Prompt 1: Most low-income countries have fragmented health systems that include both public and private providers. Many middle-income countries have a system organized around a national insurance scheme. Almost all high-income countries have a national health insurance system. Compare the organization, structure and function of health care between the United States and a country of your choice in sub-Saharan Africa. What are the basic healthcare coverage options? How effective is the coverage? What is the cost of healthcare for these countries? Note: The signature assignment entails opening a clinic in sub-Saharan Africa.
Prompt 2: Health care is highly regulated in many countries. Access to care remains a debate whether it is a right or a privilege. Discuss public health and regulatory systems in the United States and the Sub-Saharan country you chose for prompt 1. How is the healthcare system coordinated? What is the role of public health? How is healthcare regulated?
This discussion forum meets MPH CEPH Competency #5: Compare the organization, structure and function of health care, public health and regulatory systems across national and international settings.
Complete your week 3 required discussion prompts:
Prompt 1: Choose one of the most predominant environmental health burdens (household air pollution, ambient air, water, sanitation, and hygiene) to global health, define the burden, and list its effect on affected populations.
Prompt 2: Today, more than ever, malnutrition poses a serious threat to human health. Malnutrition includes both undernutrition and obesity. What impact has this had on individuals—primarily women, children, and adolescents—and what are some of the ways in which this double burden might be improved?
Complete your week 4 required discussion prompts:
Prompt 1: Choose one of these issues that affect women (gender, discrimination, prescribed roles, premature death, or low education level) and explain why women’s health should be a global priority.
Prompt 2: Describe the main causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide among children and adolescents and suggest ways that they might be alleviated.
Complete your week 5 required discussion prompts:
Prompt 1: What are some of the challenges to the prevention, transmission, and treatment of communicable diseases?
Prompt 2: Select a noncommunicable disease (diabetes, cancer, mental disorder, vision and hearing loss, or tobacco use) and outline its cost and consequences to the global burden of disease.
Expert Solution Preview
Introduction:
Healthcare is an essential aspect of human life that ensures individuals receive appropriate medical care to maintain a healthy lifestyle. As a medical professor responsible for creating college assignments and answers for medical college students, the following are answers to the content provided in the prompt questions:
Prompt 1:
The United States and sub-Saharan African countries have different healthcare systems, organizational structures, and functions. While the US has a comprehensive system organized around a national health insurance scheme, most low-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa have fragmented health systems that include both public and private providers. The basic healthcare coverage options in sub-Saharan Africa include primary healthcare, secondary healthcare, and tertiary healthcare. However, the effectiveness of healthcare coverage in sub-Saharan Africa is limited due to factors such as lack of resources, inadequate infrastructure, and insufficient healthcare personnel. The cost of healthcare in sub-Saharan Africa is relatively low compared to the United States, but the quality of healthcare is compromised due to insufficient funding.
Prompt 2:
The healthcare system in the United States and sub-Saharan African countries is coordinated differently. In the US, healthcare is highly regulated, and access to care remains an ongoing debate whether it is a right or a privilege. The healthcare system in sub-Saharan African countries is mainly organized around primary healthcare with limited resources, infrastructure, and healthcare personnel. Public health plays a crucial role in both countries by providing education, research, and disease control. The regulatory systems in both countries ensure that healthcare providers adhere to specific guidelines and regulations to ensure quality healthcare is delivered to patients. However, the regulatory system in sub-Saharan African countries is not as robust as that of the US, leading to compromised healthcare quality.
Prompt 1:
Household air pollution is a predominant environmental health burden that affects global health. It refers to the contamination of indoor air from cooking with fuels such as wood, charcoal, or coal. Household air pollution has adverse effects on affected populations, including respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, low birth weight, and an increased risk of pneumonia, particularly for young children.
Prompt 2:
Malnutrition is a serious threat to human health, affecting individuals, primarily women, children, and adolescents globally. Malnutrition includes both undernutrition and obesity, leading to various health complications, including stunting, wasting, and micronutrient deficiencies. To alleviate the double burden of malnutrition, multiple interventions are required, such as improving access to healthy and nutritious food, reducing environmental, social, and economic barriers, and creating health education programs.
Prompt 1:
Gender is an issue that affects women’s health globally, making it a global priority. Women face various barriers, including gender discrimination, prescribed roles, premature death, and low education levels, that limit access to essential healthcare services, leading to adverse health outcomes. Addressing gender issues in healthcare is critical to promoting gender equality and improving women’s health globally.
Prompt 2:
The main causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide among children and adolescents include infectious diseases such as pneumonia, diarrhea, and malaria. Multiple interventions can alleviate these diseases, such as improving access to clean water and sanitation, promoting hygiene, increasing vaccination rates, and improving antenatal and perinatal care.
Prompt 1:
The prevention and treatment of communicable diseases face numerous challenges globally. These challenges include insufficient resources, inadequate healthcare personnel, limited access to healthcare facilities, cultural and social barriers, and vaccine hesitancy. To address these challenges, various interventions such as strengthening healthcare systems, developing effective vaccines, and promoting health education programs are required.
Prompt 2:
Noncommunicable diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and mental disorders have significant cost and consequences on the global burden of disease. They contribute significantly to the overall morbidity and mortality rate globally, affecting individuals’ quality of life and economic productivity. Addressing these noncommunicable diseases requires a comprehensive strategy that includes early detection, effective treatment, and promoting healthy lifestyle behaviors such as exercise, healthy diet, and avoiding risk factors such as tobacco use.
Conclusion:
As a medical professor, my primary responsibility is to ensure that medical college students understand the organization, structure, and function of global healthcare, public health, and regulatory systems. Through effective assignments and lectures, I aim to promote critical thinking and research skills that prepare medical students to address the global health challenges we face today.