Health-Seeking Behaviors: Public versus Public Health Perspectives

1986 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 187-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Barker Bausell
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Benefits ◽  
Health Seeking ◽  
Preventive Behaviors ◽  
The Public ◽  
Telephone Interviews ◽  
Health Seeking Behaviors ◽  
Life Saving ◽  
Professional Perceptions

Public and professional perceptions of the salutary effects of 17 preventive behaviors were compared via two separate telephone interviews. In absolute terms the public ( n = 1254) rated the majority of the behaviors as more important than the professional sample ( n = 103), although the exceptions were notable. Not smoking, wearing seatbelts, and drinking in moderation were all considered substantially less important by the public in promoting health and longevity. These results suggest that much work remains to be done in convincing the public of the health benefits of these life-saving acts.

scholarly journals ABO Blood Groups and the Incidence of Complications in COVID-19 Patients: A Population-Based Prospective Cohort Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (19) ◽  
pp. 10039
Author(s):  
Salvador Domènech-Montoliu ◽  
Joan Puig-Barberà ◽  
Maria Rosario Pac-Sa ◽  
Paula Vidal-Utrillas ◽  
Marta Latorre-Poveda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Cohort Study ◽  
Relative Risk ◽  
Clinical Analysis ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Blood Groups ◽  
Adjusted Relative Risk ◽  
Abo Blood Groups ◽  
The Public ◽  
Telephone Interviews

After a COVID-19 outbreak in the Falles festival of Borriana (Spain) during March 2020, a cohort of patients were followed until October 2020 to estimate complications post-COVID-19, considering ABO blood groups (ABO). From 536 laboratory-confirmed cases, 483 completed the study (90.1%) carried by the Public Health Center of Castelló and the Emergency and Microbiology and Clinical Analysis of Hospital de la Plana Vila-real. The study included ABO determination and telephone interviews of patients. The participants had a mean age of 37.2 ± 17.1 years, 300 females (62.1%). ABO were O (41.4%), A (45.5%), B (9.1%), and AB (3.9%). We found no difference in the incidence of COVID-19 infections. A total of 159 (32.9%) patients reported one or more post-COVID-19 complications with divergent incidences after adjustment: O (32.3%), A (32.6%), B (54.1%), and AB (27.6%); B groups had more complications post-COVID-19 when compared with O group (adjusted relative risk [aRR] 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.68, 95% CI 1.24–2.27), and symptoms of fatigue (1.79, 95% CI 1.08–2.95), myalgia (2.06, 95% CI 1.10–3.84), headache (2.61, 95% CI 1.58–4.31), and disorder of vision (4.26 95% CI 1.33–13.60). In conclusion, we observed significant differences in post-COVID-19 complications by ABO, with a higher incidence in B group. Additional research is justified to confirm our results.

scholarly journals Public health benefits and risks of fish consumption: current scientific evidence v. media coverage

2012 ◽  
Vol 16 (10) ◽  
pp. 1885-1892 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federico A Pasquaré ◽  
Roberta Bettinetti ◽  
Sonia Fumagalli ◽  
Davide A Vignati
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Fish Consumption ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Information Source ◽  
Health Benefits ◽  
Fish Intake ◽  
Scientific Uncertainty ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Media

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate if and how the current degree of scientific uncertainty about the safety of fish consumption is incorporated at the media level.DesignWe used a dedicated software (TalTac®) to investigate the content of 169 news articles related to ‘mercury and fish consumption’ that appeared from 1990 to 2010 in the two Italian broadsheets with the highest circulation figures, in order to identify journalistic frames used in the coverage of benefits v. risks associated with fish consumption. Hypotheses were made on how the public might change fish consumption patterns as a result of media coverage.SettingItaly.ResultsThe two newspapers have different agendas in covering the issue. La Repubblica appears to support the view that, besides health benefits, there may be risks associated with fish consumption, while Corriere della Sera emphasizes health benefits more than possible risks. Depending on the preferred information source, the public could: (i) reduce its fish intake; (ii) increase its fish intake; or (iii) become confused about the problem and sceptical towards the media, as a result of conflicting journalistic frames.ConclusionsThe Italian media, in cooperation with scientists, public health nutritionists and dietitians, should place more emphasis on the existence of a few fish species with high to very high Hg levels and relatively low contents of beneficial n-3 fatty acids (e.g. swordfish and shark). This would enable consumers to make more educated purchasing decisions to maximize the benefits of n-3 intake while reducing possible risks from consuming Hg-contaminated fish.

