Spiritual_Wellness_Holistic_Health_and_the_Practic

CHAPTER
20
DEMOCRACY:
THE FIRST PRINCIPLE
OF HEALTH PROMOTING
SCHOOLS
A NDY A NDERSON
B ARBARA R ONSON
I n Canada, the premiers of each province and territory recently forged a Ten - Year
Plan to Strengthen Health Care. Within that plan, they committed to “ working across
sectors through initiatives such as Healthy Schools. This is excellent news. Leaders in
the art and science of “ health promotion ” have long been advocating the need to go
beyond the health care sector and build better partnerships with other sectors as one
means of improving the health of populations and communities. “ Healthy Cities ” and
“ Healthy Schools ” movements around the world are examples of efforts to improve
health in its full sense — including physical, mental, social and spiritual components —
through such collaboration. They have taught us, moreover, that partnerships need to
be built at the highest as well as the grass roots levels.
Countries around the world have found that when their ministers of education and
health work in genuine partnership for the well - being of their citizens, reflecting and