Health promotion: Ottawa Charter: practice question

A PSM question in the style of the NEET PG paper. Answer it first, then read why the right option is right and why each of the others is wrong.

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PSM · Health promotion: Ottawa Charter

Sample item

A national government legislates a ban on industrially produced trans fats in all packaged food. Under the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion, which action area does this represent?

Original practice item, not a recalled exam question. Nothing here is recorded.

The answer and the reasoning

B. Build healthy public policy

The Ottawa Charter of 1986 lists five action areas: build healthy public policy, create supportive environments, strengthen community action, develop personal skills and reorient health services. Laws that make the healthier choice the easier one are healthy public policy. They act at the level of the whole population instead of the individual.

Option by option

  • A. Strengthen community action

    Strengthening community action concerns empowering communities to set priorities and run initiatives.

  • B. Build healthy public policy (correct)

    Correct. A legislative ban is a healthy public policy measure.

  • C. Reorient health services

    Reorienting health services shifts services from curative to preventive and promotive care.

  • D. Develop personal skills

    Personal skills are developed through education and training of individuals, which is not what a ban does.

Source note: Original NextPrep sample item — pending expert review. This item is original practice material awaiting independent expert review, so confirm important facts in a standard textbook.

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Questions about this PSM question

What is the answer to this PSM question?

The best answer is B, Build healthy public policy. The Ottawa Charter of 1986 lists five action areas: build healthy public policy, create supportive environments, strengthen community action, develop personal skills and reorient health services.

Why is "Strengthen community action" not the answer?

Strengthening community action concerns empowering communities to set priorities and run initiatives.

Why is "Reorient health services" not the answer?

Reorienting health services shifts services from curative to preventive and promotive care.

Why is "Develop personal skills" not the answer?

Personal skills are developed through education and training of individuals, which is not what a ban does.

What concept does this question test?

It tests Health promotion: Ottawa Charter in PSM. Laws that make the healthier choice the easier one are healthy public policy. They act at the level of the whole population instead of the individual.

How hard is this question?

We tag it as an application question: it asks you to use a fact on a patient or a finding. The tag is our own editorial judgement, not an official difficulty rating, so read the reason for every option, not only the answer.

How should I study Health promotion: Ottawa Charter?

Practise biostatistics with small calculations until sensitivity, predictive values and risk measures are automatic. Then use the flashcards and the other PSM questions on this site to test what stuck.

Is this a real NEET PG question?

No. It is an original practice item (editorial status: sample, version 1). NextPrep does not publish recalled or leaked questions, and independent faculty review of this item has not been completed yet, so confirm important facts in a standard textbook.