Question

Contrast and compare the population-based orientation of public health with the individual-centered focus of private health practitioners.

Answer 1

-- The public health is always oriented towards the general population because it has an impact on everyone.

-- The focus of public health is things like preventing epidemics of disease, sponsoring research to create treatments for diseases that effect many people, to make sure drug company claims of effectiveness are based on sound research and don't do more harm than good, making sure drinking water is safe to drink,the food is not contaminated with poisonous chemicals or bacteria to prevent food borne illnesses, the air is safe to breath and the people have the information necessary to make good decisions about their individual private health.

-- The focus of private health is about each individual person's health care and health care decisions.

-- However, making sure individuals have access to affordable healthcare is in the interest of public health.For example, if individuals are unable to have access to affordable immunizations it creates the public health risk of an epidemic when many people are not immunized.

-- If someone does not seek care when something is easily treatable because they have no health insurance, and only finally go to the emergency room when they are gravely ill, it clogs emergency rooms, makes emergency rooms and hospitals less available for others and increases overall health costs for everyone which makes it a public health problem.