Public Health

Question 1

What are the key concepts encompassed in public health?

Answer 1

1. Health of the population, rather than individuals
2. Improving health and prevention rather than treating disease
3. Whilst there is a scientific approach to reducing disease, the challenge is communicating this to the population so that they can benefit from it

Question 2

What are the 3 core functions of public health?

Answer 2

1. Health protection
2. Improving services
3. Health Improvement

Question 3

Who leads the core function of health protection?

Answer 3

Mostly led by Public Health England but local authorities have a role in:

• delivery of services
• promoting vaccination and screening
• emergency response
• environmental health officers

Question 4

What is encompassed in the core function of health protection?

Answer 4

• Infectious diseases
• Chemicals and poisons
• Radiation
• Emergency response
• Environmental health hazards

Question 5

What is involved in improving services?

Answer 5

Clinical effectiveness
Efficiency
Service planning
Audit and evaluation
Clinical governance
Equity

Question 6

Define clinical effectiveness

Answer 6

Do services actually do what they are meant to, basing services on evidence of effectiveness, ensuring clinical guidelines are in place etc?

Question 7

Define efficiency

Answer 7

Are services good value for money and produce good outcomes for the cost?

Question 8

Define equity with regards to public health

Answer 8

Can people access the services they need?

Question 9

What are the 4 tiers of population health intelligence?

Answer 9

1. Data - raw facts and figures
2. Information - processed data with context
3. Intelligence - adding meaning to the processed data eg comparisons, maps/graphs
4. Insight - apply understanding to an issue

Question 10

Define incidence (as relates to public health)

Answer 10

Measures new cases of a disease or issue often between 2 points in time

• often used in acute conditions which are sudden and severe eg food poisoning or broken bone
• describes the risk of contracting the disease
• useful in studying outbreaks

Question 11

What are the 3 steps in the commissioning cycle?

Answer 11

Strategic planning
Procuring services
Monitoring and evaluation

Question 12

Within sexual health commissioning, what are the local authorities responsible for commissioning?

Answer 12

• Comprehensive sexual health services
• STI testing and treatment, CT screening and HIV testing
• Specialist services - YP sexual health, teen pregnancy, HIV prevention, sexual health promotion, services in schools and colleges

Question 13

Within sexual health commissioning, what are CCGs responsible for commissioning?

Answer 13

• TOP services
• sterilisation
• vasectomy
• psychosexual health services
• gynaecology including any use of contraception for non-contraceptive purposes

Question 14

Within sexual health commissioning, what is NHS England responsible for commissioning?

Answer 14

• Contraception (additional service under GP contract)
• HIV treatment and care (inc cost of PEPSE)
• promotion of opportunistic testing
• prison sexual health
• SARC
• cervical screening
• fetal medicine services

Question 15

What is a health needs assessment?

Answer 15

Systematic method for reviewing the health issues facing a population, leading to agreed priorities and resource allocation that will improve health and reduce inequalities (NICE 2005)