Public Health Merit Badge
What is Public Health?
Public Health
Goals of Public Health
- prevent disease and injury
- teach people how to be healthy
- provide basic health services to certain communities
- protect people from environmental hazards such as pollution
E. Coli
(Escherichia coli), is a type of bacteria that normally lives in your intestines. It's also found in the gut of some animals. Most types of E. coli are harmless and even help keep your digestive tract healthy. But some strains can cause diarrhea if you eat contaminated food or drink fouled water.
Tetanus is an infection caused by a bacterium called Clostridium tetani. Spores of tetanus bacteria are everywhere in the environment, including soil, dust, and manure. The spores develop into bacteria when they enter the body.The spores can get into the body through broken skin, usually through injuries from contaminated objects.
Tetnus
HIV stands for human immunodeficiency virus, which is the virus that causes HIV infection. The abbreviation “HIV” can refer to the virus or to HIV infection.
AIDS stands for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. AIDS is the most advanced stage of HIV infection.
HIV is spread only in certain body fluids from a person who has HIV. These body fluids include blood and semen.
Spread by sexual contact and sharing needles,. Babies can get HIV from their mothers
HIV/AIDS
Malaria
Malaria is a serious and sometimes fatal disease caused by a parasite that commonly infects a certain type of mosquito which feeds on humans. People who get malaria are typically very sick with high fevers, shaking chills, and flu-like illness.
Salmonella
Salmonella infection (salmonellosis) is a common bacterial disease that affects the intestinal tract. Salmonella bacteria typically live in animal and human intestines and are shed through feces. Humans become infected most frequently through contaminated water or food.
Lyme disease, also known as Lyme borreliosis, is an infectious disease caused by the Borrelia bacterium which is spread by ticks. The most common sign of infection is an expanding area of redness on the skin, known as erythema migrans, that appears at the site of the tick bite about a week after it occurred
Lyme Disease
Choose any FOUR of the following diseases or conditions, and explain
how each one is contracted and possibly prevented.
Diseases & Conditions
Explain the type or form of the disease
(Viral/Bacterial/Environmental/Toxin)
Explain any possible vectors for transmission
(Insects/Rodents)
Explain available treatments
West Nile virus (WNV) is an infectious disease that first appeared in the United States in 1999. Infected mosquitoes spread the virus that causes it.
West Nile
Treatment
- No vaccine or specific antiviral treatments for West Nile virus infection are available.
- Over-the-counter pain relievers can be used to reduce fever and relieve some symptoms
- In severe cases, patients often need to be hospitalized to receive supportive treatment, such as intravenous fluids, pain medication, and nursing care.
Gonorrhea is an infection caused by a sexually transmitted bacterium that infects both males and females. Gonorrhea most often affects the urethra, rectum or throat.
Gonorrhea
Antibiotics have successfully treated gonorrhea for several decades; however, the bacteria has developed resistance to nearly every drug used for treatment.
Gonorrhea is skilled at outsmarting the antibiotics that are used to kill it. For this reason, we must continuously monitor for antibiotic resistance and encourage the research and development of new drugs for gonorrhea treatment
Zika is spread mostly by the bite of an infected Aedes species mosquito (Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus). These mosquitoes bite during the day and night.
Zika can be passed from a pregnant woman to her fetus. Infection during pregnancy can cause certain birth defects.
There is no vaccine or medicine for Zika.
Zika
A rare poisoning caused by toxins produced by Clostridium botulinum bacteria.
Botulism can be fatal and requires emergency medical care. It can occur in infants, be spread in food, or infect a wound.
Symptoms include difficulty swallowing or speaking, facial weakness, and paralysis.
Botulism
Everyone can reduce their chances of getting foodborne, wound and infant botulism by:
- Refrigerating homemade oils infused with garlic or herbs and throwing away any unused oils after 4 days.
- Keeping potatoes that have been baked while wrapped in aluminum foil hot (at temperatures above 140°F) until they are served, or refrigerating them with the foil loosened.
- Refrigerating any canned or pickled foods after you open them
- Prevent wound botulism by keeping wounds clean.
- Honey can contain the bacteria that causes infant botulism, so do not feed honey to children younger than 12 months.
Treatment consists of supportive care and transfusions
- Treatments are an antitoxin injection The toxin attacks the body’s nerves, and the antitoxin prevents it from causing any more harm. It does not heal the damage the toxin has already done
- Breathing assistance
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection that can cause serious health problems if it is not treated. Syphilis is divided into stages (primary, secondary, latent, and tertiary). There are different signs and symptoms associated with each stage.
Syphilis
What is the treatment for syphilis?
There are no home remedies or over-the-counter drugs that will cure syphilis, but syphilis is easy to cure in its early stages.
- Intramuscular injection of long acting Benzathine penicillin G
- Treatment will kill the syphilis bacterium and prevent further damage, but it will not repair damage already done.
Hepatitis
Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver. Hepatitis is often caused by a virus. The most common types of viral hepatitis are:
- hepatitis A
- hepatitis B
- hepatitis C
Treatment is supportive care
Can hepatitis B be prevented?
Yes. The best way to prevent hepatitis B is by getting vaccinated. The hepatitis B vaccine is safe and effective. Completing the series of shots is needed for full protection.
Treatment is supportive care.
Emphysema is a long-term, progressive disease of the lungs that primarily causes shortness of breath due to over-inflation of the alveoli (air sacs in the lung). In people with emphysema, the lung tissue involved in exchange of gases (oxygen and carbon dioxide) is impaired or destroyed
Emphysema
Treatment
- Bronchodilators. These drugs can help relieve coughing, shortness of breath and breathing problems by relaxing constricted airways.
