The life-course approach and its stages in Colombian health policy
- Fundamental
Health at any age reflects everything a person has lived before, so care is planned for each life moment and for the transitions between them.
What it is
The life-course approach sees a person's development as a set of trajectories shaped over time by biology, family, culture, history and life events. Health at any age reflects not only present conditions but also earlier circumstances, from life in the womb onward, and advantages or disadvantages accumulate. Colombia's comprehensive care policy (PAIS) and its care routes adopt this approach and divide life into six moments: early childhood, childhood, adolescence, youth, adulthood and old age. The ages mark moments for planning care, but the approach stresses that life is a continuum and that age is also a social value, not only a number.
Key points
- Trajectory: the path a person follows through roles such as school, work, partnership or migration, with no fixed speed or order.
- Transition: a change of state or position within a trajectory, which requires adaptation, for example becoming a parent.
- Life events: favourable or unfavourable events that sharply change the course of life, such as the death of a loved one, violence or a disaster.
- Analytical principles named by MinSalud (after Elder): development over time, time and place, timing of events, linked lives and agency (free will).
Components
- Early childhood: gestation to 5 years in the RIAS manual; from 7 days to 5 years, 11 months, 29 days in Res. 3280.
- Childhood: 6 to 11 years.
- Adolescence: 12 to 17 years.
- Youth: 18 to 28 years.
- Adulthood: 29 to 59 years.
- Old age: 60 years and over.
What it is for
- Organises the care routes: each moment has its own consultations, screening, vaccination and education.
- Directs action to windows of opportunity, such as early childhood brain development.
- Links individual care with family and community care.
- Helps measure and monitor results by age group without losing the idea of a continuum.
The six life-course moments in Colombian health policy
| Moment | Ages | Focus of care |
|---|---|---|
| Early childhood | From 7 days to 5 years, 11 months, 29 days (Res. 3280) | Growth, development, nutrition, vaccination, upbringing |
| Childhood | 6 to 11 years | Development, learning, healthy habits, risk factors |
| Adolescence | 12 to 17 years | Autonomy, sexual and reproductive health, mental health |
| Youth | 18 to 28 years | Sexual and reproductive health, mental health, substance use, work |
| Adulthood | 29 to 59 years | Early detection of chronic disease and cancer, healthy lifestyles |
| Old age | 60 years and over | Functional capacity, frailty, cognition, active ageing |
In nursing practice
- A nursing assessment asks what transitions and life events the person and the family are going through.
- Education for adults and older people recognises the cumulative effects of earlier habits and exposures.
- Caring for a pregnant woman and her newborn protects the health of the next life moments.
- Different MinSalud documents use slightly different age limits; for route care, use the ages of Res. 3280 de 2018.
Common mistakes
- Treating each age as an isolated stage and ignoring the person's history.
- Using only chronological age and not the person's social roles and context.
- Using the age limits of another document when planning route care instead of those of Res. 3280 de 2018.
- Forgetting the family: lives are interconnected.
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
What are the six life-course moments in Colombian health policy?
Early childhood, childhood, adolescence, youth, adulthood and old age.
What ages does youth cover in Colombia's care routes?
From 18 to 28 years.
What is a transition in the life-course approach?
A change of state or position within a trajectory, such as marriage or retirement, which requires the person to adapt.
From what age does old age start in Colombian health policy?
From 60 years.
Elsewhere in DurgiPedia
Connections
Educational content for students; it does not replace your institution's protocols, supervised clinical training or a prescriber's order. Dose-calculation examples use made-up numbers: they are educational, not a clinical order.
Sources: Manual metodológico para la elaboración e implementación de las RIAS: enfoque de curso de vida y momentos del curso de vida (Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social, Colombia, 2016); Resolución 3280 de 2018: intervenciones por momento del curso de vida (Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social, Colombia, 2018); Curso de vida (Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social, Colombia, 2026).
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Representative model, for educational purposes only.