Self Care

"Health promotion involves education, policy, and support that helps us to make health choices and promote positive behavior and self-care. Self-care and health promotion include health prevention practices, primary prevention such as brushing our teeth, breast and testicular self-exams and vaccinations, managing uncomplicated injuries or illnesses with self-diagnosis and treatment, and using home remedies and over-the-counter drugs. The World Health Organization defines self-care as what people do for themselves to establish and maintain health, and to prevent and deal with illness. It is a broad concept encompassing hygiene, nutrition, lifestyle, environmental factors, socioeconomic factors, and self-medication. Examples of self-care include recognizing symptoms or conditions that may not require a doctor’s visit, performing monthly breast and testicular self-exams, learning first aid for common uncomplicated injuries and conditions, checking blood pressure, pulse, and temperature, using home pregnancy tests, ovulation kits and HIV test kits, checking blood cholesterol, using home stool test kits for early colon cancer detection, using self-help books, tapes, websites, and videos, and benefiting from relaxation techniques, nutrition, rest, and exercise. Formal care is accessing a local provider through a community or privatized hospital, clinic, or medical practice. Health care professionals often need to be consulted if there is a serious accident or injury, severe trauma, sudden onset of symptoms, or symptoms that are unusual and recur over time. Formal care is best and most effective when people are active participants and informed. A partnership between the patient and health care provider is desirable, and formal care is enhanced through health literacy."