Introduction

Careful planning is essential to the success of all health education activities. This study session is the first of two sessions that will help you to learn about ways in which you can plan your health education activities. In this study session, you will learn about the purpose of planning health education interventions, the basic concepts of planning, and what steps to take when you are planning. The study session will focus in particular on needs assessment, which is the first step in planning health education and promotion. You will learn about categories of needs and techniques that you can use when carrying out needs assessment.

You may have covered some aspects of planning in other modules such as the Health Management, Ethics and Research Module. However, planning in this study session refers specifically to the health education planning process (Figure 12.1).