"The Nation has lost sight of its public health goals and has allowed the system of public health to fall into 'disarray'," from The Future of Public Health. This startling book contains proposals for ensuring that public health service programs are efficient and effective enough to deal not only with the topics of today, but also with those of tomorrow. In addition, the authors make recommendations for core functions in public health assessment, policy development, and service assurances, and identify the level of government--federal, state, and local--at which these functions would best be handled.

The anthrax incidents following the 9/11 terrorist attacks put the spotlight on the nation's public health agencies, placing it under an unprecedented scrutiny that added new dimensions to the complex issues considered in this report. The Future of the Public's Health in the 21st Century reaffirms the vision of Healthy People 2010, and outlines a systems approach to assuring the nation's health in practice, research, and policy. This approach focuses on joining the unique resources and perspectives of diverse sectors and entities and challenges these groups to work in a concerted, strategic way to promote and protect the public's health. Focusing on diverse partnerships as the framework for public health, the book discusses: The need for a shift from an individual to a population-based approach in practice, research, policy, and community engagement. The status of the governmental public health infrastructure and what needs to be improved, including its interface with the health care delivery system. The roles nongovernment actors, such as academia, business, local communities and the media can play in creating a healthy nation. Providing an accessible analysis, this book will be important to public health policy-makers and practitioners, business and community leaders, health advocates, educators and journalists.

Public Health Law, first published in 2000, has been widely acclaimed as the definitive statement on public health law at the start of the twenty-first century. Lawrence O. Gostin's definition was based on the notion that government bears a responsibility for advancing the health and well-being of the general population, and the book developed a rich understanding of the government's powers and duties while showing law to be an effective tool in the realization of a healthier and safer population. In this second edition, Gostin analyzes the major health threats of our times, from emerging infectious diseases and bioterrorism to chronic diseases caused by obesity.

Prevention, Policy, and Public Health provides a basic foundation for students, professionals, and researchers to be more effective in the policy arena. It offers information on the dynamics of the policymaking process, theoretical frameworks, analysis, and policy applications. It also offers coverage of advocacy and communication, the two most integral aspects of shaping policies for public health.

Public health surveillance is the systematic, ongoing assessment of the health of a community, based on the collection, interpretation, and use of health data. Surveillance provides information necessary for public health decision making and interventions. In the third edition of Principles and Practice of Public Health Surveillance, the editors present an organized approach to planning, developing, and implementing public health surveillance systems in response to the rapidly changing field of public health. Substantially revised and expanded on, this edition continues to examine further the expansion of surveillance of disease and health determinants, as well as the recent advances in data management and informatics. Major sections of the book focus on bioresponse and preparedness, risk behaviors, and environmental exposure, while the ethical considerations and policy justification for public health surveillance are also explored. Drawing largely from the experience of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other experts in the field, this book provides an excellent framework that collectively improves the surveillance foundation of public health. It will continue to serve as the standard text in the field, an invaluable resource for public health students and the desk reference for public health practitioners.