Friday, October 18, 2019
Interactive Whiteboards Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Interactive Whiteboards - Essay Example "And the color, movement, sound and participation all come without messy chalk, stinky dry erase markers and copies of transparencies" (par. 2). Interactive whiteboards offer tremendous benefits not only for students, but also for teachers. They assist "people of many learning styles and save teachers time and space. Lessons can be saved into the system and can easily incorporate countless videos, maps, photos and websites. Teachers can pause videos and write notes on the screen, science classes can explore frogs through virtual dissection and geometry figures can be rotated, shrunk or expanded" (par. 18). In short, they make classroom instruction more efficient and learning more fun and interesting. The ability to harness the power, depth and breadth of the internet in this manner offers infinite new ways to try and reach out to students to grab their attention and improve their understanding of the material. There are many examples of ways in which this new technology has been and can be applied within the classroom. "Teachers can put a pyramid on the board and turn it so the class can see all the angles and sides. Students can count vertices by touching them on the board and setting them off in another color. Teachers can bounce between editing a paper on the board to searching for something online to illustrating what 1/16th of an inch looks like on a ruler" (par. 4). Any subject from math to literature to art and music can greatly benefit from these cybertronic chalkboards. This emerging hardware technology is significant because of its potential to revolutionize classrooms and teaching approaches. In the past, classroom instruction has tended to be one dimensional, very static, and non-interactive. Teachers would write on chalkboards or overhead slides, and would often be confined to the limited universe of often out-of-date instructional aids and materials to which they happened to have access. The ability of students to actively participate in a lesson, beyond raising their hand to answer the teacher's questions or make comments in a class discussion, was quite limited. With interactive whiteboards, teachers have the ability to take their lessons "outside of the box." Virtually any material available on the internet that pertains to the subject matter being taught can be summoned right then and there during a classroom lesson. This enables a much more detailed, nuanced and up-to-date discussion of the material. Further, students have a much greater opportunity to participate in the lesson in a meaningful way in which they can really interact with and digest the material. For example, at Centerville Elementary School in Minnesota, the technology prompted students to utilize their down time more productively, gathering around the board to review the material that had been taught earlier. "Using their fingers they dragged numbers on the screen into blank spots on a triangle as part of a math problem. When it's time for the class to leave for their next activity, one student pleads to the teacher, 'Can we check if it's right before we go'" (par. 11). As part of a literature lesson at the same school, teacher Tony Valenti used the device to bring to life the book
Thursday, October 17, 2019
Applied science Report Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words
Applied science Report - Research Paper Example While clinical science includes a scientific component, it also includes aspects of care such as communication and knowledge, acquired through interaction in the health care environment. Clinical science is distinguished from medical practice, in that it includes experiences and knowledge gained through interaction, as well as relevant data surrounding clinical issues. Daniels & Powell (2006) define clinical science as â€Å"the contributions of scientific disciplines to health promotion and the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease through the development, communication and application of new knowledge.†The definition does not suggest, however, the existing knowledge and experiences are cast aside, in preference of more current findings. It implies that existing knowledge, experience and data can be used to further advance or develop new methods of inquiry and new approaches for the clinical setting. Two topics of interest in clinical science today are those of exer cise and sports psychology. Exercise is an increasingly important topic, as more Americans face health issues, due to sedentary lifestyles. Benefits of regular exercise are linked to longevity and holistic wellbeing of a person. Sports psychology is an important topic, as it provides insight into how top athletes develop and how they are able to become the best and fiercest competitors. This report will investigate how a physical activity program and visualization techniques can be coupled, to improve overall fitness. â€Å"Numerous athletes are turning towards mental imagery to take their game to the next level†(Plessinger, 2011). Understanding how athletes use imagery can help those who adopt a regular exercise program achieve the results they desire. Research Method The method of research used for this report is inquiry into current literature on both the benefits of regular exercise and the benefits of visualization in exercise. Data collected from literature includes sc ientific journals on exercise and sports performance, with the inclusion of reports available on the internet, which focus on health benefits of exercise and the benefits of visualization in sports. Key words used to find relevant literature include visualization in sports, benefits of regular exercise, mental imagery in sports, science in exercise and use of mental imagery in competition. The databases used for journal articles are Academic Search Premier, for articles in Journal of Sports Behavior and Ebscohost, for Journal of Physiological Anthropology. Ebscohost is also used for the Book by Carol W. Kraak and Vivica I. Articles pertaining to sports performance were also obtained directly from the Vanderbilt University, Psychology Department website and from the University of Minnesota, Department of Medicine site. Findings Physical Exercise With realization on benefits of regular exercise comes the pressure of incorporating exercise program into already over-crowded and busy dai ly routines. This means that maximal benefits are sought under the shortest span possible, predisposing one to risk of injury and chronic fatigue. Therefore, there is need to formulate a proper working out program. It is of great importance that before commencing an exercise program, one should consult with a clinical physician or a qualified sports physician. This takes
