I NEED A POSITIVE COMMENT BASED IN THIS ARGUMENT. BETWEEN 150-200 WORDS

My idea of a healthy community is one where there are lowcrime rates and good physical and emotional health. A healthy community shouldpromote well-being of its inhabitants in various ways such as: strong socialnetworks, clean water, pollution-free air, affordable quality healthcare, andgreat schools. A healthy community is one that promotes well-being byencouraging its residents to screen for illnesses for prevention to avoid theburden of chronic disease.  Educationcampaign should be organized to sensitize people about the most commonillnesses and educate them on how to avoid them to achieve a better life.Resident should be aware of resources available to them in their community,allowing them to feel safe. In my opinion, there is a strong relationshipbetween healthy people and strong communities.

A collaborativeeffort is needed to promote a healthy community.  For example, I consider my community, Delta,British Columbia a fairly healthy community overall, compared to most. It has avery low crime rate. Delta municipality offers very good services to the publicregarding law enforcement, recreation, maintenance of public parks, recreationareas and centers. There is regular night patrolling of police in all areas.Public health services are extra ordinary in my community; community healthnurses identify vulnerable people from infant to senior, do regular healthvisits, follow- up regularly. Postnatal mothers and infants get very goodservices from public health nurses and paediatric nurses including theprovision of lots of free resources, Families with kids get reminder mails andphone calls from community health nurses before the immunizations are  due. There has been an improvement in air quality since the ban of smoking inall public areas and tobacco free environment in schools colleges, and publicplaces few years ago. The community offers a number of Public Health Centers,regional hospitals, great schools districts, public libraries, recreationcenters, fire stations, and police stations at walking distance for residentsof each community. There is also a variety of public parks, play ground andrecreation areas accessible to the general public at no cost or a small fee. Ibelieve in prevention and, in British Columbia and several agencies do a goodjob conducting campaigns raising awareness regarding air and water pollutionthroughout the year. Another excellent job is done by voluntary organizationsin the maintenance of each and every street in the community. In schoolsteachers and children participate in various health programs with school nursesand public health nurses. Some of the topics for creating awareness amongchildren are,

•Prevention of diseases through hand washing

•Protection of the environment

•Protection of heritage

•Safety

•Nutrition

Adolescents get health education regarding the ill effectsof smoking, alcohol, and illicit drug use. Teachers and school health nursesoffer sex education to them and provide relevant resources. In my view, thesetopics are essential for children because they grow up to be responsible futurecitizens who contribute positively to the family, community and nation.

In my view, healthy communities will have the followingcomponents in common,

•Peace and order

•Low crime rates

•Good education systems

•Low unemployment rates

•Healthy public

•A stable ecosystem

•Pollution free environment including air and water.

•Food for everyone in the community

•Shelter for all people who live in the community

•Social justice

•Adequate resources for all like water, farmland, minerals,industrial resources, plants, animals, etc.

•Creating awareness in people through health programs to maintainhealth and wellness.

As a result of increased awareness, many organizationsintroduced a variety of health programs nationwide. For example, AmericanPublic Health Association initiated strategies and programs that address thesocial determinants of health — the social, economic, environmental andpsychological factors that influence individual and community health, topromote healthy communities. (American Public Health Association. n .d.).

As a Community Health nurse, I would collaborate withothers, to identify the obstacles or barriers in the community and work toreduce or erase them to achieve the target of healthy community.  I would alsonetwork with community leaders, other public health nurses, volunteers, schoolnurses to promote health programs, initiate safety strategies, promoteeducation, provide as many resources available for health promotion, initiateprevention strategies, provide health education to all age groups in thecommunity in order to reach the goal of a healthy community.

Reference

American Public Health Association. (n .d.). HealthyCommunities. Retrieved from : www.apha.org/topics-and-issues/healthy-communities