Public Health/Methods
Methods
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Public health aims are achieved through surveillance of cases and the promotion of healthy behaviors, communities and environments. Analyzing the determinants of health of a population and the threats it faces is the basis for public health.[1]
Preventive Strategies
editMany diseases are preventable through simple, nonmedical methods. For example, research has shown that the simple act of handwashing with soap can prevent the spread of many contagious diseases.[2] In other cases, treating a disease or controlling a pathogen can be vital to preventing its spread to others, either during an outbreak of infectious disease or through contamination of food or water supplies. Public health communications programs, vaccination programs and distribution of condoms are examples of common preventive public health measures.
Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Care
editPublic health, together with primary care, secondary care, and tertiary care, is part of a country's overall health care system. Many interventions of public health interest are delivered outside of health facilities, such as food safety surveillance, distribution of condoms and needle-exchange programs for the prevention of transmissible diseases.Public health plays an important role in disease prevention efforts in both the developing world and in developed countries through local health systems and non-governmental organizations.
Temporal and Spatial patterns of Public Health Risks
editPublic health requires Geographic Information Systems (GIS) because risk, vulnerability and exposure involve geographic aspects.[3]
References
edit- ↑ "What is Public Health". Centers for Disease Control Foundation. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
- ↑ Global Public-Private Partnership for Handwashing with Soap. Handwashing research Archived 16 December 2010 at the Wayback Machine, accessed 19 April 2011.
- ↑ Wang, Fahui (2020-01-02). "Why public health needs GIS: a methodological overview". Annals of GIS 26 (1): 1–12. doi:10.1080/19475683.2019.1702099. ISSN 1947-5683. PMID 32547679. PMC 7297184. //www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7297184/.