Public Health Explored

Understanding public health has never been more important. It is in the headlines as never before. Aimed at all interested individuals but particularly students and professionals in nursing, medicine, social work and public health, this book encourages critical debate and reflection for a deep understanding of complexities of public health. The use of aphorisms, allegories and stories to influence and educate are as old as the holy books of the great religions. We learn by observing and by being able to envisage abstract ideas in tangible form. This book offers 50 powerful, curated aphorisms around public health by Professor John Ashton CBE and the late Professor Lowell Levin of the Yale School of Public Health. They are accompanied by questions for discussion and case studies that link the aphorism to a key event or theme within public health. In recent years there has been a growing interest in the discipline, driven by concerns for social justice and sustainability, but public health is currently in the headlines as never before. The failure of governments to get a grip on the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated widespread ignorance of the basics of a public health approach to threats to health and well-being. Relevant for all students and professionals within nursing, medicine, social work and public health, this book encourages critical debate in order to develop a deep understanding of the complexities of public health issues. An understanding of public health has never been more important! There has been a growing interest in public health, driven by concerns for social justice and sustainability, but it is currently in the headlines as never before. The failure of governments to get to grips with the Covid-19 pandemic has demonstrated widespread ignorance of the basics of a public health approach to threats to health and well-being. Relevant to all interested individuals but particularly students and professionals within nursing, medicine, social work and public health, this book encourages critical debate and reflection to develop a deep understanding of the complexities of public health issues. It offers 50 powerful stories and sayings around public health that could just change the world! Accompanied by searching questions for discussion and case studies that provide context and link each aphorism to a key event or theme, important messages around public health are extracted and explored.