Week 8
Wednesday, 27 October 2021 10:58 AM
Public health, morbidity and mortality
Introduction
- State control mainly for control of population
○ But has still been actively involved in the issue of
health and illness
○ Watching china over the years allows us to watch the
role of the state in developing and maintaining a
good public health program and its effects on the
population
- Good public health is not just individual efforts
○ But required organized and sustained intervention
at the highest level of society
Historical changes in mortality
- Mortality decline in the china since early 1950s has been
rapid and sustained over last 50 years
○ Mainly due to decline in infant mortality and gains in
life expectancy
§ Infant decline started in 1949
§ Very different IMR in different regions
□ Reflect different health environments in
different regions
□ And differences in quality of data
collection
§ Life expectancy increased in the early decades
after 1949
○ The decline surprised people since what was
predicted for a poor country like china
§ More quickly and sustained compared to other
countries with similar income and industrial
profiles
Epidemiological transition
- Drawing from other societies, scholars describe the process
through which societies undergo mortality changes as
epidemiologic transition
○ Societies move from high mortality and morbidity to
, Epidemiological transition
- Drawing from other societies, scholars describe the process
through which societies undergo mortality changes as
epidemiologic transition
○ Societies move from high mortality and morbidity to
low levels of both
○ And see changes in prevalent diseases from
communicable disease to lifestyle caused diseases
- Most western countries have followed one path of
epidemiological transition
○ First to experience decline in mortality
§ Were relatively slow and less influence by new
medicines or medical technology
§ But mainly by social changes
- Global south had different pathway
○ Mortality decline came later
○ More rapid brought about by the importation of
medical technologies and interventions
○ Different to north because changes in the north were
accompanied by changes that allowed the
development of sustained public health systems
○ In contrast to poorer countries where mortality
decline has plateaued
§ Don’t have infrastructure to achieve broader
social change
□ Struggle with diseases whose eradication
required different kinds of intervention
Chinas epidemiological transition
- Chinas mortality declined resembles neither global south or
north
○ Explained by its unique approach to public health
○ Mortality rate fell very quickly
§ Vaccines and basic medicine played a role
□ Similar to global south
§ But at the same time, government developed
infrastructure and organization to sustain and
continue mortality decline
□ Due to governments commitment to
improve public health
® Allowed china to succeed in
eliminating diseases other poorer
countries struggled with
- After establishment of PCR in 1949
○ Country gained social and political stability
○ Government started implementing programs to
Wednesday, 27 October 2021 10:58 AM
Public health, morbidity and mortality
Introduction
- State control mainly for control of population
○ But has still been actively involved in the issue of
health and illness
○ Watching china over the years allows us to watch the
role of the state in developing and maintaining a
good public health program and its effects on the
population
- Good public health is not just individual efforts
○ But required organized and sustained intervention
at the highest level of society
Historical changes in mortality
- Mortality decline in the china since early 1950s has been
rapid and sustained over last 50 years
○ Mainly due to decline in infant mortality and gains in
life expectancy
§ Infant decline started in 1949
§ Very different IMR in different regions
□ Reflect different health environments in
different regions
□ And differences in quality of data
collection
§ Life expectancy increased in the early decades
after 1949
○ The decline surprised people since what was
predicted for a poor country like china
§ More quickly and sustained compared to other
countries with similar income and industrial
profiles
Epidemiological transition
- Drawing from other societies, scholars describe the process
through which societies undergo mortality changes as
epidemiologic transition
○ Societies move from high mortality and morbidity to
, Epidemiological transition
- Drawing from other societies, scholars describe the process
through which societies undergo mortality changes as
epidemiologic transition
○ Societies move from high mortality and morbidity to
low levels of both
○ And see changes in prevalent diseases from
communicable disease to lifestyle caused diseases
- Most western countries have followed one path of
epidemiological transition
○ First to experience decline in mortality
§ Were relatively slow and less influence by new
medicines or medical technology
§ But mainly by social changes
- Global south had different pathway
○ Mortality decline came later
○ More rapid brought about by the importation of
medical technologies and interventions
○ Different to north because changes in the north were
accompanied by changes that allowed the
development of sustained public health systems
○ In contrast to poorer countries where mortality
decline has plateaued
§ Don’t have infrastructure to achieve broader
social change
□ Struggle with diseases whose eradication
required different kinds of intervention
Chinas epidemiological transition
- Chinas mortality declined resembles neither global south or
north
○ Explained by its unique approach to public health
○ Mortality rate fell very quickly
§ Vaccines and basic medicine played a role
□ Similar to global south
§ But at the same time, government developed
infrastructure and organization to sustain and
continue mortality decline
□ Due to governments commitment to
improve public health
® Allowed china to succeed in
eliminating diseases other poorer
countries struggled with
- After establishment of PCR in 1949
○ Country gained social and political stability
○ Government started implementing programs to
