Prevention is also widely underutilized until it is too late. Approaches that ignore problems until symptoms require treatment can be iatragenic, that is, secondary problems can arise during treatment, such as unrelated infections and side effects from medication. Other possible secondary problems include excessive criminalization or overcrowded medical emergency rooms. Also, since recovery does not always equal health, those who are survivors or victims may never reach the state of health they had before an incident occurred. Finally, approaches that address problems after they have occurred tend to be more expensive than preventive strategies.
Effective prevention requires proactive strategies.
The Spectrum of Prevention is a systematic tool which promotes a multifaceted range of activities for effective prevention. It was originally developed by Larry Cohen and based on the work of Marshall Swift in treating developmental disabilities. It has been used nationally in a wide range of prevention initiatives including traffic safety, violence prevention, tobacco prevention, nutrition, and fitness. The Spectrum identifies six levels of intervention which move beyond an educational approach to strategy development. These levels are complementary and when used together produce a synergy which results in greater effectiveness than would be possible by implementing any single activity or linear initiative.