Our nation faces daunting health challenges that call for new public health strategies.
A 2003 report from the Institute of Medicine, "Who Will Keep the Public Healthy?" concludes, "We are now facing problems that no one has seen before." It predicts that all cities and states in the 21st century will face changing disease patterns linked to climate change. The toll of poor lifestyle choices will mount. Alarming statistics on obesity, especially childhood obesity, Type 2 diabetes and mental health problems, along with the aging of the baby boomers, point to an even greater load for our health care delivery systems.
The good news is that efforts to create a "new public health" have begun, and universities - including, starting today, the University of Maryland, College Park - are helping to lead this major re-engineering project.
A variety of alarming health trends are converging at a time when we face a shortage of trained public health workers. The American Public Health Association estimates that half of federal public health workers and one-quarter of state-level workers will retire in the next five years. Even today, one study estimates that 80 percent of public health workers lack full training in their fields.
The "new public health" recognizes that biomedical approaches cannot solve all health problems. We must also address individual lifestyles, social and community influences, living and working conditions, as well as educational, environmental and cultural factors and government policies.
Universities, through their research and training programs, are helping redirect the public health profession to focus on strategies that actively promote health and healthful lifestyles, not just prevent diseases and health problems. Many of the causes of premature death are preventable. A close collaboration between the university and health systems is essential for the success of this redirected focus.
Starting today, Maryland - and the Mid-Atlantic region - will have its first school of public health based at a public university. As dean of the University of Maryland School of Public Health in College Park, I believe that this new school, in collaboration with the state, will be a major force in the creation of models for the nation's new public health.
