Curricular implications of health promotion and disease prevention in allied health education

Abstract

Several recent articles have addressed the role of allied health professionals in health promotion and disease prevention (HP/DP). The consensus is that allied health professionals are on the threshold of making major contributions to the HP/DP initiative. The focus of these contributions usually centers on the role of allied health professionals in clinical settings and the traditional medical-model emphasis on direct patient contact. In addition, there is discussion of the programmatic changes that will be required to meet the challenge of integrating health promotion concepts, knowledge, and skills into current professional curricula. The purpose of this paper is to examine critically the rationale behind providing HP/DP education for allied health professionals and to discuss the implications of such education for professional preparation programs.