Health Education in Italy: Towards An Increasingly Active Citizen’s Role. A Historical Overview with a Focus on Perugia's Experience
Authors
Vincenza Gianfredi
School of Specialization in Hygiene and Preventive Medicine, Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Perugia
Valeria Parisi
University of Milan
Nicola Luigi Bragazzi
Department of Health Science - Section of History of Medicine and Ethics,
University of Genoa
Mariano Martini
Department of Health Science - Section of History of Medicine and Ethics,
University of Genoa
Lialiana Minelli
Department of Experimental Medicine, Experimental Centre for Health
Promotion and education, University of Perugia
Daniele Nucci
Digestive Endoscopy Unit
Veneto Institute of Oncology IOV – IRCSS
Keywords:
Migrant Health, Web , Health Promotion and Education, Empowerment
Abstract
We provide a historical overview of the evolution of the concept of health promotion and education in Italy, focusing especially on the experience of the “Experimental Centre for Health Promotion and Education” (CeSPES), University of Perugia. By reviewing the documents and the scientific production of the CeSPES, we describe its achievements and contributions to the field, as well as its future prospects. New digital infrastructures and information and communication technologies (ICTs) could offer, indeed, unprecedented possibilities for actively involving and empowering citizens and patients, even though there is an urgent need to validate the online health-related material, which is sometimes of poor quality and misleading. The training of health education professionals still remains a priority, in that training is central not only to increase citizen’s health literacy, but also to promote their empowerment, as well as to cope with new challenges, such as those imposed by migrants and the Web.
