Giving a health talk

• Typically it takes place in a health centre or clinic, at the beginning of the day, when the patients have arrived. Health talks are also commonly given to the patients in a hospital ward. • The subject matter is decided upon by the health care staff, often in advance – they may have a programme worked out for the month. Often the subject matter is related to the medical programme for the day – for example, if it is the day for the glaucoma clinic the talk might deal with compliance. • The talk is usually given in the local language, which is good for communication. • Visual aids may be used – posters, or real objects like birth control tablets. • The popularity of health talks varies from country to country. In some countries they are not used at all, whereas in others they are used a lot. Often health centre staff members feel strongly that it is their duty to give these talks, because ‘health education’ is thought of as one of the elements of Primary Health Care. It is seen as a routine task like any other in the health centre, and is done more or less faithfully.