Health isn’t just an absence of disease but also an abundance of vitality. Real health gives you peak physical and mental performance. With high levels of energy, emotional balance and a sharp mind, your body has the ability to fight off disease and illness and you don’t suffer from preventable diseases. Your healthy body allows you to enjoy a long and healthy lifespan, and achieve your full potential, rather than the shorter lifespan ending in many years of pain, disability and ill health which are common.
[Health is the extent to which an individual or group is able] to realise aspirations, to satisfy needs and to change or cope with the environment. Health is, therefore, seen as a resource of everyday life, not the object of living. Health is a positive concept emphasising social and personal resources, as well as physical capacities. (WHO, 1986) The World Health Organisation defined health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity (WHO, 1946).
As well as emphasising health in a positive sense, this definition is significant in stressing mental as well as physical aspects of health, and social as well as individual well-being. It has however been criticised for being Utopian, whereas it should perhaps be viewed as an ideal towards which health care and other social actions may be orientated (Twaddle, 1974) What is wellbeing? These are all the facilities that make our community a better place and are needed for a sense of well-being: Fundamental services, gas, electricity, water, sewage
Travel networks, roads and rail Hospitals, police stations, fire stations Rural awareness, city awareness Education and employment opportunities Leisure facilities, parks, swimming pools Access to shops, post offices, banks etc. New people eager to join the community . The only definition I could find on wellbeing is being comfortable, healthy and happy. The services listed above make us feel comfortable and we are happy if all the services interact with each other to draw the community together and to encourage visitors. What is a community?
Community as a term is often used in discussions about health and health care. The most commonly used definitions include their geographical location, or the cultural and social mix living within the named community. Other communities may be defined by their use of social networks or systems of contact; or by people recognising an area high in potential resources such as groups using local people skills and local knowledge. Geography An area within a town or city may be defined as a community, e. g. the Earlsfield estate, and have specific police and social work teams assigned to it.
The assumption is that people living within a particular geographic area will experience the same problems and have the same concerns. In this age of private house ownership it does not necessarily mean that the whole of the community will be of the same socio-economic background. Culture The Jewish community is a unique community which evolves around culture. There is an example of a local Jewish community which is based in Birmingham. This provides an education for the children of the Jewish community. They also have local amenities which are provided just for them. See appendix 15. Social stratification
Definition of this type of community is based on social stratification in some form or another, e. g. the gay community. These particular communities share information and knowledge to each others’ mutual support, evidenced by: * Bi Weekly Newspaper The Pink Paper * Monthly Magazine Gay Times * Various Phone Helplines Nottinghamshire & Nottingham Lesbian and Gay switchboard being the nearest See Appendix 14 In brief a community is a group of people with the same views and values as each other. There are lots of different types of community but in this report I am going to discuss a geographic community.
What is a healthy community? A healthy community is a place where people want to live now and in the future. Without new people coming into the community it will not continue to flourish; services may disappear and jobs will then become fewer, less people will shop in the community and finally people will leave, breaking-up the community. For a community to remain stable it has to continue to grow, with a good infrastructure in place, and people will want to not only live there but also to visit and spend money there. If people do not use the infrastructure it can become unstable and collapse.
Services will then become scarce and people will stop visiting, which could break- up the community. About my interview I drew up a list of questions to discuss her role and her responsibilities to the community she works with. I conducted my interview via email firstly because she is not based within my local community and secondly I am dyslexic and find it easier to work with written answers. See Appendix 1 -Questionnaire. My community worker She is a social worker employed by the NSPCC in Crewe Cheshire. Her post is funded by her employer and is a permanent post. See Appendix 2 for full job description.