Health promotion is the process of enabling people to increase control over and improve their health. This perspective is derived from a concept of ‘health' as the extent to which an individual or group is able, on the one hand, to realise aspirations and satisfy needs, and on the other hand, to change or cope with the environment.
Health is seen therefore, as a resource for everyday life, not the objective of living; it is a positive concept emphasising social and personal resources, as well as physical capacities. Health promotion represents a comprehensive social and political process, not only embracing actions directed at strengthening the skills and capabilities of individuals, but also action directed towards changing social, environmental, and economic conditions so as to alleviate their impact on public and individual health.
Community participation is essential to sustain health promotion actions and this is the link with narrative medicine, ICF and Parents pedagogy that will be the themes of the next two chapters.