Turkey : Asthma,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Turkey : Asthma, Nicole Adams
Global Public Health
In the Middle-Eastern country of Turkey, they have the public health issue of asthma which is directly related to the amount and type of air pollution. Asthma is a health condition that can be found all over the world and it can happen to anyone. Although it is not readily noticed, the number of cases of asthma change along with the amount of air pollution, specifically SO2 and PM10 levels. SO2 is a gas that be toxic when abundant and it occurs when coal that has sulfur is burned. PM10, or particulate matter, is the …
Spain : Childhood Obesity,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Spain : Childhood Obesity, Emily Haygood
Global Public Health
Throughout the world, obesity is increasing as a public health issue. Specifically, in Spain, which is on the rise for childhood obesity. It is reported that around 1/3 of children in Spain have an excess of weight. Part of this high rate of obesity can be attributed to the high income status. This exposes the population to activities and habits that may lead to poor lifestyle choices. For example, the access to television can decrease activity in children as well as access to fast food can allow for poor nutritional habits.
New Zealand : Mumps Outbreak,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
New Zealand : Mumps Outbreak, Kathryn Evans
Global Public Health
The purpose of this Health Brief is to discuss the outbreak of mumps in New Zealand during the summer of 2017. The year saw more cases than the past sixteen years combined. The reason that New Zealand, a high-income country that generally does not struggle with communicable diseases, may be experiencing this outbreak is low vaccination rates in the 1990’s. It appears that there was a decline in coverage for the MMR immunization at this time due to several factors. These include a transition in the timing of the second dose of MMR, a change from four years to eleven …
Peru : Zika Virus,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Peru : Zika Virus, Benjamin Martin
Global Public Health
This document covers zika virus as a public health issue in Peru. Peru is a coastal country in South America. It has a population of 31,777,000 and faces many problems in the years to come. Some of those problems are a largely informal economy, the melting of glaciers, and lots of the population are impoverish and under-educated. These challenges the country is facing makes zika virus more dangerous. Zika virus is a disease that is spreading across the world and is most dangerous to pregnant women because it can cause birth defects for the child, such as microcephaly. In this …
Afghanistan : Tuberculosis,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Afghanistan : Tuberculosis, Emily Fulk
Global Public Health
Afghanistan, a country in the Middle East, faces the epidemic of an infectious bacterial lung disease called Tuberculosis, or TB. Tuberculosis is fairly easy to spread, as the bacteria that causes it are spread from one person to another through tiny droplets released into the air via coughs and sneezes. Despite the widespread amounts of individuals affected with TB, it is known to be easily curable using a six month treatment. And so public health officials have implemented a program called DOTS, or Directly Observed Treatment Short Course in Kabul City to test the effectiveness of this treatment. The DOTS …
Puerto Rico : Zika Virus,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Puerto Rico : Zika Virus, Rachel Cybulski
Global Public Health
Puerto Rico has had an epidemic of Zika virus within the past few years. Considering the close distance to America, the U.S. has been up-to-date in stopping the spread of Zika from Puerto Rico to the states. In 2016 particularly, the United States declared Puerto Rico to be in a state of emergency due to the heavy presence of the virus. Although this specific outbreak has been terminated, the likelihood of another such occurrence is high, so it is important to learn about the effects of Zika and ways to prevent the spread. The major result of having the virus …
Guam : Mumps,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Guam : Mumps, Taylor Covert
Global Public Health
In the years of 2009-2010, Guam experienced an outbreak of mumps that was widespread throughout the country. Mumps is a disease in which the parotid gland located in the face and neck region swells and can cause inflammation in the brain. Though a majority of the citizens were vaccinated for MMR, there was still a problem throughout the nation. The vaccine is provided in a number of doses, three being the optimal amount. It was later revealed that citizens who were vaccinated only received two doses, not fully protecting them from the illness. 505 cases were reported overall for this …
Namibia : Hiv As A National Issue,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Namibia : Hiv As A National Issue, Elisabeth Vlasak
Global Public Health
Namibia is located on the southwestern coast of Africa, bordering Angola, Botswana, Zambia, South Africa, and the Atlantic Ocean. Namibia has a population of 2,265,000, as of 2016. Namibia has many challenges, including food insecurity and malnutrition, access to health services, unequal distribution of wealth, but HIV/AIDS is one of the country’s leading challenges. It is estimated that the overall adult infection rate of HIV/AIDS is 15.4% and it is the leading cause of death in Namibia. Adults ages 18-24 are the most at-risk for the disease. Some of the major risk factors are declining condom use, misinformation, social stigma, …
Zimbabwe : Malaria,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Zimbabwe : Malaria, Ashton Hutcheson
Global Public Health
