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Show PUBLIC HEALTH The field of public health is concerned with the spread of diseases and factors which contribute to their development, with the intent of finding methods of prevention. Communicable diseases impair the function of individuals temporarily, and sometimes permanently. Costs incurred not only result from the often required medical treatment but from interruption in employment. Many people are exposed to preventable diseases such as AIDS and tuberculosis. Health problems often stem from societal factors such as poverty, poor education, environmental neglect, high risk behavior, and lack of access to health care services. Abuse of a child or spouse, rape, and homicide are all acts of violence that often result from the conditions of our society. Because public health problems are so extensive, there is growing concern that these problems are accepted as normal. As some public health conditions worsen, health care costs become so high that the entire health care system is threatened. The U.S. has the highest hospital bills, the most advanced medical technology, the most refined prescription drugs, and the largest ratio of doctors to population in the world, yet the nation fares worse than other developed countries on several health indicators. For example, the U.S. ranks ninth in life expectancy, and higher in infant mortality than Japan or any of the Western European countries. Spending more on health care may not translate into better health outcomes, and most often it is directed at treating disease rather than reducing the incidence of disease. For these reasons, increased support of public health measures such as health promotion and disease prevention is critical. Several areas of interest to Utahns are addressed in the following pages. They include violent crime, immunizations, and public health expenditures. This public health section is an adaptation of and expansion on a report of the American Public Health Association entitled America's Public Health Report Card: A State-By-State Report on the Health of the Public.1 Sources for this section are found on p. 92 of the Review. 1 Source: Adapted from American Public Health Association. (1992, Nov.). America's Public Health Report Card: A State-by-State Report on the Health of the Public. Washington, D.C.: Author, pp. 1-3. Utah's Health: An Annual Review 1994 73 |