Pacific Health, School of Population Health, The University of Auckland, New Zealand.
Aust N Z J Public Health. 2020 Oct;44(5):404-409. doi: 10.1111/1753-6405.13027. Epub 2020 Aug 10.
Health promotion and health literacy activities within church congregations are not a new concept; however, this has not yet been widely researched in New Zealand. This paper explores the views of Samoan Methodist Church ministers about health-related issues and their role in health promotion and health literacy in their churches.
This was a qualitative research study with Samoan Methodist Church ministers from Auckland, New Zealand. Ten participants were interviewed face-to-face using a semi-structured approach. A general inductive approach for analysis of qualitative data was utilised. Ethics approval was granted by the University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee.
All of the church ministers described a holistic view of health and had a sense of responsibility for the holistic wellbeing of their members. Culture was seen as the main barrier to good health. Most of the ministers identified their role in health promotion as being associated with an external health provider.
Church ministers are well-respected leaders in the Samoan Church, which helps them play an important role in communicating health-promoting messages and encouraging healthy behaviours. The elders and chiefs are recognised as the cultural leaders in the church; without their support, the cultural barriers to health will be difficult to overcome. Implications for public health: Church ministers are important in health literacy messages and health promotion.
在教堂会众中开展促进健康和提高健康素养的活动并不是一个新概念；然而，在新西兰，这方面的研究还不多。本文探讨了萨摩亚卫理公会派教会牧师对与健康相关的问题的看法，以及他们在教会中促进健康和提高健康素养方面的作用。
这是一项对来自新西兰奥克兰的萨摩亚卫理公会派教会牧师进行的定性研究。采用半结构化方法对 10 名参与者进行了面对面访谈。采用了一种用于分析定性数据的一般归纳方法。奥克兰大学人类参与者伦理委员会批准了该研究。
所有的教会牧师都描述了一种整体的健康观，并对其成员的整体健康福祉有一种责任感。文化被视为健康的主要障碍。大多数牧师认为他们在促进健康方面的作用与外部健康提供者有关。
教会牧师在萨摩亚教会中是备受尊敬的领袖，这有助于他们在传播促进健康的信息和鼓励健康行为方面发挥重要作用。酋长和酋长被认为是教会中的文化领袖；如果没有他们的支持，克服健康方面的文化障碍将是困难的。对公共卫生的影响：教会牧师在健康素养信息和健康促进方面很重要。