Zimbabwe, a developing country in southeastern Africa, has a population of over 15 million people. The large majority of this population is at risk for various prevalent infectious disease including the significant threat that is Malaria. Zimbabwe is a country within what the World Health Organization determines as the “WHO African Region.” This region is where 90% of Malaria deaths occur worldwide. This brief provides reasons why malaria is such a major problem including the country’s general lack of clinics and key risk factors associated with contracting malaria. It was found that those most at-risk for malaria live in houses …
Haiti : A Water Crisis,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Haiti : A Water Crisis, John Karras
Global Public Health
Haiti has always been a country stricken with poverty, and to have such a devastating earthquake hit them in 2010 was detrimental to any plans they had to improve the country. The earthquake negatively contributed to the very same water system the Haitian government was trying to improve. The massive 7.0 earthquake broke some of the water channels, which ultimately lead to the growth of many Cholera colonies in the pipes. This all led to the Cholera outbreak in October 2010. More recently, Haiti has been in a slightly better state, but not well enough for the people to live …
Guatemala : Chagas Disease,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Guatemala : Chagas Disease, Audrey Datzman
Global Public Health
Chagas disease is a parasitic and vector-borne endemic prevalent across Latin American countries, particularly Guatemala. The parasite, Trypanosoma cruzi, is spread through triatomine insect vectors often found in low-income housing. Already claiming twelve-thousand deaths in 2016, Guatemala faces a major challenge in attempting to eliminate the triatomine vectors of Chagas disease. Various interventions have been undertaken in the country, including insecticide-based control and community-based vector surveillance.
Liberia : Maternal Health & Ebola,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Liberia : Maternal Health & Ebola, Chelsey Hernandez
Global Public Health
Throughout the world, many low-income countries suffer from poor nutrition, lack of health resources, and little to no access to other valuable resources. Previous research has demonstrated the poor state of health in Liberia as a result of these various socioeconomic factors. Although Liberia faces many public health issues, the 2014 Ebola epidemic reversed whatever progress was made. Maternal and child health in particular has severely decreased, especially in recent years. This brief focuses on the impact of the 2014 Ebola epidemic had on maternal health.
Ukraine : Papillary Thyroid Cancer,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Ukraine : Papillary Thyroid Cancer, Elizabeth Paris
Global Public Health
Ukraine is a middle- to low- income country run by a semi-presidential republic, after the banning of the Communist party in the early 1990's. While the nation faces various internal and external challenges, including unemployment rates and war with Russia, Ukraine also continues to face a major public health issue that originated in the 1980's. In 1986, an explosion was triggered at the nuclear power plant in Chernobyl, Ukraine. The explosion released radioactive iodine into the ground, water, and air, and it was discovered soon after that this had a long-lasting effect on health. It has been observed that rates …
Gabon : Hiv/Aids,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Gabon : Hiv/Aids, Amanda Lindau
Global Public Health
Gabon is a country in West Africa that has a population of 1.8 million and is a relatively poor nation. It has had quite a few public health and political problems in the last couple of years. These problems include water and electricity shortages along with HIV/AIDS. HIV seems to be one of the biggest public health problems in Gabon at this moment. There is quite a bit of the population that is living with this virus. However, there are many people that are living with this virus but either do not understand the severity of it or just do …
Vietnam : Dengue Fever,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Vietnam : Dengue Fever, Brittany Hatlestad
Global Public Health
This brief covers political structure, internal challenges, and external challenges in Vietnam, as well as epidemiology, identification, intervention, challenges, and suggestions regarding dengue fever throughout Vietnam. Dengue fever, a mosquito-borne viral disease, is a leading cause of illness and death in tropical and subtropical countries. Climate variability and change has significantly increased the vector population in Vietnam, and the effects are most significant in peri-urban/rural urban areas. Dengue-related signs include flu-symptoms, leading to undiagnosed dengue fever. The citizens of Vietnam encounter challenges including lack of quality public health insurance and care, extremely high cost of treatment, prime environment for vectors, …
Marketing Research Report: Lead Poisoning Dilemma In Scott County,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Marketing Research Report: Lead Poisoning Dilemma In Scott County, Hoang Nguyen, Brendan Gould, Trace Timmons
2017-2018: Scott County, Iowa Health Department
Research was contracted from August-October 2017 by Augustana College students to examine opportunities for improving media engagement regarding the prevalent dilemma of lead poisoning within the Scott Community area. In particular, we conducted research to discover why Scott County residents are not testing their children for lead poisoning. The purpose of the research is to enhance Scott County Health Department’s media outlets in order to demonstrate the seriousness of this issue and hopefully persuade as many parents as possible into getting their children tested.