Federal Subsidized Housing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words
Federal Subsidized Housing - Essay Example The CHA is governed by commissioners who are appointed by the mayor. The first Executive Director of the CHA was Elizabeth Wood. Who served for 17 years. During the Wood years the CHA became immersed in perpetuating an obvious pattern of institutional racism: The federal Housing Act of 1937 in conjunction with the Chicago Public Works Administration were successful in completing four low-rise (two to four story building prior to World War II. Three of these projects were opened in 1938: Jane Adams House, on the near west side, comprising of 32 buildings which housed 1,027 families; Julia C, Lanthrop Homes on the north side housed 925 families and Trumbull Park Homes on the far south side for 426 families. These three complexes were built primarily for whites (although 2.5 per cent or 60 units were set aside for African Americans). In 1940 The CHA embarked on a pattern which would later be challenged as a social, moral and legal travesty. In 1941 the CHA completed construction of its first public housing project exclusive for African Americans and situated it in the heart of an African American (Ghetto) neighborhood. The Ida B. Wells House was considerably larger than the CHA’s previous projects, and it accommodated 1,662 families.... a myth which permeated every (white) neighborhood in Chicago. Not only did the CHA promote its promulgation on the local level, the federal government under the"Neighborhood Composition Rule", gave tacit approval for the furtherance of institutional racism, when it stipulated: that the tenants of a housing development be of the same race as the people in the area in which it was situated. (Hilliard1966) Many northerners took a special type of "white" pride in decrying the antics and overt racism of their southern brothers, while declaring that they (northern whites) were all liberals, who believed in the absolute provisions of the Declaration of Independence, The Bill of Rights and the Constitution, which provides human and civil rights for all men, regardless of their race or skin color. In his pre World War II study of the race situation in America, Gunnar Myrdal presented his findings on the heightened hypocrisy which existed in the souls and minds of most white Americans in general and in this instance of Chicagoans in particular; Another form of discrimination in the North against Negroes is in the market forHouses and apartments; whites try to keep Negroes out of white neighborhoods by Restrictive covenants. The legality of these covenants is open to dispute, but in soFar as the local courts uphold them, the discrimination is in the legal principle, not In the individual cases brought to court. (Myrdal 527)This study by Myrdal is required reading (at least passages and
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Interactive Whiteboards Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Interactive Whiteboards - Essay Example "And the color, movement, sound and participation all come without messy chalk, stinky dry erase markers and copies of transparencies" (par. 2). Interactive whiteboards offer tremendous benefits not only for students, but also for teachers. They assist "people of many learning styles and save teachers time and space. Lessons can be saved into the system and can easily incorporate countless videos, maps, photos and websites. Teachers can pause videos and write notes on the screen, science classes can explore frogs through virtual dissection and geometry figures can be rotated, shrunk or expanded" (par. 18). In short, they make classroom instruction more efficient and learning more fun and interesting. The ability to harness the power, depth and breadth of the internet in this manner offers infinite new ways to try and reach out to students to grab their attention and improve their understanding of the material. There are many examples of ways in which this new technology has been and can be applied within the classroom. "Teachers can put a pyramid on the board and turn it so the class can see all the angles and sides. Students can count vertices by touching them on the board and setting them off in another color. Teachers can bounce between editing a paper on the board to searching for something online to illustrating what 1/16th of an inch looks like on a ruler" (par. 4). Any subject from math to literature to art and music can greatly benefit from these cybertronic chalkboards. This emerging hardware technology is significant because of its potential to revolutionize classrooms and teaching approaches. In the past, classroom instruction has tended to be one dimensional, very static, and non-interactive. Teachers would write on chalkboards or overhead slides, and would often be confined to the limited universe of often out-of-date instructional aids and materials to which they happened to have access. The ability of students to actively participate in a lesson, beyond raising their hand to answer the teacher's questions or make comments in a class discussion, was quite limited. With interactive whiteboards, teachers have the ability to take their lessons "outside of the box." Virtually any material