Dhs 603 - Introduction to Public Health

Trident University International

Patrice Henry

DHS 603 Introduction to Public Health

Case 1

Dr. Eugene Hayes

January 30, 2017

Introduction

The definition of what public health is can vary from person to person. The field of public health has various avenues that allows public health professionals to work with conducting research in the field or laboratory, to working with government to reform policies, or even working face to face with individuals in communities to address health concerns directly.

In time spent as a health care professional, public health is defined as the science of providing health care interventions to improve the health disparities of communities by providing education. The preventative measures will prolong lives, decrease the spread of infectious diseases, and promote healthy living among communities.

Public Health Vs Personal Health

In this conflict the issue becomes, Is what’s good for the community also good for the individual? In public health the question can be answered by stating that the health of the community takes precedence over the health of an individual. For instance, with the epidemic of polio in the United States, the polio vaccine was shown to eliminate the spread of disease but there are cases where the vaccination has caused death in those that received it. This would be an example of ecological fallacy (Atkinson & Hamborsky, 2015), using the vaccine proved in the best interest as a preventative measure for a population of people rather the few individuals that found the vaccine to be fatal.

Inform, Educate, and Empower

In public health the importance of informing, educating, and empowering individuals and the community helps in engagement with treatment. Treatment initiatives that are patient centered

aim to engage people to take an active role with their health. These initiatives also reach out to the community to engage the public to in taking an interest in reaching out for health services.

According to authors Moore and Posada, (2013), by informing a patient on topics such as HIV/AIDS prevention you are providing that patient with health literacy. This could be done by providing web based information, or simply providing a pamphlet listing preventative measures and how to get testing and treatment.

Once health literacy has been achieved the next step would be to provide education. Simply providing a pamphlet may not be sufficient when working with certain populations of people. Within the low income and those low education other resources would need to be assessed. In such cases health providers could hold community workshops to teach about safe sex measures and provide on-site testing, counseling, and pass out condoms and other birth control contraceptives.

In relating this topic to myself as a health care professional, in the field of mental health I encounter those diagnosed with severe mental illness and in many cases this population is faced with a lack of education their mental health as well as any education on prevention of STDs. There is a prevalence of HIV infection among this population and there is a lack in getting them to successfully adhere to treatment. This prevalence of high infection is related to the prolonged non-compliant treatment of the mental illness which can lead to poor judgement and impulsivity (De Hert, Cohen, & Bobes, 2011). In such cases education is provided on an individual basis to protect privacy and address the individual’s needs and concerns. Education is provided on harm reduction such as abstinence, use of condoms, and also by providing clean needles in the case of

substance abuse. This population is also linked to community services for monitoring to ensure mental and physical health concern are being met.

With use various interventions in informing and providing education the goal is to empower the individual and the public to take a proactive role in their overall care. To empower someone as a health care professional is to assist making an individual more confident so that they will take steps to better themselves and this will in turn enhance the community.

Ten Great Public Health Achievements: Reduction in Morbidity and Mortality

Of the ten greatest public health achievements, the one of greatest importance are vaccinations. Due the widespread use of vaccinations in the