The primary purpose of the video is to find out what public health is. The author provides information about the differences between clinical medicine and public health, comparing the two and their effects on people’s lives. It shows how complex public health is, all its processes and problems. The second part of the video describes who exactly does public health and its central values. The author emphasizes the importance of the government’s influence on this aspect of medicine.
According to the World Health Organization definition of public health, it is “the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health, through the organized efforts of society” (Let’s Learn Public Health, 2017). This definition highlights how public health aims not to treat the injured and sick but to avoid these troubles before they can happen. Public health focuses on upstream factors, such as physical, social, and economic environment, lifestyles, and behavior, to make changes that can benefit a population (Let’s Learn Public Health, 2017). Clinical medicine involves treating existing illnesses and injuries, which is the difference between it and public health medicine.
The author claims that to improve public health, the government needs to include all its areas, non-governmental and international organizations should be involved. The video describes people’s opportunities to unite and improve public health across the planet. There are three core areas of public health services: protection, promotion, and prevention (Let’s Learn Public Health, 2017). They represent people’s protection from environmental hazards and infections, health improvement of the population, and prevention of health issues, respectively. Public health is about analyzing social determinants, such as education, job, knowledge attitudes, and access to health services.
Reference
Let’s Learn Public Health. What is Public Health?? (2017). YouTube. Web.