Measuring+Health+Status


 * Health Status: ** The health of an individual or population measured against an identifiable standard (PDHPE Syllabus)


 * Role of Epidemiology **
 * Epidemiology **: The study of patterns of health and the distribution and frequency of disease, illness and injury in a society.


 * Measures Of Epidemiology **
 * morbidity ** - (sickness) refers to the patterns of illness in a population group.
 * mortality ** - refers to the number of deaths in a population group over a period of time &/or from a particular cause.


 * infant mortality ** - the number of deaths in the first year of life per 1000 births.
 * life expectancy ** - the number of years of life remaining at any given age. This is normally reported from birth. Australia's life expectancy at birth is 83.3 years for females and 78.5 years for males (from 2008 AIHW report).


 * What can Epidemiology Tell Us? **
 *  Monitor major causes of sickness and death (morbidity and mortality)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Identify areas that need attention
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Determine priority areas for government funding
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Monitor use of health facilities
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Evaluate the effectiveness of programs
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Who uses Epidemiology? **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Policy developers in the government
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Manufacturers of health products
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Providers of health services
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Individuals

<span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Epidemiology fails to:
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Do they measure everything about health status? **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Explain why health inequities exist
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Recognise the sociocultural influences on health behaviours
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Provide a holistic approach to health
 * <span style="font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Focus on all components or dimensions of health