MPH502 - Introduction to Public Health Module 5 - Case - Essay Example

MPH502 - Introduction to Public Health Module 5 - Case The Public Health Infrastructure, and the Status of World Health Pakistan Health has always been a major concern of any country whether developing, under developed or developed. This paper, however, aims to analyze the health situations that prevail in developing countries. In order to achieve its aim, the paper uses Pakistan as a developing nation and uses the statistics to reveal the truth behind the developments and steps implemented by Pakistani Government.

Researching the health conditions of this particular country clearly reveals that health conditions and measures are not appropriate. The major health problem of Pakistan is the severe malnutrition, high birthrate (i.e. 4.2 million births per year) which results in high infant mortality rate and maternal mortality rate (WHO). The increasing birth rate is primarily associated with less educational facilities and religious matters. The health disparities that exist within the country are mainly due to the educational, health, social, economic differences between rural and urban areas.

Malaria, tuberculosis, Diarrhea, measles and tetanus are also major health concerns of the government. Hepatitis is also posing a great threat to the health of population. ¼ of the total population in Pakistan are obese and have chronic problems (Tauqeer et al.). These health problems and others are basically related to the educational, social and economic conditions of the country. People in Pakistan, do not get much education on vaccines and health checkups on regular basis. The unavailability of education and health services is posing a threat to the health situation of Pakistan.

Hygiene is one of the major issues that is worsening the health condition in Pakistan. About eighty percent of the prevailing diseases like diarrhea, malaria, typhoid etc. are due to poor sanitary conditions, unavailability of purified drinking water and cleanliness facilities. The following chart defines the health priorities that require immediate consideration and call for an action by the Government, local authorities and general public. These issues are prioritized on the basis of mortality rates by those issues.

The figures are taken from Death and DALY estimates by cause (2002). Health IssueDeath Rate (%)Lower Respiratory infections12Ischaemic Heart Disease11Diarrheal Disease9Perinatal conditions8Cerebrovascular Disease6Tuberculosis5Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease4Measles3There is a need to improve the current trends of death rates by resolving the life risking health issues. Since, it has been observed that the major concerns include but are not limited to cleanliness facilities, health disparities on the basis of social, economic and educational differences and high birthrate risking the life of child and mother both.

The basic need is to call for an action from the government to provide health care facilities in the rural areas and in reach of general public of the country who are unable to access health facilities due to lack of resources. More importantly, the issues concerning obesity, drug use and excessive tobacco consumption needs to be addressed as these problems are the root cause of many health issues and disease (Tauqeer et al.). Bibliography:WHO National Health Accounts for Pakistan, Available at: http://www.who.int/nha/country/pak/en/Mortality Country Fact Sheet 2006: http://www.who.int/whosis/mort/profiles/mort_emro_pak_pakistan.

pdfTauqir N., Raza A., Rana K., & Suleman U. Rural Sociology: Health Issues in Pakistan and Government’s Role, Available at: http://www.scribd.com/doc/32863543/Health-Issues-in-Pakistan-and-Government-s-Role