Public health is one of the best things a
federal, state or local government can invest in. Timely prevention, which is
typically inexpensive, can help save many lives and can keep people from developing
chronic illnesses (Health, 2018). The first role the federal government plays
is the promotion of health via different online and offline campaigns for the
betterment and welfare of the whole population. Secondly, it has to ensure the
protection and security of people from environmental hazards and infectious
diseases. Thirdly, the federal government is responsible for providing easy
access to safe and quality care to the public without any discrimination. While
performing all of these duties, the federal government is required to invest a
lot of money in healthcare projects, and in the absence of sufficient funds, it
can be difficult for the federal government to continue providing affordable
care to everyone.
On the other hand, both the state and local
governments are responsible for monitoring health, sanitation and disease
control programs (Maruyama, et al., 2016). The financing and delivery of health
services like mental health, direct delivery via health departments and public
health and Medicaid are also the responsibility of the state and local
governments. They ensure environmental protection and set certain regulations
that ensure the health and wellbeing of all people. It can be difficult for the
state or local government to perform these so many duties if the public does
not cooperate in varying ways. For example, if anyone submits wrong documents
in order to avail Medicaid, then it will obviously become impossible for the
state or local government to determine who actually the low-income families or
people are. In addition, the provision of quick care may become difficult if
there are only a handful of public hospitals in a particular city, village or
town. Inadequate sanitary facilities, contaminated food, bad housing,
overcrowding, and polluted water are some other challenges the state and local
governments have to face.
According to Bronson et al. (2009),
evidence-based policy is all about making better or informed decisions based on
the available evidence or rational analysis. In the healthcare industry,
doctors and nurses are always encouraged to make evidence-based decisions and
to provide medical assistance to all patients without any discrimination. The
first domain of evidence is Process, which is a series of actions or decisions
taken for the betterment of one or more groups of people.
The second domain is regarded as Content,
which is all about knowing what types of things or materials are required in
order to solve different health-related problems. Systematic reviews are often done
in order to ensure the quality of content in the healthcare industry. The third
main domain is Outcome, which is the potential or final result of a specific
evidence-based policy. In some situations, the results of evidence-based
research are not as expected, and in some circumstances, they exceed the
expectations of the researcher or group of researchers. The outcome can also be
regarded as the way things are turned out. The success of an evidence-based
policy lies in the quality and accuracy of outcomes.
References
Brownson, R., Chriqui, J., & Stamatakis,
K. (2009). Understanding Evidence-Based Public Health Policy. American Journal of Public Health, 99(9),
1576-1583. Retrieved from ABI/INFORM Global.
Health, T. L. (2018). No
Public Health without Migrant Health. The Lancet Public Health, 3(6).
doi:10.1016/s2468-2667(18)30101-4
Maruyama, T. A., Mickiewicz,
T., Cannon, A., Montoya, T., Diaz, S., Berg, E., . . . Shlay, J. C. (2016).
Public Health-Health Care Collaboration to Improve Smoking Cessation Rates
Among Low Socioeconomic Status Patients in Denver: A Population Health Case
Report. NAM Perspectives, 6(5). doi:10.31478/201605d