The Development Of Insights On Priority Audiences And Awareness Messages For Child Lead Poisoning,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
The Development Of Insights On Priority Audiences And Awareness Messages For Child Lead Poisoning, Andrew Kladiva, Austin Whelan
2017-2018: Scott County, Iowa Health Department
The purpose of this project is to assist the Scott County Health department (SCHD) in gaining further insights into public opinion regarding child lead poisoning by investigating the public knowledge of lead poisoning and more specifically how knowledgeable members of Scott County are of the issue. To assist the SCHD to develop a marketing campaign regarding how to increase the perceived importance and knowledge of child lead poisoning for the average Scott County resident, we conducted research to explore why a large percentage of the population in Scott County doesn’t know about the dangers of lead poisoning. Some of our …
Lead Poisoning Awareness Final Report For Scott County Health Department,
2017
Augustana College, Rock Island Illinois
Lead Poisoning Awareness Final Report For Scott County Health Department, Andrew Kladiva, Austin Whelan, Amanda Whelan
2017-2018: Scott County, Iowa Health Department
The following study looks to address the public knowledge of lead poisoning and more specifically how knowledgeable members of Scott County are of the issue. We were approached by Scott County Health Department to assist them in developing an idea on how to increase the perceived importance and knowledge of child lead poisoning for the average Scott County resident. We conducted research to determine why a large percentage of the population in Scott County doesn’t know about the dangers of lead poisoning. Some of our hypotheses were low awareness, lack of education on the subject, and differing opinions among age …
Christians’ Cut: Popular Religion And The Global Health Campaign For Medical Male Circumcision In Swaziland,
2017
University of New Hampshire, Durham
Christians’ Cut: Popular Religion And The Global Health Campaign For Medical Male Circumcision In Swaziland, Casey Golomski, Sonene Nyawo
Anthropology
Swaziland faces one of the worst HIV epidemics in the world and is a site for the current global health campaign in sub-Saharan Africa to medically circumcise the majority of the male population. Given that Swaziland is also majority Christian, how does the most popular religion influence acceptance, rejection or understandings of medical male circumcision? This article considers interpretive differences by Christians across the Kingdom’s three ecumenical organisations, showing how a diverse group people singly glossed as ‘Christian’ in most public health acceptability studies critically rejected the procedure in unity, but not uniformly. Participants saw medical male circumcision’s promotion and …
Law-Based Arguments And Messages To Advocate For Later School Start Time Policies In The United States,
2017
University of Maryland Center for Health & Homeland Security
Law-Based Arguments And Messages To Advocate For Later School Start Time Policies In The United States, Clark J. Lee, Dennis M. Nolan, Steven W. Lockley, Brent Pattison
Homeland Security Publications
The increasing scientific evidence that early school start times are harmful to the health and safety of teenagers has generated much recent debate about changing school start times policies for adolescent students. Although efforts to promote and implement such changes have proliferated in the United States in recent years, they have rarely been supported by law-based arguments and messages that leverage the existing legal infrastructure regulating public education and child welfare in the United States. Furthermore, the legal bases to support or resist such changes have not been explored in detail to date. This article provides an overview of how …
