I feel better equipped to deal with emerging issues in my profession after completing the course on health equity and social justice. This is because I learned several key issues about social justice and health during my classes. A key issue I got to learn is that before any authority addresses the disparities in population health, they should first seek to establish and understand the underlying causes behind it. As I undertook this course, I learnt that addressing such disparities without any consideration for underlying causes only solves the problem for a short period. After this period, the disparities are bound to arise, and in most cases they are higher than what was previously recorded (Turnock 48). As the lecturer highlighted, adoption of the prevention spectrum is the most appropriate approach to help minimize population health disparities.
Another crucial issue I have learnt is that it is imperative for concerned authorities to advocate for primary prevention in promoting health and combating disease. This form of prevention helps ensure that the health officers take a proactive role in establishing healthier communities (Turnock 62). I have learnt that the best health officer is not the one who waits for a community to fall ill and then cures it; rather, the best health officer identifies diseases that members of the community are exposed to and ensures the community is vaccinated against such. It is imperative to point out that the upstream approach is the most appropriate way to ensure primary prevention.
This has been a fascinating course, and I can confidently say that it has helped equip me for my professional life. I am glad I have done my best throughout the course, and also participated in group discussions to help increase my understanding and knowledge. I look forward to applying all that I have learnt in this unit when I am employed.
Works Cited
Turnock, Bernard. Public Health. Kentucky: Jones & Bartlett Publishing, 2011. Print.
