The Public Health milestone is the first significant step in creating what is known today as the U.S. healthcare system. This milestone saw the development of a more organized way of handling health problems and the introduction of new systems. These systems are still used today to deal with public health issues and provide primary care for those who need it most. Additionally, this milestone traces its roots back to the 1800s, when newly formed states faced challenges in creating appropriate infrastructure for disease control and prevention (Niles, 2019). Individuals began to look into this phenomenon as a part of their state’s obligations. According to Niles, public health can be defined as “the social and behavioral science that concerns itself with human, population-related health problems” (Niles, 2019). This research paper discusses the original idea behind public health: to improve sanitation, increase public safety, and ensure that all individuals have access to primary medical care.
The Public Health Milestone
The Public Health milestone was a significant accomplishment in the history of healthcare. It was designed to serve as a way to prevent and control diseases that were highly prevalent at the time, such as tuberculosis and cholera (Niles, 2019). Public Health was created after many years of research showing how diseases were spread through contaminated water, food, and air. It resulted in public health measures such as improved sanitation practices, better hygiene practices, and vaccination programs to reduce morbidity and mortality rates from these diseases. In addition, it was created because the government realized they needed to address public health issues, or otherwise, the country would continue to suffer economically and socially. The government saw this as a way to help their citizens, who could not do so themselves.
Moreover, the Public Health milestone was created out of an awareness that healthcare is integral to public health and that it is necessary for everyone in society to be able to receive care when they need it. The milestone also recognized that many members of the community would not be able to receive care if they did not have insurance or if they could not afford the cost of services. This led them to issue laws around healthcare coverage and establish programs like Medicare and Medicaid (Niles, 2019). It enabled those who needed healthcare to get it regardless of how much money they had or how much insurance coverage they had purchased through their employer or another source.
The most notable feature of this milestone is the creation of The National Board of Health, which has been allocated the responsibility for accompanying the supervision of public health measures (Niles, 2019). It was created to coordinate the efforts of federal agencies and state governments in extending public health services to everyone, irrespective of race, creed, or color. These milestones have been instrumental in shaping modern healthcare systems because they have helped to ensure that all Americans have access to quality healthcare services at an affordable price.
The Medicine and Education and the Hospital System’s Development Milestones
Here are two milestones that occurred around the same time in history, and they show how the U.S. healthcare system developed over time. The first milestone was the practice of medicine and medical education that occurred in 1904 (Niles, 2019). The first medical school opened in 1837 at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, PA (Niles, 2019). This school inspired several other schools to open up across America over the next few decades. These schools taught students about anatomy and physiology as well as diseases and treatments for them. This milestone is important because it helps shape the future of healthcare. It also created a need for more doctors, which led to the development of hospitals, which helped create a foundation for today’s hospital system.
The second milestone was the hospital system’s development, which occurred around the same time as the Medicine and Education milestones. Hospitals were built to serve mostly the poor, which resulted in the provision of free care to those who could not pay it. This milestone was vital because it led to better access to healthcare for everyone and has shaped many other sectors within today’s healthcare system.
The Relationship Between the Milestones
The Public Health sector plays a prominent role in all of these milestones. It is responsible for providing disease prevention services such as vaccinations and health screenings. It also establishes standards for food safety, sanitation, and hygiene practices to protect public health and promote healthy lifestyle. For example, medication labels must indicate how much liquid should be added before taking a dose. It helps prevent children from accidentally ingesting too much medication by mistake. They also do not read labels carefully when preparing their medicines at home or in school, where they are allowed to take them without parental supervision (Niles, 2019). The Public Health sector includes the medical field, which is the practice of medicine. The development of the hospital system is perhaps one of the most important milestones that have played a role in its development as people know it today. It is essential for the modern-day healthcare system because it helps connect patients and doctors and promotes public health through education.
The practice of medicine has been around since ancient times and has evolved. The first hospitals were developed in England during the 1800s (Niles, 2019). The primary purpose was to provide care for poor people who could not afford it at home. They also served as almshouses where they could receive free care while they worked to support themselves. This system still exists in some countries, such as India and China, where doctors are paid by their patients rather than by insurance companies or governments. Accordingly, one can see how these sectors intersect in today’s hospital system when doctors treat patients without charge at local hospitals, which has been going on since 1853 (Niles, 2019). Many hospitals in America now provide free medical care to low-income persons of all races and backgrounds.
In addition, education and health care are interrelated because they rely heavily on each other for their success. This is demonstrated by the fact that 85% of all medical students graduate from medical schools and then practice medicine (Niles, 2019). Similarly, there is a clear link between education and public health because teaching provides a foundation for understanding health issues from a patient’s point of view. Public health ensures people can access quality healthcare services when necessary (Niles, 2019). Moreover, there is a clear overlap between the Public Health and the Hospital sectors; both involve providing care at low cost so that people can access it without being afraid of financial hardships (Niles, 2019). Furthermore, when looking at these three sectors individually, it may be hard to understand how they would intersect with one another or how they would enhance each other’s contributions. But when examining their contributions together, it becomes evident that their combined efforts have made an indelible impact on the healthcare system today and will continue to do so for years to come.
Reference
Niles, N. J. (2019). Basics of the U.S. health care system. Jones & Bartlett Learning.