available on the internet that pertains to the subject matter being taught can be summoned right then and there during a classroom lesson. This enables a much more detailed, nuanced and up-to-date discussion of the material. Further, students have a much greater opportunity to participate in the lesson in a meaningful way in which they can really interact with and digest the material. For example, at Centerville Elementary School in Minnesota, the technology prompted students to utilize their down time more productively, gathering around the board to review the material that had been taught earlier. "Using their fingers they dragged numbers on the screen into blank spots on a triangle as part of a math problem. When it's time for the class to leave for their next activity, one student pleads to the teacher, 'Can we check if it's right before we go'" (par. 11). As part of a literature lesson at the same school, teacher Tony Valenti used the device to bring to life the book
Federal Subsidized Housing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words
Federal Subsidized Housing - Essay Example The CHA is governed by commissioners who are appointed by the mayor. The first Executive Director of the CHA was Elizabeth Wood. Who served for 17 years. During the Wood years the CHA became immersed in perpetuating an obvious pattern of institutional racism: The federal Housing Act of 1937 in conjunction with the Chicago Public Works Administration were successful in completing four low-rise (two to four story building prior to World War II. Three of these projects were opened in 1938: Jane Adams House, on the near west side, comprising of 32 buildings which housed 1,027 families; Julia C, Lanthrop Homes on the north side housed 925 families and Trumbull Park Homes on the far south side for 426 families. These three complexes were built primarily for whites (although 2.5 per cent or 60 units were set aside for African Americans). In 1940 The CHA embarked on a pattern which would later be challenged as a social, moral and legal travesty. In 1941 the CHA completed construction of its first public housing project exclusive for African Americans and situated it in the heart of an African American (Ghetto) neighborhood. The Ida B. Wells House was considerably larger than the CHA’s previous projects, and it accommodated 1,662 families.... a myth which permeated every (white) neighborhood in Chicago. Not only did the CHA promote its promulgation on the local level, the federal government under the"Neighborhood Composition Rule", gave tacit approval for the furtherance of institutional racism, when it stipulated: that the tenants of a housing development be of the same race as the people in the area in which it was situated. (Hilliard1966) Many northerners took a special type of "white" pride in decrying the antics and overt racism of their southern brothers, while declaring that they (northern whites) were all liberals, who believed in the absolute provisions of the Declaration of Independence, The Bill of Rights and the Constitution, which provides human and civil rights for all men, regardless of their race or skin color. In his pre World War II study of the race situation in America, Gunnar Myrdal presented his findings on the heightened hypocrisy which existed in the souls and minds of most white Americans in general and in this instance of Chicagoans in particular; Another form of discrimination in the North against Negroes is in the market forHouses and apartments; whites try to keep Negroes out of white neighborhoods by Restrictive covenants. The legality of these covenants is open to dispute, but in soFar as the local courts uphold them, the discrimination is in the legal principle, not In the individual cases brought to court. (Myrdal 527)This study by Myrdal is required reading (at least passages and
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
Program Design of an Outpatient Adolescent Prevention Essay Example for Free
Program Design of an Outpatient Adolescent Prevention Essay The adolescence stage is often characterized as the stage of maturing from childhood to adulthood. This stage of maturing commonly occurs at the age of 12 for males and 14 for females. This is where significant developments in both physical and mental abilities of an individual begin to happen as early signs of puberty stage. This is the moment where a person or an individual starts to operate according to his or her own personal views in life and practice independence from their guardians. Furthermore, adolescence is the stage of trials where teenagers are expected to be active in doing things that differ from the usual, which will satisfy their urges due to their growing curiosity. Professionals normally define adolescence as the most critical stage of growing up. This is where an invidual experiences sudden changes in sexual drives, acquire mood swings, develop relationship with the opposite gender, and encounter different kinds of difficulties in shool and at home. Apart from these technical defiinitions of adolescence stage, it is also the stage where young people from 12 to 19 years old start to be involved in different types of substance abuse (Answers.com Health, 2008).            There are different kinds of substance abuse that adolescence are faced with, namely, cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs. These are the most popular substances of modern time amongst teenager. According to recent reasearch archives, data shows that alcohol and drug abuse are the most common substance that teenagers abuse. In 2006, there was 1.2 million adolescents from 12 to 17 years old who smoked cigerettes; 631,000 drank alcohol; and 586,000 experienced drug dependency (Focus Adolescent Services, 2008).            This data clearly indicates that most of young individuals in the puberty stage are involved to these kinds of abuses. Figures mentioned show that drug abuse has the lowest percentage of abuse among the three substances. Continuous efforts and programs to decrease the number of adolescents involved in drug dependency is constantly needed because of the high potential hazardous effect it can cause to the life of young individuals.            