- Inhaled steroids. Corticosteroid drugs inhaled as aerosol sprays reduce inflammation and may help relieve shortness of breath.
- Antibiotics
Meningitis is an inflammation (swelling) of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord. A bacterial or viral infection of the fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord usually causes the swelling.
Meningitis
Depends on the cause
Bacterial=BAD--Treatment is antibiotics and steriods.
Viral--There is no specific treatment for viral meningitis. Most people who get mild viral meningitis usually recover completely in 7 to 10 days without treatment.
Herpes
Herpes is a disease that affects the skin i.e., mouth, lips and face or the genitals. The symptoms typically involve sores that appear on the body and develop into itchy and painful blisters.
Herpes is caused by the herpes simplex virus. It can be transmitted from person to person through sexual contact or open skin from direct contact shed from oral or other skin sites. It can also be passed from a mother to baby during childbirth.
Herpes Zoster--AKA Shingles. recommended vaccines
HSV-1 is typically transmitted by oral-oral contact to cause oral herpes
HSV-2 is typically sexually transmitted and causes genital herpes
No cure
HSV 1 & 2--Antiviral creams and pills can shorten the duration of the blister
Shingles is caused by varicella zoster virus (VZV), the same virus that causes chickenpox. After a person recovers from chickenpox, the virus stays dormant (inactive) in the body. This virus can reactivate years later, causing shingles
Lead poisoning is a type of metal poisoning caused by lead in the body. The brain is the most sensitive.
Lead Poisoning
Lead gets stored in the bones of the body, making it particularly hard to treat.
For this reason, many public health and medical professionals will emphasize the importance of preventing exposure to and absorption of lead altogether
Primary Prevention
Immunization
Prevent new cases from occurring
- Interrupt transmission
- Increase resistance
Vaccines!
Everyone should get yearly
2 vaccines people should get periodically
Eight vaccines kids should have
- Hep A
- Hep B
- Tetanus
- Polio
- Measles
- Mumps
- Rubella
- Varicella
Why outbreaks spread exponentially and how to "flatten the curve."
https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/world/corona-simulator/
Overview
Drinking water in the United States comes from a variety of sources including public water systems, private wells, or bottled water. Ensuring safe and healthy drinking water may be as simple as turning on the tap from an EPA-regulated public water system
Issues
The presence of certain contaminants in our water can lead to health issues, including gastrointestinal illness, reproductive problems, and neurological disorders. Infants, young children, pregnant women, the elderly, and immunocompromised persons may be especially at risk for becoming ill after drinking contaminated water.
naturally occurring chemicals and minerals
local land use practices
- fertilizers
- pesticides
- concentrated feeding operations
Sanitation Practices at home and at camp
Safety
Cleaning up
Follow "Leave No Trace" Principles
Camp
Demonstrate 2 ways to make water safe at camp.
Solids
Always pack out everything that was packed in:
- wrappers
- cans and boxes
- foil
- food scraps
Human bodily waste can be buried if sanitary facilities are not available.
Human Waste
Catholes should be 6-8 inches deep and at least 200 feet from any body of water, trail or campsite
Dishwater
When you are finished washing dishes, strain food particles from the dishwater. Put the food particles in a resealable plastic bag that you will pack out. Then take the water at least 200 feet from the campsite, water source, and trails. Give it a good fling, spreading it over a wide area.
Liquids
Steps
- Set up dishwater
- Set up rinse water
- Wash dishes
- Dispose of water
Dishes
What is special about each step?
Cleaning dishes
Home
- Scrape leftover food in the trash
- Fill sink with hot, soapy water
- Use a clean sponge or dishrag
- Rinse in clean hot water
- Dry on rack
Disaster Preparedness for safe water
Be Prepared
Vectors
Vector
Any animal or insect that can transmit a disease to a human.
What are some was to control animals or insects that carry diseases?
Control
Why is it important?
- Cover trash
- Dump standing water
- Pick up pet waste
- Clear debris and overgrown plants
- Use bug repellant or dress in long pants/sleeves
Individual
- Regular garbage pick-up
- Mosquito surveillance
- Enforcement of health codes
Community
Health Danger
Impact of the environment on health
Air
The health effects caused by air pollution may include difficulty in breathing, wheezing, coughing, asthma and worsening of existing respiratory and cardiac conditions. These effects can result in increased medication use, increased doctor or emergency department visits, more hospital admissions and premature death.
Water pollution is any contamination of water with chemicals or other foreign substances that are detrimental to human, plant, or animal health.
Water
Noise
Noise pollution, also known as environmental noise or sound pollution, is the propagation of noise with harmful impact on the activity of human or animal life.
- Hearing loss
- Anxiety
- Irritability
- High Blood pressure
- Sleep problems
"People are most likely to begin
abusing drugs*—including
tobacco, alcohol, and illegal
and prescription drugs—
during adolescence and young
adulthood.‡"
Alcohol, Drugs, RX
https://d14rmgtrwzf5a.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/podata_1_17_14.pdf
"By the time they are seniors, almost 70 percent of high school students will have tried alcohol, half will have taken an illegal
drug, nearly 40 percent will have smoked a cigarette, and more than 20 percent will have used a prescription drug for a nonmedical purpose."
- Addiction
- Injury
- Risky Behavior
- Damage liver, heart, & increase risk of cancer
- Overdose
Images of Brain Development in Healthy Children and Teens (Ages 5-20) The brain continues to develop through early adulthood. Mature brain regions at each developmental stage are indicated in blue. The prefrontal cortex (red circles), which governs judgment...
https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/principles-adolescent-substance-use-disorder-treatment-research-based-guide/introduction#figure1
County
https://www.dallascounty.org/departments/dchhs/