical thinking on crucial issues such as these:

Global Perspectives on Health Promotion Effectiveness is a significant document with profound implications for practitioners involved in implementing health promotion programs. It will serve as a vital source of frontline knowledge for researchers and students of public health.

More and more, health promotion is a crucial component of public health, to the extent that public health interventions are called on to prove their effectiveness and appraised for scientific validity, a practice many in the field consider self-defeating. Health Promotion Evaluation Practices in the Americas cogently demonstrates that scientific rigor and the goals of health promotion are less in conflict than commonly thought, synthesizing multiple traditions from countries throughout North, Central, and South America (and across the developed-to-developing-world continuum) for a volume that is both diverse in scope and unified in purpose.

The book’s examples—representing robust theoretical and practical literatures as well as initiatives from Rio de Janeiro to American Indian communities—explain why health promotion evaluation projects require different guidelines from mainstream evaluative work. The editors identify core humanitarian principles associated with health promotion (participation, empowerment, equity, sustainability, intersectoral action, multistrategy, and contextualism), while chapters highlight challenges that must be mastered to keep these principles and scientific objectives in sync, including: (1) Building health promotion values into evaluation research projects. (2) Expanding the use of evaluation in health promotion. (3) Developing meaningful evaluation questions. (4) Distinguishing between community-based participation research and evaluation-based participation. (5) Evaluating specifically for equity. (6) Designing initiatives to foster lasting social change.

The applied knowledge in Health Promotion Evaluation Practices in the Americas: Values and Research can bring the goals of intervention into sharper focus for practitioners, evaluators, and decision-makers and facilitate communication on all sides—necessary steps to progress from study findings to real-world action.

Global Handbook on Noncommunicable Diseases and Health Promotion

David V. McQueen, editor

 A scan of health challenges around the globe readily brings to mind a range of infectious illnesses, from HIV to influenza. Yet chronic non-contagious conditions--heart disease, asthma, diabetes, cancer--are more prevalent, and their rates soaring, across the developed and developing worlds.

 The Global Handbook on Noncommunicable Diseases and Health Promotion is an important resource for understanding and approaching chronic illnesses and their prevention. This timely text balances theory and strategies to provide an integrative context for health-affecting behaviors regarding tobacco use, food choices, and physical activity. Coverage expands on current medical/clinical public health perspectives, arguing that closer attention to social context is crucial to better use of health resources and more relevant preventive efforts. Possible roles for hospitals, the workplace, government agencies, NGOs, and other institutions are analyzed, as is the potential for addressing larger underlying health factors (e.g., inequities and poverty) at the societal level. Topics covered include:

As the authors of the Global Handbook on Noncommunicable Diseases and Health Promotion make abundantly clear, opportunities are as numerous as the issues, and researchers and graduate students in global public health, health promotion, and chronic disease epidemiology will find these chapters positive and realistic.p>

-The WHO''s Stepwise Approach.

-The U.S.''s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

-The Finbalt Health Monitor.

-The EURALIM Experience.

-The Mega Country Health Promotion Network.

-And much more.

This book is for those currently involved in planning or conducting chronic disease risk factor surveillance. It is also a valuable reference for those interested in developing a global network of persons involved in this arena.

"This book is a godsend to those working in the area of monitoring and understanding changes overtime in chronic disease risk factors. It is a collection of 18 chapters authored by experts around the world and provides a comprehensive insight into establishing and maintaining the surveillance of behavioural risk factors both in developed and developing countries."

(Qaiser Mukhtar, Journal of Epidemila Community Health, 59:6)