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HEALTH
Essay Qns
If people become ill, it is largely their own fault.
How far do you agree? (2002)
Should medical science always seek to prolong
life? (2003)
Should research into expensive medical
treatments be allowed when only a few can afford
them? (2007)
The key to good health is lifestyle rather than
medicine. How far do you agree? (2010)
How far should medical resources be used to
extend life expectancy? (2011)
Scientific research into health and diet is
unrealiable as it so often contradicts itself. Is this a
fair comment? (2013)
DEFINITIONS
HEALTH
- a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being,
and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity (World
Health Organisation)
Is there a difference between HEALTH and WELLNESS?
WELLNESS
-the pursuit of ones best possible health and well-being
-includes emotional and spiritual health
-an overall balance of the different aspects of ones well-
being
HEALTH ISSUES : Key Stakeholders
Individuals : the poor/rich, old/young, men/women
Corporations : pharmaceutical companies, food
producers, companies offering alternative medicines/
treatments, the media .
Governments (of Developing and Developed Nations)
NonGovernmental Organisations (eg Oxfam,
Doctors without Borders)
International Organisations : WHO, UNICEF
Video on WHO
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THINK!
If the WHO and other NGOs have done so
much to help improve global health, why
then are we still plagued by major health
problems today?
Has the WHO not done enough?
Global Health
FACTS & FIGURES
An estimated 1 billion people lack access to
healthcare systems
Cardiovascular diseases are the number one cause of
death throughout the world (2/3 of all deaths in 2011)
Tuberculosis, while no longer among the 10 leading
causes of death in 2011, was still among the 15 causes
Maternal deaths have dropped in the last decade, but
are still unacceptably high: nearly 800 women die due
to complications of pregnancy and childbirth every
day.
Worldwide obesity has doubled since 1980. More than
40 million children under the age of 5 were overweight
in 2011.
FACTS & FIGURES
High Income Nations Low Income Nations
Deaths among those
70 years and older
7 in 10 deaths 2 in 10 deaths
Main reason for death chronic diseases:
cardiovascular diseases,
cancers, dementia,
chronic obstructive lung
disease or diabetes
1.Adults -Infectious
diseases:
lower respiratory
infections, HIV/AIDS,
diarrhoeal diseases,
malaria and tuberculosis
2.Children-Complications
of childbirth due to
prematurity, and birth
asphyxia and birth
trauma
Deaths among children
under 15 years
1 in 100 deaths 4 in 10 deaths
Health Facilities in Ghana
THINK!
What do the numbers reveal about
healthcare in high income nations and low
income nations?
What are the factors that contribute to the
different health situations?
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TRENDS
The wellness industry has become a multi-million dollar
industry especially in developed nations.
The wellness industry includes the following :
healthcare/fitness clubs
health supplements
organic food
spa
traditional medicine (traditional chinese medicine,
homeopathy)
weight loss
BUT.
Do you know that millions still remain
outside the reach of the current wellness
industry ?
WHY ?
WHO are these people?
Health-Related Issues Today
Urbanisation
Stiff Competition
Globalised & Interconnected Increasing world population
Lack of Resources or Uneven distribution of Resources?
Increase in Demand for Food
Political Uncertainty / Instability
Economi c Uncertai nty
Advanced (Medical) Technology
HEALTH ISSUES TODAY :
Globalised & Interconnected World
Massive movement of people
Contributes to the following pandemics (global disease outbreaks):
SARs (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), HIV/AIDS, H1N1, Avian
Flu (Bird Flu).
Food Trade
Global Food Scares and Recalling of Food Products:
-mad cow disease
-Cadbury salmonella scare in the UK
-E. coli outbreak in Germany in 2011 linked to vegetables (cucumbers,
beansprouts)
-2008:melamine-tainted milk by Sanlu,a dairy company in China, to
fake higher protein level sparked the recall of other food items
(chocolate, ice cream) in countries like New Zealand
-2012: China recalled batches of infant formula found to contain what it
described as "unusual" levels of highly toxic mercury.
HEALTH ISSUES TODAY :
Competitive World + Increasing World
Population
Use of unhealthy or hazardous methods in food
production to meet global demands
- cost efficient modern farming practice of grinding up
remains of other cattle to feed cows mad cow
disease
- cattle and poultry fed with antibiotics and growth
hormones to increase milk or meat yield ; GM food
(eg frost resistant strawberries, beetle resistant
potatoes)
our immune systems more vulnerable to allergies
HEALTH ISSUES TODAY :
Competitive World Conflicting Interests
Factories continue to churn out poisonous gases
despite talks by world leaders to cut CO2 emissions
The war against drugs is a difficult one.
-Colombia's war against the narcotics trade is made
complicated by the strength of the drug organizations.
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HEALTH ISSUES TODAY :
Competitive World Conflicting Interests
The WTO overseas the GATT (the General
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) and TRIPS
(Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property),
multilateral trade agreements to encourage
healthcare innovation by protecting the property
rights of pharmaceutical companies
patented drugs made more costly
the poor denied access to cheaper generic
drugs
HEALTH ISSUES TODAY :
Competitive World Conflicting Interests
E.G
- Indias patent laws allowed the production of cheap
generics (cheaper drugs for HIV infected patients)
- Indias patent law under pressure from the rich
countries
- patent laws were tightened up to align with WTO laws
- cheaper alternatives less easy to produce
- this will not only impact India, but also a large majority of
the world that looks to Indias generics industry.
