As a public health analyst, you work in public health and also work closely with
the local health care systems. Being able to leverage your resources and
communication skills will assist you in helping the local community.
Watch the following video as you prepare to respond to the discussion prompts:
Understand How Public Health and the Healthcare System are Connected
Video with transcript
Respond to the following:
How are public health and the health care system are different? How do
they overlap? Explain.
What influence does public health have on the U.S. health care system?
Provide specific examples.
Response Requirements
By Thursday, respond to the prompt above in a minimum of 175 words.
By Monday, post a total of 3 substantive responses over 2 separate days for
full participation. This includes your initial post and 2 replies to classmates or
your faculty member.
Public health and the healthcare system have close relationships that relate to
healthcare provision, although both have different clear functions. Public health is a section
that provides healthcare-related services to the general public or society at large rather than
focusing on individuals. It is usually intended to provide solutions to health-related issues
that affect a community such as the prevention of diseases, and practices that will help
improve the health of society through activities such as education (Regier, Goldberg, &
Taube, 2022). On the other hand, healthcare systems are mainly focused on the service
delivery related to healthcare to different individuals, it starts from the identification of the
patient’s illness, analysis of the perfect treatment procedure, monitoring of the recovery
process, and advising the patients on the best avoidance precautions. The overlap comes in
as both public health and healthcare systems have a relationship the real objective for both is
to enhance the healthcare of the public in general regardless of their differences.
With a higher investment in public health, the government will be able to reduce the
incidents of diseases that in turn reduce the liability on the healthcare systems. The
healthcare systems can also help public health by ensuring that they deliver quality services
to the affected individuals to ensure that it does not occur in the future by guiding them to
the best preventive measures. Public health has a tremendous influence on the healthcare
system of the U.S. where it is mandated to come up with healthcare regulations, advice on
preventive measures, and ensure that the overall healthcare system is in check (Brownson,
Baker, Deshpande, & Gillespie, 2018). Through carrying out educational forums to the
public, it ensures that the public is made aware of the best ways that they can live a healthy
life and reduce the chances of infections. For example, during the outbreak of an infectious
disease, the healthcare facilities will rely on the information they get from the public health
to know the extent of the area that has been widely affected by disease.
Reference
Brownson, R. C., Baker, E. A., Deshpande, A. D., & Gillespie, K. N. (2018). Evidence-
based public health. Oxford university press.
Regier, D. A., Goldberg, I. D., & Taube, C. A. (2022). The de facto US mental health
services system: a public health perspective. In Mental Health Care and Social
Policy (pp. 105-126). Routledge.