Moreover, efforts and supportive programs are implemented over the years, considering the serious effect that drug abuse can cause on the lives of the youth. Because of the active campaign to battle adolescents drug dependency, success is evident in positive results that show the decreasig number of young ones involved in drugs.            One effective way of treatment for adolescent drug dependency is by means of drug rehabilitation centers. This is the traditional method for treating drug dependency among individuals. These centers are characterized as the special environment for drug abusers coming from different backgrounds, who are advised to stay in the facility for a certain period of time to achieve the needed treatment for addiction. These treatments include detoxification and counselling for possible success of recovery from drug dependents (theraphistunlimited.com outpatient). In addition, drug rehabilitation centers gurantee to properly address the needed medications of drug addicts through effective programs conducted by professional doctors, psychiatrists and counsellors.            Aside from the traditional way of drug rehabilitation, another possible way to properly address the abuse of drugs among teenagers is through outpatient rehabilitation. This program has the same purpose of addressing needed medications for adolescent drug abusers. However, with this type of program, patients no longer need to stay inside the rehabilitation center to get needed attention from addiction to recover from drug abuse. Basically, outpatient rehabilitation is like a live-in residential program that is usually done at home (theraphistunlimited.com outpatient). Although outpatient program is advisable for minor cases only, it has a big potential to be as effective as the traditional rehabilitation center. With the proper formulation and implementation of this program for adolescents involved in drug abuse, outpatient program can be a reliable way to properly address drug abuse among teenager. Furthermore, this type of program is advisable to ensure continuous recovery of the patient after undergoing treatment in a rehabilitation center (theraphistunlimited.com outpatient).            In accordance with the concept of outpatient rehabilitation program, I designed a program design for outpatient adolescents who engage in drug abuse. This program is formulated to contribute on the ongoing campaign to lower the rate of adolescents that are suffering from drug abuse. The main objective of this program is to protect the adolescents from the risk of further deterioration of drug abuse. Drug dependency in the puberty stage is a critical issue that needs to be addressed. Nevertheless, this program will make its own contribution to ease the problem of drug abuse. It will focus on rehabilitative works for adolescents to further effect recovery from drug abuse and addiction. Outpatient rehabilitation may be advisable among adolescents with minor drug abuse only. However, the program will also serve as a safety measure to ensure the effectivity of the rehabilitation center towards full recovery of the patient. Furthermore, the target of this program are the teenagers who have undergone treatment in rehabilitation centers for treatment of drug abuse. With this design, adolescents will be advised to attend a program that will keep them interested to stay away from drugs and show them positive outcome of recovering from drug abuse.            With the understanding that teenagers are having a hard time recovering from drug abuse, the design of this outpatient program will protect the iniatives done by the decisive adolescents to recover from drug abuse. Also, through this program, patients will get the guarantee of effective service to help regain composure as they start to work their way to be part of the community again. Furthermore, this program will work to maintain the momentum of affecting change towards full recovery of adolescents from drug abuse. Its service will be characterized as a further rehabilitative medication for adolescents.            To be an effective outpatient rehabilitation program for adolescents, the program is composed of major features to address accordingly the needed treatment for drug abuse. First on the list is to empower family support. This is to explain to the family that their efforts and care is needed for the recovery of the patient. Second, the Comprehensive Education about drugs, which will give the patient the needed information about the proper use of drugs and its negative effect to the body if abused. With this, adolescents may understand that abusing drugs can cause serious effects in their health. Third is counselling and sessions with a former adolescent drug abuser who succesfully recovered from addiction. The primary purpose of which is to inspire the patient to work hard for recovery and instill positive views to stop drug abuse for a better life and future. Fourth is the Recretional Activity, which aims to give the patient a chance to be involved in various acitivities to regain confidence that will help him or her start a new life after engaging in drug addiction. Fifth is the Religious exercise. With this, adolescent drug abusers may realize the bright side of living a new life. Last of the features is regular check-ups of physician and psychiatrist to address proper medication and record the improvement of the patient. References  Focusas Adolescent (2008) Drugs and Teen Substance Abuse: Retrieved April 3 2008:            http://www.focusas.com/substanceabuse.html Narconon. (2007). What is a Drug Rehabilitation Center. Retrieved April 3 2008 from            http://www.narcononstonehawk.com/what_is_drug_rehab.php  theraphistunlimited.com outpatient(2008), Outpatient Drug Rehabilitation: Retrieved april 3, 2008     from http://therapistunlimited.com/index/Articles/Therapy++Rehab+Services/Outpatient Answers.com Health. (2008). Adolescence. Retrieved April 3, 2008, from            http://www.answers.com/topic/adolescence?cat=health
