Chapter 1 Public Health

Disease Determinants

• Many factors combine to affect the health of individuals and communities.

• Health is determined by a combination of circumstances and environment.

Public Health Overview: Comprehensive Perspectives on Disease and Well-being

Key Concepts in Public Health

• Public Health Defined: Preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting overall well-being.

• Focus of Public Health: Emphasizes preventing illness through comprehensive approaches.

Disease Classification and Types

• Types of Diseases:

  • Communicable Diseases: Spread between people, animals, or through surfaces/food.

  • Non-Communicable Diseases: Chronic conditions not caused by infectious agents.

  • Injuries: Physical harm caused by external forces or violence.

Comprehensive Health Perspectives

• Eco-social Perspective: Examines health through multiple interconnected levels.

  • Individual

  • Interpersonal

  • Community

  • Societal/Policy levels

Life Course Perspective

• Tracks health risks and impacts across the human lifespan.

  • Examines how exposures at different life stages influence health outcomes.

  • Identifies critical and sensitive periods of health vulnerability.

Global Health Determinants

• Health influenced by interconnected factors:

  • Biological determinants

  • Environmental conditions

  • Social circumstances

  • Economic opportunities

Holistic Approach

• Recognizes health as a complex, multifaceted experience involving physical, mental, and social well-being.

Biological Determinants of Health

• Definition: Biological determinants refer to innate physiological traits that contribute to health.

  • Examples include genetic predispositions and innate features.

  • Non-physical factors such as environmental conditions (e.g., toxins) also contribute to health.

Examples of Interactions

• Social x Biological: Differences in healthcare access affecting conditions like obesity and smoking.

• Environmental x Social: Community conditions leading to malnourishment.

Social Determinants of Health (SDOH)

• Definition: Conditions where individuals are born, live, learn, work, play, worship, and age that influence health outcomes.

Education Access and Quality

• Goal Statement: Increase educational opportunities to promote success in school.

• Connection: Education is linked to health and well-being.

• Key Issues:

  • Access to quality education

  • Health literacy

  • Early childhood education.

Healthcare Access and Quality

• Goal Statement: Increase access to high-quality health care services.

• Connection: Access to health services impacts individual health outcomes.

• Key Issues:

  • Primary care access

  • Health insurance coverage and literacy.

Economic Stability

• Goal Statement: Help individuals earn stable incomes to meet health needs.

• Connection: Financial resources are related to health outcomes.

• Key Issues:

  • Employment rates

  • Housing stability

  • Food security.

Social and Community Context

• Goal Statement: Enhance social and community support.

• Connection: Environments where people interact impact their health and well-being.

• Key Issues:

  • Community cohesion

  • Civic participation

  • Discrimination.

Neighborhood and Built Environment

• Goal Statement: Create healthy and safe neighborhood environments.

• Connection: Housing and neighborhood conditions influence health.

• Key Issues:

  • Quality of housing

  • Access to transportation and healthy food.

The Whitehall Study

• Background: Conducted in the 1960s among British civil servants to explore socioeconomic status and health.

• Findings:

  • Mortality rates increase with decreasing job rank.

  • Health influenced by factors beyond healthcare access, including social and power dynamics.

Health Disparities and Health Equity

• Health Equity: Everyone should have a fair chance to achieve their full health potential without disadvantages.

• Health Disparity: Differences in health outcomes based on gender, race, ethnicity, education, or other factors.

Environmental Disasters and Health

Classification of Disasters

• Definition of a Disaster: Serious disruptions causing significant human, material, economic, or environmental losses.

• Criteria for Classification:

  • Number of deaths or people affected.

  • Declaration of emergency status.

Types of Disasters

1. Natural Disasters: Environmental hazards like floods and pandemics.

2. Technological Disasters: Human-made disasters with environmental impacts (e.g., hazardous materials).

3. Hybrid Disasters: Result from both natural and technological origins (e.g., urban fires after earthquakes).

Factors Affecting Disaster Risk

• Extrinsic Exposure: Contact with potential hazards (e.g., tornado wind, flood water).

• Capacity: Resources available to minimize morbidity and mortality post-disaster, categorized into:

  • Economic: Income and health insurance.

  • Material: Emergency supplies and healthcare.

  • Behavioral: Emergency plans and support networks.

  • Sociopolitical: Community support and political representation.

Human Vulnerability

• Definition: Intrinsic factors affecting disaster risk.

• Categories of Attributes:

  • Demographics (e.g., age, gender)

  • Education and personal experience

  • Race, language, and ethnicity

  • Health status (e.g., chronic illness).

Morbidity from Disasters

• Types: Injuries, communicable diseases, non-communicable diseases, displacement, malnutrition.

• Injury Rates: Similar across disaster types; specific types (e.g., transportation accidents) may show higher rates.

Public Health Focus on Prevention

Importance of Prevention

• Clinical Medicine: Focuses on individual health.

• Public Health: Focuses on group health, emphasizing disease prevention and access to care.

Types of Prevention

1. Primary Prevention: Preventing spread and incidence through vaccination.

2. Secondary Prevention: Addressing cases post-infection.

3. Primordial Prevention: Preventing development of risk factors at a societal level.

Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) Overview

• Overview: Serious disease with symptoms varying in severity.

• Transmission: Occurs through direct contact with bodily fluids or contaminated objects.

The main focus of public health is to prevent disease, prolong life, and promote overall well-being.