Why is it worth implementing health programs
Every year, only 2% of the health care budget is spent on prevention and public health, while more than 90% is spent on remedial medicine. Taking into account the fact that in the vast majority of diseases prophylaxis is cheaper than treatment, the presented structure of expenditures seems to be highly unjustified. As research has shown, a large number of diseases can be prevented by maintaining a healthy lifestyle that affects health by as much as 52%. Healthy eating, regular physical activity or a sufficiently long sleep – these are only selected principles of proper hygiene of life, which should be followed if we want to keep our body in good condition. The health education itself in the field of a healthy lifestyle and its consistent adherence is of great importance in reducing the incidence of many diseases, and thus reducing the expenditure on remedial medicine. It was estimated that one zloty spent on prevention and health education means 5 PLN of savings spent on treatment. Therefore, any money intended for prevention will bring measurable benefits in terms of both public health and economic health.
The question of whether it is worth implementing health programs is being asked by many health policy makers in our country. Only and exclusively the decisive activity in this area of territorial self-governments, mainly communes, and, subsequently, poviats and voivodships, may contribute to changing the attitude of health authorities to the subject of prevention and allocating a larger amount for this purpose. The greatest benefits are brought by the implementation at the local level, because it is much easier to know the health needs of a smaller group of residents, they are also less diverse than, for example, health needs of all Polish citizens. The local level also enables the involvement of more people to participate in the health program and more effective access to them.
Each of us is a member of the chosen local community and these in turn make up the entire society of our country. Looking in this way, there is no doubt that it is worth implementing health programs. The health condition of the inhabitants of the local community affects the health of all Poles. Therefore, the task and responsibility of local governments is to take care of the health and safety of their residents and provide them with good quality of life.