Health Protection

Health Protection: Principles and practice is a practical guide for practitioners working at all levels in public health and health protection, including those with a non-specialist background. It is the first textbook in health protection to address all three domains within the field (communicable disease control; emergency preparedness, resilience and response (EPRR); and environmental public health) in a comprehensive and integrated manner. Written by leading practitioners in the field, the book is rooted in a practice-led, all-hazards approach, which allows for easy real-world application of the topics discussed. The chapters are arranged in six sections, which begin with an in-depth introduction to the principles of health protection and go on to illuminate the three key elements of the field by providing: case studies and scenarios to describe common and important issues in the practice of health protection; health protection tools, which span epidemiology and statistics, infection control, immunisation, disease surveillance, and audit and service improvement; and evidence about new and emerging health protection issues. It includes more than 100 health protection checklists (SIMCARDs), covering infections from anthrax to yellow fever, non-infectious diseases emergencies and environmental hazards. Written from first-hand experience of managing communicable diseases these provide practical, stand-alone quick reference guides for in-practice use. Both the topical content of Health Protection: Principles and practice, and the clearly described health protection principles the book provides, makes it a highly relevant resource for wider public health and health protection professionals in this continually evolving field.

Indentifies, for recreational water use, risks from exposure to fecal streptococci and other micro-organisms. Deals also with pH, nuisance organisms, temperature, aesthetics, and turbidity. Includes a section on sampling and enumeration of indicators of recreational water quality.

The seventh edition of the Canadian Immunization Guide was developed by the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI), with the support ofthe Immunization and Respiratory Infections Division, Public Health Agency of Canada, to provide updated information and recommendations on the use of vaccines in Canada. The Public Health Agency of Canada conducted a survey in 2004, which confi rmed that the Canadian Immunization Guide is a very useful and reliable resource of information on immunization.

Experts estimate that as many as 98,000 people die in any given year from medical errors that occur in hospitals. That's more than die from motor vehicle accidents, breast cancer, or AIDSâ€"three causes that receive far more public attention. Indeed, more people die annually from medication errors than from workplace injuries. Add the financial cost to the human tragedy, and medical error easily rises to the top ranks of urgent, widespread public problems. To Err Is Human breaks the silence that has surrounded medical errors and their consequenceâ€"but not by pointing fingers at caring health care professionals who make honest mistakes. After all, to err is human. Instead, this book sets forth a national agendaâ€"with state and local implicationsâ€"for reducing medical errors and improving patient safety through the design of a safer health system. This volume reveals the often startling statistics of medical error and the disparity between the incidence of error and public perception of it, given many patients' expectations that the medical profession always performs perfectly. A careful examination is made of how the surrounding forces of legislation, regulation, and market activity influence the quality of care provided by health care organizations and then looks at their handling of medical mistakes. Using a detailed case study, the book reviews the current understanding of why these mistakes happen. A key theme is that legitimate liability concerns discourage reporting of errorsâ€"which begs the question, "How can we learn from our mistakes?" Balancing regulatory versus market-based initiatives and public versus private efforts, the Institute of Medicine presents wide-ranging recommendations for improving patient safety, in the areas of leadership, improved data collection and analysis, and development of effective systems at the level of direct patient care. To Err Is Human asserts that the problem is not bad people in health careâ€"it is that good people are working in bad systems that need to be made safer. Comprehensive and straightforward, this book offers a clear prescription for raising the level of patient safety in American health care. It also explains how patients themselves can influence the quality of care that they receive once they check into the hospital. This book will be vitally important to federal, state, and local health policy makers and regulators, health professional licensing officials, hospital administrators, medical educators and students, health caregivers, health journalists, patient advocatesâ€"as well as patients themselves. First in a series of publications from the Quality of Health Care in America, a project initiated by the Institute of Medicine

Human health depends on the health of the planet. Earth’s natural systems—the air, the water, the biodiversity, the climate—are our life support systems. Yet climate change, biodiversity loss, scarcity of land and freshwater, pollution and other threats are degrading these systems. The emerging field of planetary health aims to understand how these changes threaten our health and how to protect ourselves and the rest of the biosphere. Planetary Health: Protecting Nature to Protect Ourselves provides a readable introduction to this new paradigm. With an interdisciplinary approach, the book addresses a wide range of health impacts felt in the Anthropocene, including food and nutrition, infectious disease, non-communicable disease, dislocation and conflict, and mental health. It also presents strategies to combat environmental changes and its ill-effects, such as controlling toxic exposures, investing in clean energy, improving urban design, and more. Chapters are authored by widely recognized experts. The result is a comprehensive and optimistic overview of a growing field that is being adopted by researchers and universities around the world. Students of public health will gain a solid grounding in the new challenges their profession must confront, while those in the environmental sciences, agriculture, the design professions, and other fields will become familiar with the human consequences of planetary changes. Understanding how our changing environment affects our health is increasingly critical to a variety of disciplines and professions. Planetary Health is the definitive guide to this vital field.

The essential guide to controlling and managing today’s communicable diseases The fourth edition of Communicable Disease Control and Health Protection Handbook offers public health workers of all kinds an authoritative and up-to-date guide to current protocols surrounding the identification and control of infectious diseases. With its concise, accessible design, the book is a practical tool that can be relied upon to explain topics ranging from the basic principles of communicable disease control to recent changes and innovations in health protection practice. Major syndromes and individual infections are insightfully addressed, while the authors also outline the WHO’s international health regulations and the organizational arrangements in place in all EU nations. New to the fourth edition are chapters on Ebola, the Zika virus, and other emerging pandemics. In addition, new writing on healthcare-associated infection, migrant and refugee health, and the importance of preparedness make this an essential and relevant text for all those in the field. This vital resource: Reflects recent developments in the science and administration of health protection practice Covers topics such as major syndromes, control of individual infections, main services and activities, arrangements for all European countries, and much more Includes new chapters on the Zika virus, Schistosomiasis, Coronavirus including MERS + SARS, and Ebola Follows a format designed for ease of use and everyday consultation Created to provide public and environmental health practitioners, physicians, epidemiologists, infection control nurses, microbiologists and trainees with a straightforward – yet informative – resource, Communicable Disease Control and Health Protection Handbook is a practical companion for all those working the field today.

The textile industry is increasingly based on ongoing innovation and development of higher performance products, and the field of functional textiles is no exception. This book explores the development of textiles with a wide range of functions, with the aim of improving the performance of the product in terms of the protection and health benefits that it can offer. The book is split into two parts. Part one focuses on functional textiles for improved performance and protection, with chapters reviewing antistatic, flame retardant and infrared functional textiles, among many others. Chapters in part two examine the uses of functional textiles in a medical context, including superhydrophobic materials, antibacterial textiles and insect-repellent materials. With its distinguished editors and contributions from some of the world’s leading authorities, Functional textiles for improved performance, protection and health is invaluable for textile scientists, technologists and engineers as well as those designing and manufacturing textiles. It is also a suitable reference for the academic sector. Examines the use of functional textiles in a medical context, including superhydrophobic materials, antibacterial textiles and insect-repellent materials Topics range from textile chemicals and their interaction with skin to novel pesticide protective clothing Considers anti-ultraviolet protection of clothing and flame retardant textiles