Hello everyone,
I thought I’d use this section of the blog to share some of my career history with you. Have a look through and you will hopefully gain an insight into some of the exciting and diverse work that health promotion specialists can be involved in! Of course, please do make contact with me if you would like to chat further about the ‘ins and outs’ of working in the field…I have plenty of experience and I’m more than happy to share it with you.
I completed my Degree in Human Movement Studies in the UK back in 1991 and have worked in the field of Health Promotion (HP) for almost 25 years (This makes me sound really old!). I was fortunate to obtain a position as a Health Promotion Officer upon graduating, and I spent the first 4 years of my career working for the National Health Service in a Public Health Unit. Under the banner of Coronary Heart Disease ( yes, very much a medical model!) I was involved in exercise projects, healthy eating initiatives and lots and lots of tobacco related activities. A few years of “topic based health promotion” was followed by a few years of “setting based health promotion” as the UK tried to decide what direction health promotion needed to move in. Of course, back then the Ottawa Charter had recently been released and I was excited to be part of the new and growing movement called ‘Health Promotion’. If you have ever had difficulties trying to explain what HP is – fear not, as a discipline we all still struggle with defining what HP actually is!! So, after a couple of years in my settings role (workplace setting) I decided that Australia had much more to offer and I came here in 1996 with a Post Graduate Diploma in Health Promotion tucked safely into my backpack.
I worked for Qld Cancer Council for 4 years and developed a real interest in skin cancer prevention and early detection – I ended up studying help seeking behaviour relating to melanoma in men over 50 years for my Masters thesis, and also used my 4 years in this position to further develop a range of HP skills such as networking, grant writing, project management, social marketing skills and policy development. Towards the end of my time at the Cancer Council, I became more involved in women’s health and when a health promotion opportunity presented itself at Family Planning Qld (FPQ), well I jumped in with both feet!
Fifteen years later, my passion for sexuality and sexual health promotion is as strong as ever. After a long career at FPQ ( where I developed a real interest in sexuality and disability), I moved over to Qld Health where I managed the HIV, Hepatitis and Sexual Health State Strategy for Far North Qld. I completed my Doctoral research in the field of female sexuality and I am an active researcher in this field as well as as a Senior Lecturer in Health Promotion.
I really hope you enjoy your placement this term, and I look forward to reading about your experiences on your blog!
Cathy.
Health Promotion in Practice 