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Oct 10, 2014 · The success of vaccines and other infection control in preventing cancers such as of the liver (hepatitis B vaccine) and the cervix (human papillomavirus, HPV), and gastric cancer ( Helicobacter pylori) marked the beginning of an important new stage in public health.
- Overview
- History of public health
- Beginnings in antiquity
public health, the art and science of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting physical and mental health, sanitation, personal hygiene, control of infectious diseases, and organization of health services. From the normal human interactions involved in dealing with the many problems of social life, there has emerged a recognition of the importance of community action in the promotion of health and the prevention and treatment of disease, and this is expressed in the concept of public health.
Comparable terms for public health medicine are social medicine and community medicine; the latter has been widely adopted in the United Kingdom, and the practitioners are called community physicians. The practice of public health draws heavily on medical science and philosophy and concentrates especially on manipulating and controlling the environment for the benefit of the public. It is concerned therefore with housing, water supplies, and food. Noxious agents can be introduced into these through farming, fertilizers, inadequate sewage disposal and drainage, construction, defective heating and ventilating systems, machinery, and toxic chemicals. Public health medicine is part of the greater enterprise of preserving and improving the public health. Community physicians cooperate with diverse groups, from architects, builders, sanitary and heating and ventilating engineers, and factory and food inspectors to psychologists and sociologists, chemists, physicists, and toxicologists. Occupational medicine is concerned with the health, safety, and welfare of persons in the workplace. It may be viewed as a specialized part of public health medicine since its aim is to reduce the risks in the environment in which persons work.
The venture of preserving, maintaining, and actively promoting public health requires special methods of information-gathering (epidemiology) and corporate arrangements to act upon significant findings and put them into practice. Statistics collected by epidemiologists attempt to describe and explain the occurrence of disease in a population by correlating factors such as diet, environment, radiation exposure, or cigarette smoking with the incidence and prevalence of disease. The government, through laws and regulations, creates agencies to oversee and formally inspect and monitor water supplies, food processing, sewage treatment, drains, and pollution. Governments also are concerned with the control of epidemic and pandemic diseases, establishing guidelines for appropriate medical responses and isolation procedures, and issuing travel warnings to prevent the spread of disease from affected areas.
Various public health agencies have been established to help control and monitor disease within societies, on both national and international levels. For example, the United Kingdom’s Public Health Act of 1848 established a special public health ministry for England and Wales. In the United States, public health is studied and coordinated on a national level by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Internationally, the World Health Organization (WHO) plays an equivalent role. WHO is especially important in providing assistance for the implementation of organizational and administrative methods of handling problems associated with health and disease in less-developed countries worldwide. Within these countries, health problems, limitations of resources, education of health personnel, and other factors must be taken into account in designing health service systems.
A review of the historical development of public health, which began in ancient times, emphasizes how various public health concepts have evolved. Historical public health measures included quarantine of leprosy victims in the Middle Ages and efforts to improve sanitation following the 14th-century plague epidemics. Population increases in Europe brought with them increased awareness of infant deaths and a proliferation of hospitals. These developments in turn led to the establishment of modern public health agencies and organizations, designed to control disease within communities and to oversee the availability and distribution of medicines.
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Most of the world’s ancient peoples practiced cleanliness and personal hygiene, often for religious reasons, including, apparently, a wish to be pure in the eyes of their gods. The Bible, for example, has many adjurations and prohibitions about clean and unclean living. Religion, law, and custom were inextricably interwoven. For thousands of years ...
Explain the evolution of concepts about the cause and prevention of disease. Describe the importance of studying the factors associated with outcomes in a systematic way in human populations. Discuss some of the major historical figures and events that played a role in the evolution of public health and epidemiology.
Explore the history of public health achievements and challenges through the years, from the foundation of WHO in 1948 to the present day. Learn how WHO and its partners have responded to global health crises, such as polio, HIV, Ebola and COVID-19.
Public health, together with primary care, secondary care, and tertiary care, is part of a country's overall healthcare system. Public health is implemented through the surveillance of cases and health indicators, and through the promotion of healthy behaviors.
The Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service originally served to protect the health of immigrants and sailors in the late 1700s. Explore a timeline of U.S Public Health Service history spanning from 1798 to present day.
Since the foundation of the World Health Organization in 1948, the world has experienced public health challenges that have required us all to come together with science, solutions and solidarity. View the timeline. WHO’s 7 + 5 health stories for everyone, everywhere.
