Health Belief Model and Health Education Explained

Introduction

Public and population health standards place the conventional medical individual care model within several determinants of health. Currently, various public health models exist for a wide range of purposes, one of which is the Health Belief Model. These models provide an improved understanding of the dynamics relating to the health and wellbeing of populations. In addition, the social determinants of health (SDOH) refer to the political, social, and economic factors that impact the health of individuals and populations. The social determinants of health also encompass the ecological model and place significant emphasis on healthcare institutions and organizations established to structure social processes relating to individuals' and populations' health, including health education. This paper examines how the Health Belief Model can be used to address the issue of health education.

The modern public health sector is characterized by the emergence of health problems, particularly chronic diseases that have become increasingly common. Chronic diseases, disabling conditions, and financial burdens are well documented in existing literature on modern health problems. Given the increased burdens associated with chronic diseases and disabling conditions, health education and educators are expected to play a critical role in addressing these conditions (Derryberry, 2004). Health education is expected to fulfill a new and unique function in promoting the health and wellbeing of populations. The significant role of health education in this process is attributable to the fact that it provides the foundational and practical knowledge health professionals need for their practice. Therefore, health education is the basic framework for promoting the health and wellbeing of patient populations.

The Issue of Health Education

Despite recognition of the significance of health education, there are pressing issues currently facing this important component of the health sector. The task of health education — already difficult — has been further complicated by the lack of specific processes for preventing today's illnesses. Additionally, health education faces problems relating to the absence of fully effective curative measures for various patient populations. In light of these increasing complexities, health educators' jobs have become more difficult in scope. These challenges occur at a time when there is an acute nursing shortage. Aiken, Cheung, and Olds (2009) state that employment opportunities in the health sector are expected to grow for registered nurses more than in most other occupations. This expected growth is attributable to ongoing nursing shortage issues, which continue to place significant burdens on health education. Nurses are therefore the at-risk population with respect to health education, since its growing complexities directly affect their academic preparation.

This paper seeks to examine how the Health Belief Model can be used to address the issue of health education at a time when the nursing shortage has enhanced the need for more nurses and placed considerable burdens on the health education segment. The study focuses on the following objectives:

1. To examine the theoretical and research perspectives relating to the issue of modern health education.

2. To enhance understanding of how public health models and social determinants of health can be used to analyze a public health problem.

Theoretical and Research Perspectives on Health Education

3. To demonstrate how public health models and social determinants of health can be used in formulating effective initiatives to address the issue of health education.

Since health education is one of the social determinants of health, its theoretical and research perspectives can be understood through public health models such as the Health Belief Model. The Health Belief Model is regarded as one of the oldest and most established health behavior theories used in health education and health promotion. Hayden (2013) states that the Health Belief Model was developed in the 1950s as a tool for explaining the ineffectiveness of medical screening programs provided by the U.S. Public Health Service. The underlying concept of the model is that health behavior is influenced by personal beliefs or perceptions regarding a disease and the strategies adopted to mitigate its impacts and prevalence. Personal perceptions or beliefs are influenced by a series of intrapersonal factors that in turn shape health behavior.

The issue of health education can be understood through the lens of health behavior, which is a central component of the Health Belief Model. Health education and health behavior are intertwined and provide the premise for applying the Health Belief Model to health education. Some of the major constructs in the Health Belief Model include perceived susceptibility, perceived benefits, perceived barriers, perceived severity, self-efficacy, and cues to action (Hayden, 2013).

Conclusion

Health education remains one of the major issues facing the health sector because of the complexities involved in pursuing health-related careers. Therefore, the public health sector faces the need to design suitable initiatives to address the issue of health education and increase the attractiveness of health-related careers. The theoretical and research perspectives relating to health education can be understood through the Health Belief Model. Based on this model, health education is strongly linked to health behavior and is affected by several key constructs, including self-efficacy, perceived barriers, and perceived benefits.