Public health aims to promote health and prevent disease through organized community efforts. It encompasses factors like sanitation, education, socioeconomic status, and public services. Throughout history, improvements in domestic hygiene, medical discoveries, and technology have advanced public health. Today, efforts focus on disease prevention, health education, and reducing health inequities. Ongoing challenges include high disease rates due to lifestyle factors and access to care issues. The future of public health centers on prevention, health promotion, and addressing social determinants of health through policy solutions.

1. The Role of
Public Health in
America
Callie Anyan
HLST 2001
February 20, 2014
Dr. Tommerdahl

2. What is Public Health?
 “Public
health is defined as the practices,
procedures, institutions, and disciplines
required to achieve the desired state of
population health.” (Friedman, D. J.,
Parrish, R., & Ross, D. A. 2013)

3. Components of Public Health
 Sanitation
 Education
 Socioeconomic
 Public
Status
Services
 Intervention
 Federally Funded Healthcare
 Pollution

4. History of Public Health
 17th-18th


Century
Physicians concentrated on balancing the
body’s humors as they believed this directly
affected public health
Sanitation was inadequate
 Lack
of sewer systems
 Over crowded cities
 Rampant diseases
First public hospitals opened
(Schuetze, S. 2013)


5. History of Public Health (cont.)
 19th
Century
Domestic and public hygiene improved
 Researchers discovered the microorganisms
causing epidemic disease
 Health literature became available to the
public
 Public bath houses were constructed
 Implementation of sewer systems
(Rubenstein, E. 2012)


6. History of Public Health (cont.)
 20th
Century
Access to health care resources due to
emerging technology
 Political involvement in public health
 Exponential development of medications
 Implementation of public health education
programs
(Rubenstein, E. 2012)


7. Public health: Present day
Copious amounts of electronic health resources available
 Public education on prevalent issues (diabetes, obesity,
sexual health)
 U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention releases
information regarding current events in health on a regular
basis
 Federally funded healthcare programs (Medicare &
Medicaid) provide financial assistance to the elderly and
poor
 Widespread effort to eliminate pollution and promote
sanitation
(Rubenstein, E., 2012)&(Friedman, D. J., Parrish, R., & Ross, D.
A., 2013)


8. Future of Public Health
 Prevention
of disease
 Prolongation of life
 Promotion of healthy lifestyles
 Increased government involvement and
funding in public health education
programs
 Increased effort to reduce air pollution,
specifically CO2 emission
(Graham, H., 2010)

9. Future of Public Health (cont.)
Cost-benefit and cost-effectiveness analysis
regarding healthcare
 Implementation of more federal healthcare
policies to assist and educate underprivileged
and minorities
 Isolate factors causing epidemic, preventable
diseases
 Encourage future generations to take an
active role in their healthcare
(Graham, H. 2010)


10. Issues Facing Public Health
 High
cost of nutritious food
 Minorities and poor are under educated
regarding disease prevention and sexual
health
 Closing of federally funded healthcare
facilities due to national debt
 Epidemic of diabetes, cancer, and other
illness due to public’s lifestyle choices
(Azétsop, J., & Joy, T. R., 2013)

11. Current Strengths of Public
Health
 Implementation
aged children
of interventions in school
Smoking cessation/prevention
 Encouragement of healthy eating habits
 Sexual health education
 Dangers of excessive alcohol use
(Diepeveen, S., Ling, T., Suhrcke, M., Roland,
M., & Marteau, T. M., 2013)


12. Current Strengths of Public
Health (cont.)
 Efforts
to promote independent
functioning among older adults
(Freedman, V. A., Kasper, J. D., Spillman, B.
C., Agree, E. M., Mor, V., Wallace, R. B., &
Wolf, D. A., 2014)
 Increased knowledge on mentally health
and better incorporation of mentally ill
individuals into society
(Kolich, H. N., 2013)

13. Public Health: An Ongoing
Process


“Public health is the
science and art of
preventing disease,
prolonging life, and
promoting physical health
and efficiency through
organized community
efforts” (Winslow, 1920 via
Graham, H., 2010)
Public health is an area of
constant change and
reformation. Healthcare
professionals must develop
with it and implement
necessary changes to
better our society.

14. Public Health Resources

Physical Activity and Health: A Report of the Surgeon
General
by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services



Center for Disease Control and Prevention
www.cdc.gov
Climate change and human health: Impacts,
vulnerability and public health
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0
033350606000059
Framing the Consequences of Childhood Obesity to
Increase Public Support for Obesity Prevention Policy
by American Journal of Public Health

15. References
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




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Schuetze, S. (2013). The Contagious City: The Politics of Public Health in Early America.
Journal Of The Early Republic, 33(3), 566-568.
Rubenstein, E. (2012). From Social Hygiene to Consumer Health: Libraries, Health Information,
and the American Public from the Late Nineteenth Century to the 1980s. Library &
Information History, 28(3), 202-219. doi:10.1179/1758348912Z.00000000016
Friedman, D. J., Parrish, R., & Ross, D. A. (2013). Electronic Health Records and US Public
Health: Current Realities and Future Promise. American Journal Of Public Health, 103(9),
1560-1567. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2013.301220
GRAHAM, H. (2010). Where Is the Future in Public Health?. Milbank Quarterly, 88(2), 149-168.
doi:10.1111/j.1468-0009.2010.00594.x
Azétsop, J., & Joy, T. R. (2013). Access to nutritious food, socioeconomic individualism and
public health ethics in the USA: a common good approach. Philosophy, Ethics & Humanities
In Medicine, 8(1), 1-22. doi:10.1186/1747-5341-8-16
Diepeveen, S., Ling, T., Suhrcke, M., Roland, M., & Marteau, T. M. (2013). Public acceptability
of government intervention to change health-related behaviours: a systematic review and
narrative synthesis. BMC Public Health, 13(1), 1-11. doi:10.1186/1471-2458-13-756
Freedman, V. A., Kasper, J. D., Spillman, B. C., Agree, E. M., Mor, V., Wallace, R. B., & Wolf, D.
A. (2014). Behavioral Adaptation and Late-Life Disability: A New Spectrum for Assessing
Public Health Impacts. American Journal Of Public Health, 104(2), e88-e94.
doi:10.2105/AJPH.2013.301687
Kolich, H. N. (2013). THE UNITED MENTAL STATE OF AMERICA. Vibrant Life, 29(3), 8-11.