How to Be a Successful Leader in a Public Health in a Community Company - Essay Example

Introduction Life has indeed become fast paced and has undergone many changes over the past several decades. However, if there is one thing which canbe singled out and considered to be an effective movement it would be the people living in this modern era. In order to ensure a healthy society and wellbeing of the people, the concept of public health was introduced. The words ‘public health’ encompasses several aspects of healthy living such as fitness, healthcare, exercises, reading and many more that would help people remain fit both physically and mentally. However, despite the fact that all of this is now available to the public, people are left with very little time to practice healthy living and a balanced lifestyle. Most people are always occupied with work, family affairs, kids and other social obligations which leave them with very little time for themselves (Livingston, 2013). But it is noteworthy that those people who have strong desires and motivations to uplift their life will invariably find time towards taking care of their health and well-being. Thus the first and foremost requirement is how we want to succeed in taking care of ourselves and how we want to achieve this end despite all possible hindrances. This end can always be met with clear goal-settings as they will make our paths towards the final destination easier (Liam). Some people may also have the fear of failure, however; they only have to keep in mind that behind every fall success will eventually be there. By handling things in the right manner, we can easily overcome even our worst failures. (McArdle, 2014). People must believe in living every day with a purpose and pursue daily activities keeping their goals in mind (Tolbert, 2012). According to me if we carry a certain thought in our mind constantly, we will eventually achieve it someday. Constant reviewing of goals will help us overcome any obstacles that may come in our way and will instill a stronger desire to achieve our ends. In some cases even dreams can serve as an inspiration for new ideas which in turn can be achieved in reality (Psy.D, 2011). Thus one needs to always have a goal and they should contend that all the difficulties faced in order to achieve the set goal is worth the effort as only then can we be successful in life and contribute something towards the society. Having a vision for the future is always a big challenge to meet with obstacles to be conquered nearly every day of our lives. In such cases it is important to visualize the life that we want to life and work towards meeting that goal (Sari, 2013). There would be several challenges present while working towards our set goal and people will have to remain focused and stay away from all distractions. Apart from setting goals people will also have to follow it up by regularly listing out what they have achieved and having an orderly routine in life. It is important to not waste even a single minute of our lives and people should constantly work towards achieving their dreams (Sari, 2013). For me as an individual, the primary goal was to become a leader and begin my own company in public health and in order to achieve this goal my first step is to continue my education in the US. My future vision is to enable people understand the significance of public health. I have always been interest in all issues relating to heath as they have been my first concern in real life too. In addition, I strongly believe that public health is an important aspect of community well-being. Raising awareness about public health also brings up several ethical confrontations regarding the correct approaches towards addressing a social problem. (McCormack, 2006). My dream has always been about bringing about considerable changes in the society that I am part off and helping the people follow healthier lifestyle patterns both mentally and physically. I believe that this is the primary requirement in public health for my community and if I can help start the change it would automatically bring in several followers one day. I sincerely hope to see myself achieving this dream in the near future. Public Health in a Community Company According to Louis, Akala, Karam (2004), the failure of public health programs in Saudi Arabia in the past, as acknowledged by the government, was due to weak policies and framework in the public health system. For many years, people in Saudi have lacked a definitive understanding of the need for public health and its contribution towards building a healthy society and development of the country. This fact has become a mind block and has prevented people from understanding the significance and need for public health in the past years. However, my only hope is that this perception will soon change and people will understand the need for a healthier lifestyle and how it can positively contribute towards a healthy community. In this regard, I believe that today’s youth can play a major role in meeting this end. It has to be mentioned that youth campaigners from various fields have already begun to create awareness about the importance of public health for the society. Such youth activists are stressing on the need to incorporate sports, suitable dietary changes, methods of disease prevention and getting accustomed to different cultures as means of promoting public health within the community. In order to achieve healthy living within a community, it is impertinent that people should accept and incorporate the changes both in their lives and within the environment. Individual groups lead by youth would essentially help in bringing about these changes within the community (Jones & Bartlett Publishers, 2014). The activities that have now begun in a small scale among Saudi communities will one day reap large benefits both at the individual level and for the society as a whole. Ever since healthcare activities were begun in Saudi Arabia, life in the Kingdom has changes for the better and has had a positive influence on the lives of the people (2001). The presence of active youth wings is helping to promote healthcare among the public in a big way. In addition, establishing a company dedicated to public health would provide considerable support for the cause of healthcare and also sustain people’s interest in the same for long. Thus through all these efforts people will have more information regarding the need to promote healthcare especially with regard to maintaining good physical and mental health. Engaging in sports and performing regular daily exercises will create a positive outlook and help them live a fulfilling life. Thus apart from promoting healthcare through my company I would also strive to promote other spheres of community development such as urban development, cultural diversity and create better orientational programs for the future generations. As the saying goes “A sound mind in a sound body” my goal is also to encourage people apply this in their lives. I also understand that physical factors such as geography, environment, community, population and industrial development also influence both individuals and hence the community (Jones & Bartlett Publishers, 2014). One of the main reasons which motivated me to begin a company of my own dedicated to public healthcare is the increasing careless attitude of the public towards health and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. According to the Arabic Electronic Newspaper about 74% of men in Saudi Arabia are obese or are overweight and over 79% of women suffer from the same problem. With the average literacy rate also on the lower side with 3.75% for men and 9.92% for women only 17% of people practice reading regularly. These figures made me realize that people in Saudi Arabia are in dire need for a change with respect to increasing awareness about leading a healthy lifestyle in order to prevent an increase in these figures in future. On a comparative basis, countries which were established much later have increasing awareness about health and several measures have been adopted in the field of public health. Taking the case of Japan for instance, the obesity rate is at 3% while the literacy rate is at 90%. Thus considering these figures, it is important that public health care is given more priority in Saudi Arabia and changes are brought about at the individual level as they only constitute a larger society. When a collective effort is undertaken it can help bring about visible changes in the community towards organizing and building healthcare programs. Hence the cooperation of the public is an essential part for achieving this common goal (Jones & Bartlett Publishers, 2014). These percentages reflect the careless attitude of the people in Saudi towards education and health. Literacy has never been a priority in Saudi Arabia. In fact there are very few public libraries which reflect the general pattern of exposure to reading among the people. The problem with reading begins right from childhood as children are not encouraged to read from a young age. This habit is passed down to every generation and eventually most of the people in the community show little or no interest in reading. In addition, children raised in illiterate families are denied even the basic literacy of reading and writing the local language. While this is the scenario with regard to reading and literacy rates, the rising number of café’s and restaurants are contributing the cause of the rising obesity. Entrepreneurs of the entertainment industry who only concentrate on earning profits tend to attract more people by setting up these café’s in upmarket malls. More awareness needs to be created among the general public about other means of entertainment which also provide scope for improving their health. For instance parks can be used for regular running and performing exercises and yoga and public libraries enrich the mind through books and also provide some fresh air to the people. These are some of the lifestyle changes that I intend to promote with the general public through my company. In addition, providing the right environment will enable people to bring out their innovative and creative talents. Those people who are creative but who are unable to share it with the community are the most disadvantaged and many such innovations do not see the light of the day due to the lack of support and funding from institutions. On the other hand those who get the opportunities mostly end up going abroad and hence miss the opportunity to serve their own community. Hence I am proud to take up the cause of public health for the welfare of my community and my main focus would be on education and taking the concept of public health to schools, colleges and other educational institutions. In many institutions the food that is served to the children is on a random basis and the actual nutritional aspects are often neglected. In addition, there is very little or no stress on sports and other physical activities among young children and hence children by and large do not take interest in any form of sports of exercise. In my own experience, I also indulged in unhealthy food during recess period instead of nutritional food or taking part in sporting activities. Thus one of the best ways of creating awareness among the children regarding public health is by providing them with the required information that would help them understand about their physical body and the importance and effects of eating healthy food and living (Gard&Pluim, 2014). Through my company I can work to change these habits from a young age so that when they grow they would become healthy adults and future generations will be in safe hands. All that is required is for people to stop and think of the many unhealthy habits which they are indulging that would eventually lead to health problems in future. If they continue practicing these habits all the good benefits of healthy foods and physical activity will be long forgotten. A major cause of concern in this modern life is sleeping late at night and waking up late in the morning. Studies have already proved that such unhealthy sleeping habits have negative effects in the long run and would lead to increased inactivity throughout the day. In addition to being less energetic such people are also more likely to suffer from negative moods and behavioral patterns. Hence such individuals need to be appraised about the importance of getting enough sleep at night in order to start the day energetically. This would result in positive health benefits to the individual and would also lead to a healthy society. Sleep is an important aspect that ably guides the proper functioning of the human body and hence getting the right amount of sleep at the right time is required (Surani& Subramanian, 2011). In addition to proper sleeping patterns, people should also realize the importance of exercising regularly as it will prevent people from becoming lazy and prevent disorders such as obesity and other health diseases such as heart problems. Thus people need to be educated regarding these major aspects of public health which will help to build a healthy society in future. Public health also encompasses other health related problems such as smoking which is also widely prevalent in the country. In fact people in several other countries also suffer from the consequences of smoking. Unfortunately in Saudi Arabia many people are still unaware that this habit is one of the leading consequences of death as this habit has become more of a fashion statement especially among the younger generation. With the absence of laws to regulate smoking in this country, many youth in the age group of 15 to 30 years have become addicted to the habit. This has led to profound negative effects which include teenagers and young children taking up the habit. In one instance even I witnessed a group of young children between the ages 8-13 years who were smoking in their school premises and away from the eyes of their parents. People and children need to be made aware of the many ill-effects of smoking such as risks of heart diseases, respiratory problems and also the several environmental effects caused due to passive smoking. A major step that can be taken in this regard is to prevent smoking in public places as it will help to reduce the habit in smokers and will also prevent non-smokers from getting affected from the effects of passive smoking. At a personal level, being a nonsmoker, I have sometimes found it difficult to go to café’s at my home town where there are no separate enclosures for smokers. While people might cite various reasons for smoking such as to relieve tension, anxiety and stress, it is time for people to think about other healthy and alternative sources which will ease their stress and tensions. People can also resort to doing exercises to energize their body or indulge in other favorite leisure or hobbies which will make them feel happy and stress-free. Another major drawback in Saudi Arabia, is that people who live in the villages do not get access to various services compared to those which are available in smaller towns or cities. Even the clinics are not equipped with the basic requirements in order to provide medical care to the people. In one of my personal experiences, I had gone with my family to my native village where I suffered some skin burns due to contact with hot water. I could not locate a good hospital nearby and had to take medications directly from the pharmacy. This is just one instance and there are several such small villages which require basic services with regard to healthcare. While most of the social services such as education, healthcare and utilities are provided free of cost for the poor they are not adequate (Mufti, 2000). Due to this many people are forced to go to private clinics which are expensive as they are unable to get the right care at the right time due to long waiting time. In such case people are unable to afford the surgery and other costs. As most poor communities in Saudi lack the right knowledge about health insurance and many families do not have insurance coverage. From my experience, having been trained in an health insurance company I was at times surprised at the low number of customers who accessed healthcare insurance. Thus all the above facts and my personal experiences have encouraged me to begin my own start-up company for public healthcare. Through my company I hope to bring about the right changes in healthcare in my community and help people follow a healthy lifestyle. Read More