PHE 6220 A Literature Review for A Public Health Problem
PHE 6220 A Literature Review for A Public Health Problem
Public health is the science of improving the well-being of communities through research, health programs, policies, and education. Unlike the health care field, public health is more about protecting entire populations (CDC Foundation, 2018). This could be something as small as a rural neighborhood, or as large as an entire country. Rather than treating existing medical issues, public health professionals try to prevent problems by promoting healthy lifestyles, designing outreach campaigns, and advising policymakers. They also work to eliminate health disparities by advocating for health care equity and accessibility.
A public health problem, therefore, is a medical issue that affects a significant portion of a specific population. Some examples include chronic illnesses like Type 2 diabetes, infectious diseases such as HIV and tuberculosis, mental health challenges, and even motor vehicle accidents. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), along with other government agencies, collect detailed information on the leading causes of death, injuries, illnesses, and risk factors for medical conditions to help keep track of these and other public health issues. Using this information, data analysts and statisticians can create raw statistics about diseases and mortality. Once a public health problem has been identified, medical experts and public health professionals band together to develop prevention techniques and educational materials that can be disseminated to the target population.
While every public health initiative is different in terms of funding and institutional support, most depend on the government in some way. For example, the mandatory immunization laws enacted in the U.S. during the late 1980s helped reduce the number of polio cases by 99.9% (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2019). Of course, these vaccines were developed by medical experts over years of research and development, which would not have been possible without the direct involvement of the World Health Organization, the CDC, the United Nations Children’s Fund, and other health organizations.
Top public health problems for the modern age
Despite the rapid advancement of medical treatments and technologies, there are still many public health problems plaguing industrialized nations around the world. According to a 2018 report from the CDC, the life expectancy for the U.S. population declined to 78.6 years in 2017 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018). The leading causes of death, which accounted for 74% of all mortalities, included:
- Heart disease
- Cancer
- Unintentional injuries
- Chronic lower respiratory diseases
- Stroke
- Alzheimer’s disease
- Diabetes
- Influenza and pneumonia
- Kidney disease
While these specific causes represent key public health concerns, there are a variety of medical issues and behaviors that contribute to their growing mortality rates. For example, individuals who are not physically active are often at higher risk of heart disease, stroke, and diabetes (American Heart Association, 2016). As such, raw statistics rarely paint a complete picture of health issues in America, which is why the CDC focuses on prevention-based initiatives and education programs. With that in mind, here are 5 of the top public health problems the CDC is currently tracking, both at home and abroad.