Public Health and Education - Coursework Example

Name Tutor Course Date Рubliс Неаlth аnd Еduсatiоn Introduction Public health involves disease prevention and the prolongation of life by societal efforts (1920, C.E.A. Winslow). Public health is closely related to industrial hygiene whereby measures are taken to evaluate and control workplace conditions that can cause illness or injury to workers. Many workers throughout all over the world each year have been injured, killed or affected by biological, physical and/or chemical agents from the workplace (Glanz, Rimer and Viswanath 31). Public health in relation to Industrial Hygiene The common hazards consist of pathogens, gases, vapors, non-ionizing radiation and noise among others. Once the public health of industrial workers has been affected productivity of the economy is affected greatly. It is important to take educate the workers on measures of safety in the industrial sector. It helps to keep them safe from chemical and physical hazards. It also saves time and money for the employers. Public health places its fear on the dangers concerning the health examination of a particular population. The population can be small or large as the inhabitants in several continents. It also encompasses interdisciplinary methods as the health services and epidemiology. Additional subfields are occupational health, community health, behavioral health and public policy. The focal point of public health involvement is to mainly improve the quality of life and health through preventing and treating disease and other mental and physical health circumstances by observing these cases and enhancing health promotion. Widespread measures that are included in promoting public health are the some of the allocation of condoms that help in regulating sexually transmitted diseases, endorsing breastfeeding, promoting hand washing and the distribution of vaccinations. Physicians who specialize in medicine, health and infectious diseases; public health inspectors; dietitians; sociologists; health engineers, communication experts, among others are needed. The act of inoculating a scratch from the forearms with pus from a lesion in children was widely used in the prevention of small pox during ancient Chinese times. Individuals who did not have the disease gained immunity by inhaling dried crusts that are formed around their lesions. The practice was not recorded until early 18th century. The use of vaccination prevailed in the 1820s, which was followed by Edward Jenner’s work of treating smallpox (Glanz, Rimer and Viswanath 37). History of Public Health In Europe the Black Death that occurred in the 14th century, it was widely believed that when dead bodies were removed it caused the further spread of bacterial infection. In 1829 through to 1851, a cholera pandemic distressed Europe. In spite of Anton van Leeuwenhoek’s interpretation of microorganisms known to have caused most infectious diseases in 1680, modern era of public health began in the 1880s, with artificial vaccines and Louis Pasteur’s germ theory (Corcoran 1033). Edwin Chadwick in the 1843 contributed to public health interventions by providing clean water and the removal of stagnant water to prevent mosquitoes from breeding, consistent garbage collection and its clearance, the building of sewers, and latrinization. Rural to urban migration, industrialization and immigration brought with it health hazards to citizens. These greatly affected the people who were coming to look for work in the major industries. The first public health schools in the 1960s offered practical training (Goldstein and Benoit 1759). Social security act (1935) gave states funding to create public health services. States were required to hire employees who had a year of public health training. As a result of this many states needed people who understood public health issues. During World War II there was a demand for public health workers. In the battlefield sanitary engineers and experts were required to prevent victims from diseases (Glanz, Rimer and Viswanath 57). Importance of Public Health to Industrial Health Today the public health sector has greatly expanded in different areas that include nutrition, nursing, and environmental health. Industrial hygiene is evaluating and controlling stressors around the workplace that may occur due to injury, illness, and damage or influence the health of a worker and members of a community. The program that is currently used by the public health service in industrial hygiene has greatly expanded throughout the years. The program includes hiring and training industrial personnel, war departments, and promoting well developed health and medical services for industrial population. A majority of personnel has been trained, recruited and employed by the public health service. The public health act in England passed in 1802 protected the workers health this was clearly due to the interest of the general public. Some evidence has risen in bringing the health of industrial workers to a close relation with the public health activities. Some of these activities are the divisions and development of industrial hygiene as sections of health departments, for example, New York City, state of Ohio and Ontario attempt to work closely with branches that deal with factory inspection and workmen’s compensation in solving medical problems that arise (Corcoran 1033). In Belgium since the war and a medical inspection service has been developed which is self- contained and has a proper provision for administrative connections of other agencies that deal with industrial health. Adequate finance is still a major obstacle in the development of industrial hygiene but need not be a major issue since this appears to be seen across all public health programs. Public health education begins with the people. It motivates them to improve their health and living conditions. In disease control health education includes what the population knows about a certain disease, its assessment and remedy (Ross and Wu 719). Lessons learnt and precautions Health education helps in the improvement of living conditions. It teaches us measures of prevention and health knowledge and also re-shapes our daily habits of unhealthy lifestyles. This conditioning affects the future generation who will greatly benefit from well-cultivated ideas on health issues that will be ingrained with increased health education. Health education can provide aid and help a person deal with such situations as anxiety, extreme stress, depression and emotional disturbances that can lead to damaging physical effects. Public