Global Perspectives on Population Health

When a pandemic occurs, and millions of people are sick and possibly dying, there are simply not enough people to treat those infected. Those who provide treatment often succumb to the illness, taxing the workforce further. In 1918, during the flu pandemic, the United States diverted soldiers from combat support roles to care for the sick and dying—a reactionary approach to the pandemic. What might have happened had the approach been more proactive, including education? What if the flu vaccination had been available in 1918?

For this Discussion, you will describe and compare a population health issue as it presents in the United States and in a country assigned to you by your Instructor (Kenya). You will also explore the policies and initiatives each of these countries have in place to address the issue and the impact this might have on the healthcare workforce.

To prepare:

Select a population health issue of interest, either one you have explored previously or a new one of interest.

Research the selected population health issue for the United States and the country you were assigned by your Instructor.

Identify at least one policy or initiative that each country has implemented to address your selected population health issue.

Consider how foreign-trained healthcare professionals such as those depicted in “Why Refugee Doctors Become Taxi Drivers” (Chiaramonte & Selig, 2017) might impact the population health issue within each country.

Post a description of the population health issue as it presents in the United States and in the country assigned to you by your Instructor. What are the similarities and differences in the population health issue within the two countries? What policies and/or initiatives is each country employing to address the issue? How might foreign-trained healthcare professionals impact the population health issue within each country?