Health promotion as a passion

She studied the Bachelor's degree programme in Health Management and Health Promotion and the Master's degree programme in Healthcare Management at University of Applied Sciences Burgenland, followed by a doctorate in Social and Economic Sciences at the Karl Franzens University of Graz.

She is a certified relaxation and mindfulness trainer and has been a university lecturer in the Department of Health at UAS Burgenland since 2019. In her teaching and research activities, she focuses on the areas of health promotion and health sciences and is involved in the continuous development of her department.

Since 2021, she has been providing her constantly growing community with scientifically sound yet practical content via social media, podcasts and other virtual communication channels. "Professor Szabo has completed all stages of the Health Promotion and Health Management degree programme. From student to research assistant and university lecturer. This enables her to teach students exactly what is of great relevance to them," emphasises Department Head Erwin Gollner.

Unlike many people, her interest in health was not "always there". Instead, it developed step by step during her youth. "My parents always did a lot of exercise with us, I can remember long bike rides, shooting hoops and trying out different sports on holiday. At secondary school, we always had very dedicated PE teachers who wanted to make the most of the few PE lessons we had," she recalls. However, she didn't think too much about the added health benefits back then. Conscious, healthy nutrition only became an important topic for the dedicated student during the course of her studies. She only began to actively promote mental health after the birth of her first son in 2018.

Even after years in the field, she remains enthusiastic about the topic of health promotion

Firstly, the holistic understanding of health. "When it comes to health, laypeople often only think of the physical dimension, and some may even think of the mental dimension as well. However, health promotion is based on a much broader understanding of health," she explains. Health promotion means strengthening physical, mental, emotional, social, spiritual and societal health. And there are no one-size-fits-all solutions. Instead, the aim is to empower people to find out what strengthens their own holistic health and how this can happen in everyday life.

Secondly, she appreciates the resource-orientated perspective: "Many people confuse health promotion with prevention and therefore have the mindset that it's about making sure they don't get sick. In reality, however, health promotion is based on the assumption that more health is always possible. Not being ill is not the same as experiencing comprehensive well-being."

What excites the new UAS professor about teaching?

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