Essay On Readers Response To A Public Health Article

- What do you think has been the greatest achievement of public health so far in the USA?
Among all the achievements and breakthroughs that occurred in the history of developments in the public health sector in the United States, there are two that for me stand out—the discovery of vaccines and the increased ability to control and prevent the spread of infectious and communicable diseases. Viral diseases cannot be treated using antibiotics, which is usually the public health workers’ first line of defense against bacterial infections. Unfortunately, viruses work and exist differently and so they would naturally require a different medical treatment. One Viral infection that threatened the population of humans in the past by causing an alarming number of deaths was the smallpox. It is a disease caused by a virus. Fortunately, the virus has already been eradicated thanks to the discovery of a smallpox vaccine. Because of the efforts and other related milestones achieved by the government as a whole, the virus does not exist anymore. Communicable or infectious diseases on the other hand are some of the major reasons why a lot of people get sick. Through social and other types of contact, a disease may be passed on from one person to the other. However, thanks to the U.S. governments efforts in improving the safety and sanitation of its citizens’ water supply, and other types of facilities that could be health hazards, the rate of infection of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, and cholera has been significantly reduced. I think these are the most significant advancements in the public health sector because they are the ones that prevented the most deaths and unnecessary morbidities.
- What do you think will be the greatest challenge for public health in your lifetime?
I think the greatest challenge for the public health sector in my lifetime would be the constantly low access to healthcare services and resources. Most people perceive that almost all people get the necessary health and medical services their bodies require. This is actually wrong. There are many areas in the United States, and this is truer in other countries, especially the developing ones, that do not have access to proper and adequate healthcare. This challenge has actually haunted the public health sector for decades, if not centuries, already, and I have a good basis in telling that this will remain as its biggest and most challenging problem for the next couple of decades to come. The ultimate goal here would be for the government together with its corresponding public health agencies to be able to provide accessible and adequate healthcare services and resources to at least the majority of its citizens, if aiming for a health for all goals is really that impossible.
- How can a respiratory therapist improve the public health of their community in the United States?
The public health sector is not only confined to the prevention and management of diseases. Encouraging improvements in a patient’s quality of life is also one of the essences of public health. Stroke patients for example, are referred to rehab experts for physical rehabilitation in order for them to improve, or at least maintain their current quality of life. The same actually applies to a respiratory therapist.
A patient suffering from a respiratory impairment such as shortness of breath or dyspnea would naturally suffer from easy fatigability, and even fainting. This automatically suggests that this patient will have a poor quality of life. One way to directly address the problem and ultimately improve the patient’s quality of life is to refer him to a respiratory therapist. That way, the root of the problems will be removed from the picture, increasing the likelihood that the patient will be able to return to his premorbid status. These therapists are equipped with the knowledge concerning respiration and have actually helped a lot of people during the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) outbreak.