RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Life expectancy (LE) is a major marker of individual survival. It also serves as a guide to highlight both the progress and the gaps in total social and societal health. Comparative LE in concert with measures of gender-specific experience, indices of empowerment and societal happiness and development offer a comparative tool to examine trends and similarities of societal progress as seen through the lens of cross-national experience. METHODS: To determine the gender gaps in LE (GGLE) trends, we performed a longitudinal analysis, covering a period of 49 years (1960-2008). To examine the association of GGLE with development indices, we used the 2007 GGLE data, the newest happiness data mostly drawn from 2006; the 2006 Human Development Index (HDI) data and the 2006 Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM) data. RESULTS: It revealed that most of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries had a GGLE trend that occurred in an inverted U-curve fashion. We divided them into three subgroups based on the peak years of respective GGLE. The earlier the peak year, the happier the countries, the higher the HDI and the smaller the current GGLE are. Association analysis indicates that Happiness, HDI and GEM are all negatively associated with GGLE. CONCLUSION: This pattern suggests that GGLE undergoes three phases of growth, peak and stability and decline. Japan will soon be seeing its GGLE gradually shrinking in the foreseeable future. The continuing increases in Happiness, HDI and GEM are associated with a decrease in GGLE, which should be carefully taken into consideration.
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Salud Global/tendencias , Estado de Salud , Esperanza de Vida/tendencias , Felicidad , Humanos , Japón , Estudios Longitudinales , Estudios Retrospectivos , Factores Sexuales , Factores SocioeconómicosRESUMEN
This article discusses two approaches to controlling the newly identified influenza A (H1N1): via Bayesian and frequentist statistical reasoning. This study reviewed the measures implemented in China as an example to illustrate these two approaches. Since May 2009, China has deployed strict controlling mechanisms based on the strong prior Bayesian assumption that the origin of influenza A (H1N1) was from outside China and as such strict border control would keep the virus from entering China. After more than 4 months of hard work by Chinese health professionals and officials, the number of confirmed influenza A (H1N1) has increased steadily against the expectations of the general public. Taking into account the great financial burden in maintaining strict measures, Chinese health authorities have slowly adjusted their policies of controlling influenza A (H1N1) in China according to frequentist reasoning since July 2009.
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Subtipo H1N1 del Virus de la Influenza A , Gripe Humana/prevención & control , Pandemias/prevención & control , Teorema de Bayes , China/epidemiología , Interpretación Estadística de Datos , Humanos , Gripe Humana/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
A public health perspective based on social justice and a population health point of view emphasizes pharmacy policy innovations regarding safety and costs. Such policies that effectively reduce costs include controlling profits, establishing profit targets, extending prescription providers, revising prescription classification schemes, emphasizing generic medications, and establishing formularies. Public education and universal programs may reduce costs, but co-pays and "cost-sharing" do not. Switching medications to over-the-counter (OTC) status, pill splitting, and importing medication from abroad are poor substitutes for authentic public health pharmacy policy. Where policy changes yield savings, public health insists that these savings should be used to increase access and improve population health. In the future, pharmacy policies may emphasize public health accountability more than individual liberty because of potential cost savings to society. Fear of litigation, as an informal mechanism of focusing manufacturer's attention on safety, is inefficient; public health pharmacy policy regarding safety looks toward a more active regulatory role on the part of government. A case study of direct-to-consumer advertising illustrates the complexity of public health pharmacy policy.
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Costos de los Medicamentos , Efectos Colaterales y Reacciones Adversas Relacionados con Medicamentos , Legislación de Medicamentos , Formulación de Políticas , Salud Pública , Publicidad , Participación de la Comunidad , Medicamentos sin Prescripción , Estados UnidosRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: The relationship between medicine and public health has a long and complex co-evolution. In developing countries where the health needs are greatest and resources are few, this relationship is of critical importance. DEVELOPMENT OF MEDICINE AND PUBLIC HEALTH AT THE AGA KHAN UNIVERSITY: This paper provides a case study of the development of the relationship between medical and public health at the Aga Khan University (AKU), a leading educational institution in Pakistan, which was founded with a vision of reuniting medicine and public health. Rapid growth and development have led to successful medicine and public health programs, but have fallen short in creating the synergies needed to address the population health problems of the country. THE WAY FORWARD: In a twenty-five year history of strong growth and development, the AKU has recreated the schism that marked US institutional development in the 20th century, despite strategic consideration to address population health in the design of the University. We recommend the creation of public health schools that focus on leadership to renew an emphasis on unifying health concepts and actions following successful examples to bring medicine and public health together.
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Medicina Comunitaria , Salud Pública , Atención a la Salud , Educación Médica , Necesidades y Demandas de Servicios de Salud , Humanos , PakistánRESUMEN
Sustainability in the context of China is an immediate and massive concept. A society of 1.3 billion has economic growth of 9-10% and a dramatic rise in life expectancy. It has rapidly-accumulating material wealth, major lifestyle changes and growing inequalities. It is putting great pressure on natural resources such as water and air quality. The Chinese Government's new 5-year plan uses the term 'sustainable development' as an important social goal for the first time. Sustainability requires a global effort and Sino-European partnerships are important.
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Conservación de los Recursos Naturales/métodos , Salud Pública , China , HumanosRESUMEN
The Medicine and Public Health Initiative (MPHI) was created jointly 10 years ago by the American Medical Association and the American Public Health Association to bridge the nearly century-wide gulf between the respective disciplines. We review the history of MPHI and its growing significance in light of recent terrorism events. We report on current MPHI activities by examining three bellwether states-California, Florida, and Texas-as well as international sites. Upon its inception, MPHI was rapidly embraced and nationally disseminated. Sustainability 10 years later in the post-911 world requires renewed commitment by all collaborators. In order to meet the numerous health challenges facing our nation, from terrorism to chronic disease, and for MPHI to be successful, medicine and public health must work in tandem.