health education helps in the decrease of deaths and minimal injury. It provides social and economic benefits for a country and increased productivity, which leads to a better economy. Health care specialists have engaged in helping individuals who are at high-risk of developing cancer through cigarette smoking. Public health specialists are also making the effort to work with institutions including the general public members and policy makers to help regulate the consumption of cigarettes. In doing so, taxation, the restriction of adverts and the legal age of purchasing it are put in place. On the other hand, it is of great importance that work places observe occupational safety and health rules, which protect the health, safety and welfare of workers. Personally when I will be employed I would make sure that the organization has measures put in place that protect the workers. Any worker must realize that there are many work hazards that surround them in their workplace; they ought to be educated on this and also become familiar with their environment. They also need to realize that they ought to be compensated by their employers for any health damages they might encounter when working. A hazard can cause harm when not controlled. Employees ought to recognize work hazards in the work place, they are as follows: - a) Air contaminants These are either vapor contaminants or gas. They include fumes, dusts and aerosols. Dusts are solid particles produced by crushing and grinding organic and inorganic matters as metal, rock and wood. Mist is liquating liquid suspended in air. Aerosols are characterized by minute liquid particles. Fibers include solid particles. Gases are diatomic, atomic, or molecular. They are formless fluids. Vapors appear in a liquid or solid state at room temperature. b) Chemical Hazards Chemical compounds can be harmful in the form of gases, dusts, solids, liquids, fumes, mists and vapors which wield effects by absorption (direct skin contact), inhalation, or ingestion (drinking or eating). Airborne chemical hazards exist in the form of gases, fumes and vapors. c) Biological Hazards Bacteria and other living organisms cause serious infections through skin contact. Work that deals with handling animals and plants or food processing exposes workers to these hazards. Appropriate hygiene must be observed, for example, hand washing after every job done. Protective equipments like gloves and respirators and waste disposal systems should be provided to prevent contagious diseases. d) Physical Hazards They are radiation and extreme temperatures. The danger that comes with radiation depends on the amount of time one has been exposed to it. Shielding is a great way of protecting workers from radiation. Installing equipment’s, which are built to operate quietly, can control noise; by making sure that the equipments that are in use are in good shape and are well maintained. The installation of shields and the use of protective clothing can help prevent heat exposures. e) Ergonomic Hazards Ergonomic hazards may include, walking, reaching, pushing, holding and lifting. Tools that have not been properly designed can cause ergonomic hazards. Better design tools and equipments can largely help to avoid this hazard. Employers can come up with certain procedure that correct and control ergonomic hazards using appropriate engineering controls, for example, redesigning and designing work stations, tools, lighting, and equipment; educating workers on the correct work practices; increasing work breaks and giving workers different tasks to do; and providing protective equipment’s. The good use of personnel, little occurrence of major accidents, increased efficiency are some of the benefits of ergonomic environment that is well designed (Glanz, Rimer and Viswanath 61). Public health importance ensures that every person plays specific roles in public health programs/activities. This can take the form of abusiness that wants to develop health policies in its workplace, a mother who may be concerned about her child’s hearing, among others. Today public health care and education can be found everywhere. Health education settings are important because they give us access to various populations and ways to deliver health programs (McCullough and Fellow 983). The major settings that are related to public health education are: - i. Schools: which include, teacher training, classroom teaching; and changes that occur in the school environment, which support healthy behaviors (Corcoran 1033). ii. Communities: Organization through community-based public health education can reach large numbers of population with interpersonal strategies and media. iii. Worksites: People tend to spend most of their time at the workplace and can be a source of stress (Ross and Wu 719). Programs can be put in place in worksites that expand the workers health practices. iv. Health care settings: Greater emphasis has been placed on health education to improve the quality of public health clinics and hospitals. v. Homes: While at home people receive health care interventions through communication channels such as the Internet, media, mail and telephone. A larger population can be reached this way. These are just but a few major setting that contribute to the wide spread of public health education. Conclusion Injuries and accidents that occur in work environment can impair the productivity of an organization increasing operational costs. Effectively managing workers safety and protecting their health remains a decisive factor in the reduction of work-related injuries and illness, however, health and safety professionals need to assess risks and develop strategies that will protect workers safety. Works Cited Corcoran, Tim. “Health Inclusive Education.” International Journal of Inclusive Education 16.10 (2012): 1033 – 1046. Print. Glanz, Karen, Barbara Rimer and K. Viswanath. Health Behavior and Health Education: Theory, Research, and Practice. 4th ed. San Francisco, CA: Wiley, John & Sons, 2008. Print. Goldstein, David, and Joyce Benoit. “Occupational Safety and Health.” The American Journal of Nursing 75.10 (1975): 1759. Print. McCullough, John, and A.P.H.A. Fellow. “Relation of Public Health Workers to Industrial Hygiene.” American Journal of Public Health 15.11(1925): 983-85. Print. Rockwood, H. L., and A.P.H.A. Fellow. “Industrial Hygiene and Local Health Departments.” American Journal of Public Health 16.4 (1926): 343-45.Print. Ross, Catherine, and Chia-ling Wu. “The Links Between Education and Health.” American Sociological Review 60.5 (1995): 719–745. Print. Read More