What Is Health And Who Gets Sick Flashcards
What is health?
WHO - a state of complete physical, mental & social well-being & not merely the absence of disease or infirmity
What is mental health?
A state of complete well-being in which individuals realise their potential, can cope with normal stresses of life, can work productively & is able to make contribution to the community
What is mental illness?
Disturbances of mood & thought which can affect behaviour & distress the individual and people around them - inhibiting normal function
What is the indigenous concept of health?
Control over the physical environment, of dignity, of community self esteem and of justice
What is a disease?
Process of change within the body - can be there without symptoms, signs, label or diagnosis
What is an illness?
Experience of being sick & having diagnosis - more subjective & differs between people. Influences actions more than diseases
What are the 4 key aspects in the measurement of health?
- assessment
- planning
- implementation
- evaluation
What does incidence mean?
Frequency of which a problem appears in a population or area
What does prevalence mean?
Proportion of individuals in a population having a health problem
What is a communicable disease?
An infectious or transmissible disease - greatest contributor to death & disability throughout human history. More common in higher income populations
What is a communicable disease caused by?
Bacteria, viruses, fungi & parasites
How are communicable diseases passed on?
- direct person-person contact
- airborne (e.g. Large droplets or tiny particles)
- vector borne (e.g. Mosquito)
- vehicle spread (e.g. Door handle, food)
- mother to child (e.g. Pregnancy, birth, breast feeding)
What is a non communicable disease?
Non infectious disease - chronic diseases. More common in lower income countries
What causes non-communicable diseases?
- genetics
- aging process
- auto-immune disorders
- lifestyle risk factors
- behaviours
Examples of non-communicable diseases (9)
- cancer
- diabetes
- neuropsychiatric disorders
- CVD (cardiovascular disease)
- respiratory diseases
- skin diseases
- dental diseases
- musculoskeletal diseases
- blindness
What is co-morbidity?
Simultaneous occurrence of 2 or more disorders in one person
What are the 3 key risk factors for co-morbidity?
- tobacco
- alcohol
- diet/physical activity complex
What is ‘epidemiological transition’?
Increase of chronic diseases in low income countries as the lifestyles change
What is a disability?
Impact that affects normal health and well being - affects normal day to day functioning
What causes a disability?
- disease
- injury
- birth defect
What are the main three Australian health risk factors?
- smoking
- high blood pressure
- obesity
What are the top 10 global risk factors causing death?
- High blood pressure
- Tobacco
- High cholesterol
- Underweight
- Unsafe sex
- Low fruit & veg intake
- High BMI
- Physical inactivity
- Alcohol
- Unsafe water/sanitation/hygiene
What are the acronyms used by WHO regarding health?
- DALYs - disability-adjusted life years
- DALY = YLL (years of life lost) + YLD (years lost to disability)
What is epidemiological shift?
Health issues changed to chronic diseases due to lifestyle & behaviours
What is primary health care?
First level of contact in community - affordable, close to home.
What does primary health care do?
- addresses main health problems in the community
- provides; (4)
- promotive
- preventative
- curative
- rehabilitative services
What does secondary health care mean?
Intermediate level of diagnosis & treatment performed in hospital - specialised equipment & lab facilities
What does secondary health care do?
Provides service to more people from a larger area - e.g. ICU’s, highly specialised personnel
What is tertiary health care?
A specialised, highly technical level of health care that includes diagnosis & treatment
What does tertiary health care do?
Provides highly centralised care to the population of a large region
What is rehabilitation?
Aim to regain physical, sensory, & mental capabilities that have been lost due to injury, illness, or disease
What is public health?
The organised response by society to protect and promote health and to prevent injury, illness & disability
What has life expectancy increased to for the developing world?
- 40 to 65
- each year 4 months added
- chance of survival past 5 years doubled
Why has life expectancy increased for the developing world?
- greater social equity
- accessible primary health care
- decreased income equities
- improved status for women
- family planning & lower birth rates
- land reform
- adequate physical infrastructure (water, electricity, transport)
Which people have poor health? (5)
- genetically susceptible people
- poor, powerless & stressed people without social support, education, work & access to good foods
- people in unclean, unsafe or contaminated environments
- indigenous people’s - lost of self-determination, homes & lifestyle
- refugees & internally displaced people’s - have had to leave homes