Monday, October 14, 2019
Health Essays Power Empowertment Promotion
Health Essays Power Empowertment Promotion Power and empowerment in health promotion: Discuss the implications of power and empowerment in community based health promotion. Chronic disease is now a major concern for the western world. No longer are infectious and acute diseases the leading causes of death in the UK, but chronic diseases such as cancers and obesity related disorders have now taken over as the biggest health threats to the general population. Many chronic disorders are a result, to some degree, of behavioural factors like lifestyle choices or diet. Lung cancer from smoking and Type II Diabetes through poor diet (obesity) and sedentary lifestyle are prime examples of the link between modern life and a shift towards chronic disease. As a result of this partially behavioural foundation to illness, there is the opportunity to change open to many people, and ultimately the ability to improve health and health outcomes such as life expectancy or quality of life. Health can thus be seen to be potentially determined by our actions. One way of letting people know what they should be doing to stay healthy or to improve their health is through health promotion. As set out in the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion (WHO, 1986), health promotion can be defined as the process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve their health. To reach a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, an individual or group must be able to identify and to realize aspirations, to satisfy needs, and to change or cope with the environment. The strategies used in health promotion programmes have been reported as diverse, through engaging in; awareness, information provision, influencing social policy, fighting for change and intervention type programmes. (Speller et al 1997) Traditionally health promotion has focused around education, prevention and protection interventions (Tannahill, 1985) and has been designed, implemented and evaluated from a top-down approaches and programmes. This is where behaviour change is generally the focus of outcome, and the issues that are being investigated are set by some form of authority, like a local health authority or even at a national level through the Government. Top down is thus where a small number of select people make the choices for people lower down the chain effectively a minority with power over the majority. Health promoters who operate in this capacity can thus be seen to hold and exert power over the population or different communities through their setting of the health promotion programmes, and through acting as gatekeepers of the information they choose to share. People in such decision-making positions may also have control over issues such as resource allocation and funding or who is given decision-making responsibilities (Laverack Laonte, 2000) and all of these factors work to take away power from the grass-roots / individual level. Real power is possessed by those who define the problem. (McKnight, 1999) Decision makers such as health promoters or authorities that dictate what people need, and what they can and cannot have in relation to health information, promotion and intervention also exert power over the population through creating individual dependency on health professionals for maintaining and responsibility for their health and wellbeing. The Ottawa Charter highlighted the need for health promotion to move beyond what is an essentially person-passive approach of receiving health promotion information and interventions, to one where individuals are enabled to become much more active participants with greater control over their health and well-being, and through instigating greater action on a community and group level. A concept known as empowerment with roots in social psychology constructs such as self-efficacy and health locus of control, refers to processes of social interaction of individuals and groups, which aim at enabling people to enhance their individual and collective skills and the scope and range of controlling their lives. (Erben, Franzkowiak Wenzel, 2000) Empowerment can thus occur at both individual and group levels, such as within communities. The basis of empowerment is essentially associated with the so-called bottom-up approach to health promotion (where the decision making process begins at the individual or group level, and these ideas are taken up the chain for approval and implementation) which has given focus to issues of concern to particular groups or individuals, and regards some improvement in their overall power or capacity as the important health outcome. (Laverack Labonte, 2000) Empowerment is seen as a particularly important strategy in enabling more marginalized groups of society, those who may be powerless in many other aspects of their lives as well as in regards to control over their health (Bergsma, 2004). The Ottawa Charter (WHO,1986) outlined the 8 fundamental pre-requisites it believed were necessary for attaining improvement in health and well-being; peace, shelter, education, food, income, a stable natural environment, sustainable resources, and lastly social justice and equity. People from marginalized groups or those who are from a lower socio-economic-status (SES) background may have the basics of these elements, but not in the quantities or to the levels of those from higher SES groups. Difficulties in these areas that are common amongst marginalized and low SES groups each in themselves have implications for health (Bergsma, 2004). Low income families are more likely to have an unhealthier and less nutritious diet. This is thought to stem from financial considerations of buying some foods, but may also be a consequence of poorer education. Low SES neighborhoods are also generally found to be more stressful places to live. Higher crime rates, poorer community facilities and educational institutions have the potential of confounding the problem further. Types of work amongst different SES groups can affect health some of the blue-collar jobs types associated with low SES groups are catergorised as some of the most stressful work environments; those with low control and low decision authority such as factory work are thought more stressful than typical white-collar jobs like managerial work. Stress is well established as linked to poorer health through work like PNI (psychoneuroimmunology) where psychological stress can be translated by the body into physiological responses and cause short-term and long-term health problems (Karasek, Baker, Marxer, Ahlborn Thorell, 1981) as well as psychological distress. As factors such as low income (money worries) crime rates (living in dangerous neighborhoods) and work all and feelings of powerlessness and have the potential to cause high levels of stress, those that are experiencing a good number of these factors are likely to have poorer health (Bergsma, 2004) than those who do not have such worries or uncontrollable stressors. These factors can thus be seen to be to a large extent, difficult to control, and as such people can feel powerless to make any changes in regards to such difficulties, either through feeling that they would be unable to make any change especially making change as a lone individual (Erben, Franzkowiak Wenzel, 2000) or where through education or poor health people are not aware of what changes could help them, or being in a position to take any action. It is for reasons such as these that research have found that change in knowledge did not necessarily translate into behaviour change through action, or ultimately improved health of those within health promotion education programmes. Health promotion at an individual level may thus not be effective for all individuals who come to the education or intervention with different experiences or backgrounds. Educational level may dictate the level to which people can understand health promotion campaigns or the medical reasons why they may need to alter their behaviour. Health education promotion may also be unable to interest everyone due to the different motivations for change that people may have someone who is struggling to pay the mortgage bills to keep their house may have less motivation to ensure they are eating healthily to make sure they do not develop diabetes. These individual differences in regards to health may exert a potentially large detrimental effect on the efficacy of health promotion programmes when decision making in regards to targeted behaviour, resource allocation etc, have been made without consultation with those the intervention is designed for, as is the case in typically top-down programming approaches. Some authors have however argued that top-down and bottom-up programmes for health promotion need not necessarily operate on a mutually exclusive basis. (Laverack Labonte, 2000) These authors argue that the way in which bottom-up approaches can be incorporated into top-down programmes is through more subtle targeting of behaviours for change. The example provided by Laverack Labonte (2000) is through concern more with the group members experiences of empowerment in terms of the quality of their social relationships and self-identities than with changes in specified health behaviours. Programmes with this focus may create an environment conducive to, and a support network for people to begin to critically evaluate their health behaviour. A study involving a sample of lower income women and their concerns about themselves (body image, parental ability, managing household budgets etc) found that within the supportive environment of the group, the women began to perceive they had more control over their situation and through this an increased feeling of self-esteem through which they began to evaluate health concerns such as smoking. (Labonte, 1996; Kort 1990) In this capacity health promoters and authorities can retain control of resources and project design, although the direction of the project will be guided by a need raised by the community. Greater priority is thus gained from understanding what a group or community needs through its participation in early stages, and not assuming what may be effective (Laverack Labonte, 2000). Through this kind of design stra tegy the powerless are becoming empowered to participate in the orientation and type of health promotion they receive. Empowerment within health promotion can thus be seen to involve enabling people to take more control over their health, through teaching them the skills they need to do this; developing self-efficacy (confidence in ones ability to perform / complete a task) decision making and problem solving skills, and life skills like communication, in general. Empowerment reestablishes the individual with autonomy over their health. (Hubley, 2002) Implications of empowering people on an individual level with their health, means that people have the chance to assess what is important to them, and to be in a position of making an informed choice about what they could do to improve or resolve their health problem, and to have the skills and knowledge of knowing where to start in the correction process if they come to the decision that they do want to change. Giving someone the capacity to make an informed choice over their health does not however guarantee that they will always make the same choices as health promoters or authorities may wish them to, simply that the power has been given back to them on deciding how to proceed. Empowered individuals may subsequently decide to give up drinking but continue smoking for example. There will be consequences of individual decisions at higher levels resulting from empowerment; those that continue to engage in unhealthy behaviours that have also received empowering health promotion interventions have used health promotion resources as well as potentially