Introduction to Public Health (6th Edition)

Description

Offering a thorough, accessible and lively overview of public heath for students new to the field, Introduction to Public Health offers a broad-reaching, practical framework for understanding the forces and organizations of public health today. Through engaging, nontechnical language, illustrative real world examples, and the current political, economic, and cultural news of the day, students gain a clear understanding of the scope of today’s public health problems and possible solutions.

Key Features

• Coverage of pressing issues in public health, including: the opioid crisis; e-cigarettes and vaping; West Nile, Zika and other emerging viruses; impact of recent marajuana laws and drugged driving; the resurgence of measles and anti-vaccination sentiment; the Flint water crisis; and much more.
• Updated statistics and information in every chapter to illustrate the current state of public health.
• The latest on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the current state of health insurance in the United States.
• Coverage throughout illustrating the influence of politics on public health policy today.
• Navigate Advantage Access (included with each print text) includes a comprehensive and interactive eBook, student practice activities and assessments, learning analytics, reporting tools and more.
• Bonus COVID-19 eChapter – updated in summer 2021 – ensures students have an up-to-date overview of COVID-19 – from a brief history of crowd-epidemic diseases and the origins of SARS-CoV2 to morbidity and mortality; transmission; cross-country differences in public health responses; and more.

Table of Contents

1. Part I What Is Public Health?
   1. Chapter 1 Public Health: Science, Politics, and Prevention
   2. Chapter 2 Why Is Public Health Controversial?
   3. Chapter 3 Powers and Responsibilities of Government
2. Part II Analytical Methods of Public Health
   1. Chapter 4 Epidemiology: The Basic Science of Public Health
   2. Chapter 5 Epidemiologic Principles and Methods
   3. Chapter 6 Problems and Limits of Epidemiology
   4. Chapter 7 Statistics: Making Sense of Uncertainty
   5. Chapter 8 The Role of Data in Public Health
3. Part III Biomedical Basis of Public Health
   1. Chapter 9 The “Conquest” of Infectious Diseases
   2. Chapter 10 The Resurgence of Infectious Diseases
   3. Chapter 11 The Biomedical Basis of Chronic Diseases
   4. Chapter 12 Genetic Diseases and Other Inborn Errors
4. Part IV Social and Behavioral Factors in Health
   1. Chapter 13 Do People Choose Their Own Health?
   2. Chapter 14 How Psychosocial Factors Affect Health Behavior
   3. Chapter 15 Public Health Enemy Number One: Tobacco
   4. Chapter 16 Public Health Enemy Number Two and Growing: Poor Diet and Physical Inactivity
   5. Chapter 17 Injuries Are Not Accidents
   6. Chapter 18 Maternal and Child Health as a Social Problem
   7. Chapter 19 Mental Health: Public Health Includes Healthy Minds
5. Part V Environmental Issues in Public Health
   1. Chapter 20 A Clean Environment: The Basis of Public Health
   2. Chapter 21 Clean Air: Is It Safe to Breathe?
   3. Chapter 22 Clean Water: A Limited Resource
   4. Chapter 23 Solid and Hazardous Wastes: What to Do with the Garbage?
   5. Chapter 24 Safe Food and Drugs: An Ongoing Regulatory Battle
   6. Chapter 25 Population: The Ultimate Environmental Health Issue
6. Part VI Medical Care and Public Health
   1. Chapter 26 Is the Medical Care System a Public Health Issue?
   2. Chapter 27 Why the U.S. Medical System Needs Reform
   3. Chapter 28 Health Services Research: Finding What Works
   4. Chapter 29 Public Health and the Aging Population
7. Part VIII The Future of Public Health
   1. Chapter 30 Emergency Preparedness, Post-9/11
   2. Chapter 31 Public Health in the Twenty-First Century: Achievements and Challenges
   3. eChapter Learning from the COVID-19 Pandemic

Author Biography

Mary-Jane Schneider, PhD – Clinical Associate Professor Emerita, Department of Health Policy, Management, and Behavior, School of Public Health University of Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer, New York

Mary Jane Schneider is the Director of Interdisciplinary Programs and Clinical Associate Professor of Health Policy, Management, and Behavior at the School of Public Health, University at Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer.