Home > Public Health Approaches to Controlling Infectious Diseases
Public Health Approaches to Controlling Infectious Diseases
Discuss
Controlling infectious diseases is part of public health practice. Review approaches to prevention, control, and the obstacles that low-income and middle-income countries endure. Vaccines are a critical part of health, but healthcare systems are impacted by globalization. Some countries do not have surveillance systems in place that allow determining needs. Provide an example of how globalization has impacted South America or sub-Saharan Africa. What three pieces of advice would you give the Minister of Health in countries of South America or sub-Saharan Africa when it comes to the integration of health care and public health (i.e., vaccines)?
Overview
Controlling infectious diseases has been recognized as one of the greatest public health achievements over the past two decades, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Notably, the average life expectancy in the United States has increased by 29.2 years over the last century (CDC, 1999), largely due to advancements in sanitation, hygiene, antibiotics, and other medical innovations.
One significant example is the decline in tuberculosis (TB) mortality rates. In 1900, TB claimed 194 lives per 100,000 people in the U.S., but by 1940, this number had dropped to 46 per 100,000. The introduction of antibiotics further reduced TB-related deaths; however, the emergence of drug-resistant tuberculosis in recent years poses new challenges (Alami et al., 2014).
Public health officials must continue addressing these evolving threats, even when cures are not readily available. The HIV/AIDS pandemic exemplifies the ongoing global effort to combat infectious diseases, with no recorded AIDS-related deaths before 1980.
https://www.open.edu/openlearn/mod/oucontent/view.php?printable=1&id=8537#:~:text=direct%20intervention%20to%20prevent%20infection,and%20treatment%20of%20infected%20individuals