needing healthcare resources such as hospital stays, surgery or palliative care later on in their life as a result of behaviours they engage in. People may also experience guilt and psychological distress after making decisions that result in a poor health outcome, or may feel under stress from the responsibility of making choices that can affect their health. Those that through empowerment have taken positive action in regards to their health may reduce their future needs for resources from the health service, and may spread knowledge such as health dieting and exercise engagement with their family and friends. There are therefore both positive and negative implications for enabling people to take the driving seat in decision-making for their health. Western contemporary society does however favor the notion of personal control rather than state control, and this therefore is complimentary to the notion of health empowerment within the health promotion perspective. Personal empowerment can be complemented through community empowerment. This model from a bottom-up approach, takes into account the many social inequalities that exist within society, and the effect that such inequalities have on the health outcomes for minority / marginalized or low SES groups, and the extent to which they can bring about change in themselves and their situations socially. Community empowerment looks at re-establishing peoples power in relation to these factors at a social and community level that is theoretically proposed as benefiting health. A community can be defined as a geographical construct, but can also relate to a group of people who share a sense of social identity, common norms, values, goals and institutions. (Bergsma, 2004) The community empowerment construct seeks to help people develop these skills within small groups or communities, in order to allow them to be in a position to participate in the decision making process within their wider community, over issues that will affect their health and their lives and control over personal, social, economic and political forces in order to take action to improve their lives. (Israel et al, 1994) One way through which communities can do this is through participatory action research, which is when professionals work in collaboration with communities to define issues, designing the research questions gathering and evaluating the data, and designing resolutions to the problems investigated and finally in acting out the change required. (Gebbie, Rosenstock Hernandez, 2002) Action within a community setting towards health is one of the five principles that were outlined in the Ottawa Charter, as the WHO believed that people needed to hold some degree of control over their living and working conditions in order to develop lifestyles conducive to health, (WHO, 1986) as community empowerment health promotion allows individuals to gain mastery and impact the social, environmental ad economic conditions that determine their health (Bergsma, 2004). Implications of working from a community empowerment model within a bottom-up health promotion strategy, can be seen to be more informed decision makers within health authorities and those in charge of resource allocation, through being better informed about community level need through the use of local knowledge. Through this strategy a number of positive implications are potentially viable in comparison to tradition top-down programmes. Decisions based on local knowledge of need are likely to result in better health change and outcome as resources are more appropriately targeted with a better understanding of the people the services are aimed at. Closer collaboration between health authorities and communities is likely to create stronger collaborative relationships, which can create an environment of trust and openness. This has positive implications two ways, firstly through a more open relationship individuals within a community may more honestly assess their health behaviours and need through which authorities will be able to target resources even more efficiently. Within the community itself, collaborative work will continue to empower individuals allowing community participation to evolve to higher capabilities over time. On the more negative side, community empowerment initiatives that do not reflect the community perspective are likely to be construed as a waste of time by those who have participated, and this may cause distrust within the community towards health authorities and future health promotion initiatives, through the community disengaging with the health authority, health services, or future research, or resisting health promotion programmes. In summary, traditional top-down health promotion programmes can be seen to have operated in a way in which a minority had power over those which it aimed to help, through the control it exerted in regards to targeting health behaviours for change, resource allocation, information gate keeping, and dependency of health professionals to make decisions over individual health. This is compounded further for groups who are already marginalized within society, who have little control over other aspects of their living and working conditions, which have the potential to influence their health status power is associated with health to the extent to which those with the least power, have the poorest health. Bottom-up approaches to health promotion have begun to readdress the balance of power, through the use of empowerment strategies on both an individual and community level, in order to get people back involved (and capable) of making decisions about their health. It is found that empowerment on both these levels has a number of implications (positive and negative) for the individual and society in general, although it is felt that empowerment is more conducive to our notion of what society should be, and the power that individuals should have of making informed decisions over their own health. 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