Building Awareness from Home for a Better Future

The COVID-19 pandemic provided a valuable lesson: health is not solely the concern of hospitals or medical personnel, but the responsibility of every individual, family, and community. Similarly, when floods, earthquakes, or other disasters strike, the first responders are not rescue workers but the family members present at the scene. This underscores that the family is the primary bastion for maintaining health and confronting various life threats. Unfortunately, public awareness regarding routine health checks, the implementation of Clean and Healthy Living Behaviour (PHBS), and disaster preparedness still requires significant strengthening. Many people only seek medical examinations when an illness has already caused serious complaints. Likewise, healthy living habits are often adopted only after a person experiences health problems. The core principle of public health is prevention rather than cure. Regular health screenings are one of the simplest yet most effective steps for the early detection of various diseases, such as hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and cholesterol disorders, which often develop without symptoms. Early detection increases the chances of successful treatment, reduces healthcare costs, and improves the quality of life. Conversely, late diagnosis typically makes treatment more difficult and expensive. However, maintaining health requires more than just routine check-ups. Clean and Healthy Living Behaviour (PHBS) is the fundamental foundation for building a productive society. Simple habits such as washing hands with soap, consuming a balanced diet, exercising regularly, using clean water, maintaining environmental sanitation, not smoking, and disposing of rubbish properly provide extraordinary health benefits. Ironically, PHBS practices are often considered trivial. Many people understand the importance of a healthy lifestyle but fail to make it a daily habit, even though most communicable and non-communicable diseases can be prevented through consistent behavioural changes. On another front, Indonesia faces challenges as a disaster-prone country. Earthquakes, floods, landslides, volcanic eruptions, and extreme weather are threats that occur almost annually in various regions. In such conditions, family preparedness is crucial for safety. Yet, a culture of disaster response has not grown evenly. Many families lack an evacuation plan, do not know rescue routes, and have not prepared emergency supplies for sudden disasters. Preparedness does not require significant expense. Recognising risks in one’s immediate environment, knowing emergency service numbers, preparing a go-bag with essential documents and basic necessities, and conducting evacuation simulations with family members are simple steps that can save many lives. From a public health perspective, health screenings, PHBS, and disaster preparedness are not standalone programmes. They are interconnected in building family resilience. A healthy family is better prepared to face a disaster, and a family with good preparedness can better protect its members during an emergency. Therefore, raising public awareness must be comprehensive. Health education should not be confined to healthcare facilities but must also be present in schools, places of worship, workplaces, and other social spaces. Easily understandable health information helps the public make informed decisions about their well-being. The role of Posyandu cadres, health workers, community leaders, and civil society organisations is also vital as agents of change at the grassroots level. They serve as a bridge between government programmes and the real needs of the community. A closer, more communicative approach makes health messages easier to accept and apply in daily life. Local governments need to continuously strengthen preventive health services through routine health checks, PHBS promotion, and community-based disaster preparedness training. Meanwhile, higher education institutions bear the responsibility of supporting these efforts through research, innovation, and community service that addresses local health challenges. Technological advancements also offer significant opportunities to improve health literacy. Social media, health applications, and digital platforms can be utilised as fast, wide-reaching, and accessible educational tools. However, the information disseminated must be evidence-based to avoid causing misunderstandings within the community. Ultimately, building a healthy society does not begin in hospitals, but at home. Families accustomed to regular health checks, implementing PHBS, and possessing disaster preparedness will give rise to a more resilient, productive, and high-quality society. Health is not an inheritance that can simply be passed on to the next generation. It is built through good habits practised every day. Similarly, resilience in the face of disaster is not born when calamity strikes, but is prepared long beforehand through knowledge, training, and collective care. It is time we view health and preparedness not as temporary programmes, but as a continuous way of life.