Public Health

In 2007 the World Health Organization introduced a surgical safety checklist as part of its Safe Surgery Saves Lives initiative. The checklist’s purpose was to reduce surgical complications that result from inadequate safety practices as well as to promote greater communication among surgery teams.

In the United States, breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related death among women. For women between 50 and 70 years old, screening mammography has long been recommended has as a means to detect cancers as early as possible and thus begin treatment sooner.

In 2007 the World Health Organization introduced a surgical safety checklist as part of its Safe Surgery Saves Lives initiative. The checklist’s purpose was to reduce surgical complications that result from inadequate safety practices as well as to promote greater communication among surgery teams.

Televisions entered U.S. households in large numbers after World War II, and personal computers became widespread in business in the 1980s. With these technological innovations, leisure and then work time in the United States began to increasingly center on screen-based systems. Millions of people now spend workdays in front of computers and then retire to their houses to watch TV, play videogames or surf the web.

The rise of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria is among the greatest emerging public health problems. Resistance, acquired by bacteria through natural selection, has been accelerated by the improper use of antibiotics. Because such strains can be resistant to even newer, more powerful compounds, their infections are associated both with higher disease and death rates and with greater economic tolls on health care systems.

Since the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan and the 2003 start of the Iraq war, hundreds of thousands of U.S. soldiers have served increasingly long and difficult deployments overseas. Beyond the physical risks troops face, their absence can have significant negative impacts on family members.

More than half the world’s population now lives in urban settings, and by 2050 the percentage is expected to rise to 70%. Because cities will be home to so many, it’s essential to better understand the health benefits and risks of urban living.

Although it is commonly known that meat products are not necessarily healthful when consumed in large quantities, for a long time researchers had not confirmed the precise link between red meat and mortality through a large-scale study over a significant period.

At the 2000 United Nations Summit a plan was developed to combat problems facing the world’s most impoverished populations. The plan was based on eight major objectives, known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); the World Health Organization (WHO), part of the U.N., was responsible for coordinating efforts on the health-related objectives.