The public health benefits of mobile phones

BMJ ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 323 (7310) ◽  
pp. 447-447
Author(s):  
D. Lawlor
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Mobile Phones ◽  
Health Benefits ◽  
The Public

Identifying the public health benefits of livestock-dependent, agro-ecosystems under climate change

2013 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shana Gillette
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Health Benefits ◽  
Cost Savings ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Disease Avoidance ◽  
Potential Health ◽  
The Public ◽  
Disease Risks ◽  
Livestock Systems

AbstractAs the demand for meat continues to grow in South Asia and Africa and access to communal sources of water and forage shrinks, intensification of small-scale livestock systems in peri-urban areas is expected to expand. In South East Asia, smallholder transition to livestock intensification has been transformative, increasing economic opportunities while also introducing new disease risks. While we have an understanding of the emerging disease burden from livestock intensification; we have just begun to understand the possible public health benefits of sustainable landscapes and the potential health savings accrued from disease avoidance. To date, few studies have attempted to quantify the health benefits attributable to sustainable agro-ecosystems, especially in regard to livestock systems. In this paper, I will examine what is needed to measure and communicate the public health benefits and cost-savings (from disease avoidance) of sustainable agro-ecosystems.

The Challenge of Providing the Public with Actionable Information during a Pandemic

2012 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 630-654 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leslie E. Gerwin
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Public Acceptance ◽  
Accurate Information ◽  
H1n1 Pandemic ◽  
Political Debate ◽  
Free Press ◽  
Uncertain Environment ◽  
The Public ◽  
Life Saving ◽  
Saving Decisions

Can a country with a free press and a robust political debate provide its citizens with actionable information so that they can protect themselves from a threat to their health or safety? By actionable information, I mean accurate facts and reasonable interpretations of those facts upon which an individual should rely in making reason-based decisions. In the context of public health, this includes information that allows an individual to weigh the risk to one’s self, family, and community before deciding to act in an uncertain environment under threatening conditions. The recent H1N1 pandemic, and in particular the government’s campaign for public acceptance of the vaccine, highlights the challenges in ensuring that individuals receive accurate information and perceive that such information should be the basis on which to make potential life-saving decisions.

scholarly journals Social Media Use, eHealth Literacy, Disease Knowledge, and Preventive Behaviors in the COVID-19 Pandemic: Cross-Sectional Study on Chinese Netizens

10.2196/19684 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. e19684 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaojing Li ◽  
Qinliang Liu
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Preventive Behaviors ◽  
Social Media Use ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Disease Knowledge ◽  
Ehealth Literacy ◽  
The Public ◽  
Media Types

Background Since its outbreak in January 2020, COVID-19 has quickly spread worldwide and has become a global pandemic. Social media platforms have been recognized as important tools for health-promoting practices in public health, and the use of social media is widespread among the public. However, little is known about the effects of social media use on health promotion during a pandemic such as COVID-19. Objective In this study, we aimed to explore the predictive role of social media use on public preventive behaviors in China during the COVID-19 pandemic and how disease knowledge and eHealth literacy moderated the relationship between social media use and preventive behaviors. Methods A national web-based cross-sectional survey was conducted by a proportionate probability sampling among 802 Chinese internet users (“netizens”) in February 2020. Descriptive statistics, Pearson correlations, and hierarchical multiple regressions were employed to examine and explore the relationships among all the variables. Results Almost half the 802 study participants were male (416, 51.9%), and the average age of the participants was 32.65 years. Most of the 802 participants had high education levels (624, 77.7%), had high income >¥5000 (US $736.29) (525, 65.3%), were married (496, 61.8%), and were in good health (486, 60.6%). The average time of social media use was approximately 2 to 3 hours per day (mean 2.34 hours, SD 1.11), and the most frequently used media types were public social media (mean score 4.49/5, SD 0.78) and aggregated social media (mean score 4.07/5, SD 1.07). Social media use frequency (β=.20, P<.001) rather than time significantly predicted preventive behaviors for COVID-19. Respondents were also equipped with high levels of disease knowledge (mean score 8.15/10, SD 1.43) and eHealth literacy (mean score 3.79/5, SD 0.59). Disease knowledge (β=.11, P=.001) and eHealth literacy (β=.27, P<.001) were also significant predictors of preventive behaviors. Furthermore, eHealth literacy (P=.038) and disease knowledge (P=.03) positively moderated the relationship between social media use frequency and preventive behaviors, while eHealth literacy (β=.07) affected this relationship positively and disease knowledge (β=–.07) affected it negatively. Different social media types differed in predicting an individual’s preventive behaviors for COVID-19. Aggregated social media (β=.22, P<.001) was the best predictor, followed by public social media (β=.14, P<.001) and professional social media (β=.11, P=.002). However, official social media (β=.02, P=.597) was an insignificant predictor. Conclusions Social media is an effective tool to promote behaviors to prevent COVID-19 among the public. Health literacy is essential for promotion of individual health and influences the extent to which the public engages in preventive behaviors during a pandemic. Our results not only enrich the theoretical paradigm of public health management and health communication but also have practical implications in pandemic control for China and other countries.

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