PDHPE: What is the Ottawa Charter?

And what does it mean for you, the PDHPE person?

Back in 1986, at the First International Conference on Health Promotion, the world’s fitness freaks got together and created the Ottawa Charter, which was a plan of attack to improve global health outcomes by 2000. It’s still a relevant road map today, though. Here are the five action areas of the thing, with some commentary we’re typing from the couch while Sabrina is on. You’ll want to know them for your exams and such.

Building healthy public policy

This is where governments look at legislation, taxation and other policies they can use to ensure we have access to healthier goods and services, as well as looking at the obstacles between us and making those healthier choices.

Strengthening community action

But if the government’s trying to force this on us, it won’t be as effective. That’s why it’s important to make sure communities are involved in the process of setting goals, planning strategies that are tailored to specific groups of people and actually putting them into practice.

Creating supportive environments

Here’s where we look at the ways work and leisure contribute to people’s health. We’re talking about safe working environments, investing infrastructure with ecological concerns and protecting our environments as well as our health.

Reorienting health services

If you break your arm, you see a doctor and get it fixed. But what if our health services were more interested in making sure you never broke your arm in the first place. Once again, this ties back to being part of the community and treating patients as an entire person… not just that snapped ulna (which is a bone in your forearm – see, we can Google stuff while we watch Kiernan Shipka kick arse).

Developing personal skills

Any finally, it comes down to the individual. Making sure everyone has access to the information and skills needed to stay healthy and deal with any health issues. This means education, making that info available for people to access and keeping us all in the know as we grow older and face different issues.