Ch.7

The beginning of this chapter talks about a story on how public health has changed and how battles we are supposed to win, we have lost now. After this it talks about how a British academy found a possible look at what public health will look like in 2040. There were many things that have improved; such as, nutrition, air quality and smoking. The problem is that as these improve, it also shows areas that are getting worst; such as, sedentary lifestyles, impact of sugar, fast food and the impacts of stressful lifestyles and worsening of mental health.

The chapter then goes on bringing back the definition of public health. The purpose of this is that it shows that public health has changed throughout time and will continue to change. The reason for this is that public health changes based on its environment and what the current situations are. This is shown how bacteria was the main concern for the beginning of public health and now how chronic diseases are the current problem focused on. It also talks about how these focuses have made advancements in public health.

The next section is topics and tactics, it talks about how public health seems to take care of the community when there is a problem. An example of this is when the swine flu arrived in 2009 and the WHO was criticized for overreacting , but as the WHO explained it was better to overreach instead of taking the risk of the situation being worst. Now public health is trying to change their lifestyles to prevent chronic disease; for example, they are trying to control the environment such as labeling now.

It then goes talking about how tactics will need to be changing. It first starts talking about how antimicrobial resistance is now becoming a bigger and bigger problem from the overuse of antibiotics. Genetics testing is now a greater part of our health because it allows scientist to find out what connections of genes and diseases there are.

This chapter then goes on talking about Ethics and how it is their duty to do no harm. It then goes on talking about target groups, Education, Social Media, New Technology. These are all important because as education grows, the better the population will be prepared for diseases. As different diseases come, new target groups will come, just as now the older populations are targeted more. Now last is with social media and new technology, it is better to keep the world notified from the current events.

I find it interesting that all these are new topics, but as times change there will be new advancements, leading to new tactics and innovative ways to promote public health. As technology gets better there could also be causing latest problems, just as now how there is over testing and overreaction to any sign of diseases. I will be able to use this information in the public health by knowing that new technology will allow for new ways to reach the community and as stated before that as times change, so will the definition of public health.