Today, most governments recognize the importance of public health programs in reducing the incidence of disease, disability, and the effects of aging, although public health generally receives significantly less government funding compared with medicine. In recent years, public health programs providing vaccinations have made incredible strides in promoting health, including the eradication of smallpox, a disease that plagued humanity for thousands of years.
One of the most important public health issues facing the world currently is HIV/AIDS. Tuberculosis, which claimed the lives of authors Franz Kafka and Charlotte Brontë, and composer Franz Schubert, among others, is also reemerging as a major concern due to the rise of HIV/AIDS-related infections and the development of tuberculin strains that are resistant to standard antibiotics.
Another major public health concern is diabetes. In 2006, according to the World Health Organization, at least 171 million people worldwide suffered from diabetes. Its incidence is increasing rapidly, and it is estimated that by the year 2030, this number will double.
A controversial aspect of public health is the control of smoking. Many nations have implemented major initiatives to cut smoking, such as increased taxation and bans on smoking in some or all public places. Proponents argue by presenting evidence that smoking is one of the major killers in all developed countries, and that therefore governments have a duty to reduce the death rate, both through limiting passive (second-hand) smoking and by providing fewer opportunities for smokers to smoke. Opponents say that this undermines individual freedom and personal responsibility (often using the phrase nanny state in the UK), and worry that the state may be emboldened to remove more and more choice in the name of better population health overall. However, proponents counter that inflicting disease on other people via passive smoking is not a human right, and in fact smokers are still free to smoke in their own homes.
Public Hygiene
Public hygiene includes public behaviors individuals can take to improve their personal health and wellness. Topics include public transportation, food preparation and public washroom use. These are steps individuals can take themselves. Examples would include avoiding crowded subways during the flu season, using gloves when touching the handrails and opening doors in public malls as well as going to clean restaurants.
Economics of public health
The application of economics to the realm of public health has been rising in importance since the 1980s. Economic studies can show, for example, where limited public resources might best be spent to save lives or cause the greatest increase in quality of life.
Research
Public health investigates sources of disease and descriptors of health through scientific methodology. This can lead to a public health solution to an epidemic, or a community based intervention for chronic diseases. Either way, research can provide the link between cause and effect for public health issues.
Community based participatory research
In contrast to clinical, patient oriented, or literature review research, community based participatory research (CBPR) investigates community-based etiology, involves community leaders, and overall respects the forces under which the community and its participants preside toward promoting and sustaining public health matters. As described by the WK Kellogg Foundation Community Health Scholars Program, CBPR is a "collaborative approach to research that equitably involves all partners in the research process and recognizes the unique strengths that each brings. CBPR begins with a research topic of importance to the community, has the aim of combining knowledge with action and achieving social change to improve health outcomes and eliminate health disparities."
CBPR methods have been necessary for implementation of certain public health actions. This have been difficult to accomplish because communities in poorer, less well developed areas often distrust researchers and scientists from "outside.
Education and training
Schools of public health offer a variety of degrees which generally fall into two categories: professional or academic.
Professional degrees are oriented towards practice in public health settings. The Master of Public Health (MPH), Doctor of Public Health (DrPH), and Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) are examples of degrees which are geared towards people who want careers as practitioners of public health in health departments, managed care organizations, community-based organizations, hospitals, consulting firms, international agencies, state and federal agencies, among others.
Academic degrees are more oriented toward students wishing to seek a career in teaching at a college or university or conducting research at a university or other settings. Examples of academic degrees are the Master of Science (MS), Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), and Doctor of Science (ScD).
The Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH) represents CEPH-accredited schools of public health in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. ASPH-member schools prepare people to become public health professionals. In addition to representing its member schools, ASPH provides: education and training for students and graduates of its member schools, a job search website PublicHealthJobs.net, funding opportunities, awards, Delta Omega (honorary society for graduate studies in public health), and publications such as Public Health Reports and the Friday Letter.
Distance learning has increasingly become an attractive option for working professionals or people whose other life commitments prevent them from traveling to a physical location for classes. ASPH lists distance learning programs from its member schools.
