The Ottawa Charter constitutes a major turning point in the world’s vision of health, resources and the strategies to be implemented in order to respond to the populations expectations in this field. However, these expectations are no longer limited to the conventional biomedical concept of health, strongly care-oriented and focused on diseases. They currently integrate prevention of diseases and health promotion. Five main strategic actions have been identified to achieve these goals: 1) elaboration of public health policies; 2) creation of supportive environments; 3) strengthening of community actions; 4) development of individual skills; and 5) reorientation of health services. Almost 3 decades after the Ottawa Charter, what is the real orientation of health services in relation to health promotion? To answer this question, we will discuss the results of this approach, while analysing the multiple elements and factors that have contributed to these results, largely considered to have a mixed record in the literature.

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