HEALTH ISSUES TODAY:
Unequal Distribution of Resources
Less than 10% of global health research directed towards the
major health problems plaguing 90% of the worlds population
Funds target the illnesses of rich patients who can afford
expensive medicines
life expectancy higher in developed world
Due to underfunding, the medical community is largely
unprepared for a deadly Ebola outbreak that is now plaguing
Guinea
Richer nations offer affordable healthcare (eg the British National
Health System, healthcare in Singapore that combines indiv
responsibility and govt support ); poor nations severely lack
medical infrastructure to offer basic healthcare
Loss of skilled healthcare workers to richer nations (better
remuneration and working conditions)
HEALTH ISSUES TODAY:
POLITICAL CONFLICTS
Eg. The civil war in Syria
- Millions displaced and in dire need of food, drugs and
medical supplies
- Hospitals destroyed by shelling
- Suspected use of chemical weapons loss of lives,
those who live face high possibility of being plagued
by life-long disabilities and health problems, doctors
and health workers face secondary exposure while
treating victims and may succumb to agents poison.
- Reports of outbreaks of hepatitis B and other
diseases spread by poor hygiene .
HEALTH ISSUES TODAY:
URBANISATION
Growth of mega cities (often unregulated)
air, land and water pollution
Health challenges : water, environment,
violence and injury, noncommunicable diseases
(cardiovascular diseases, cancers, diabetes
and chronic respiratory diseases), unhealthy
diets and physical inactivity, harmful use of
alcohol as well as the risks associated with
disease outbreaks.
The increased pressures of mass marketing,
availability of unhealthy food choices
HEALTH ISSUES TODAY:
URBANISATION
Accessibility to automation and
transport
Sedentary Lifestyle
Worse for city-dwellers in poor
countries most are without the
sophisticated support sytems
affluent city-dwellers in
developed countries use to
mediate the harmful effects of
city-dwelling (eg health club
membership, affordable and
reliable healthcare)
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HEALTH ISSUES TODAY:
THE MEDIA
Health information is often
sensationalised in the media, with
various promises of quick fixes
and miracle cures.
Anecdotes that highlight the
effectiveness of health products
are often used. These anecdotes
are not backed by reliable
research findings.
Peoples health concerns are
exploited Using fear or creating
anxieties before offering solutions
HEALTH ISSUES TODAY:
THE MEDIA
Inaccurate claims
For example, you might read a headline that claims,
Tomatoes reduce the risk of heart attacks. What you need
to look for is evidence that the study actually looked at
heart attacks. You might instead see that the study found
that tomatoes reduce blood pressure. This means that
someone has extrapolated that tomatoes must also have
some impact on heart attacks, as high blood pressure is a
risk factor for heart attacks. Sometimes these
extrapolations will prove to be true, but other times they
wont.
Alicia White, How to read health news, Behind the
News, NHS Choices, January 6, 2009
Now that you have
gathered information
on Health Issues,
how can this
information help you
in your GP essay?
Using your content
knowledge
Writing Your GP Essay
1. Read up content
2. Memorise content
3. Choose qn based on knowledge
of content area
4. Write paragraphs of content
knowledge......regardless of
slant or phrasing of qn
5. IRRELEVANT

X
X
The key to good health is lifestyle rather
than medicine. How far do you agree?
(2010)
The key to good health is lifestyle rather than
medicine. How far do you agree? (2010)
Very
impt ,
vital,
cannot
do
without
to maintain gd
health for
those with or
without
ailments
Free from
ailments
Eating habits,
work, exercise
routine,
leisure
activities,
harmful habits
(drinking,
smoking)
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The key to good health is lifestyle rather
than medicine. How far do you agree?
(2010)
The key to good health is lifestyle rather than
medicine. How far do you agree? (2010)
Why would anyone feel that it is lifestyle and not
medicine that brings about good health?
What can lifestyle offer that medicine is not able to
provide?
How different are they?
Is medicine really useless or ineffective?
The key to good health is lifestyle rather than
medicine. How far do you agree? (2010)
The need to balance the two elements, lifestyle
and medicine (A level Examiners Report, 2010)
React to the use of rather than
Address the underlying assumption
There is no need to introduce other factors to
draw the comparison
Why would anyone feel that it is
lifestyle and not medicine that brings
about good health?
Why would anyone feel that it is lifestyle and not
medicine that brings about good health?
Lifestyle Not medicine Elaboration
1. Helps to
prevent
illnesses/disea
ses
Assumes that there
are already certain
health problems that
the medicine is meant
to keep under control
Balanced and low-
fat diet and regular
ex rather than
medication
avoid becoming
obese prevent
heart diseases.
Why would anyone feel that it is lifestyle and not
medicine that brings about good health?
Lifestyle Not medicine Elaboration
2. Simple to
adopt and
effective
Certain forms of
medication are
merely quick medical
fixes. They have side
effects and do not
tackle root causes
Healthy lifestyle (
avoid harmful
habits) mental
health.
Anti-depressants
(Prozac)
addiction, anxiety.
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Why would anyone feel that it is lifestyle and not
medicine that brings about good health?
Lifestyle Not medicine Elaboration
3. Everyone is
able to adopt a
change in
lifestyle
Cost Medication for
HIV/AIDs is costly.
In poor nations,
many cannot
afford basic
medical treatment
basic
healthcare edn on
healthy lifestyle is
key
Why would anyone feel that it is lifestyle and not
medicine that brings about good health?
Lifestyle Not medicine Elaboration
1.Helps to prevent
illnesses/diseases
Assumes that there are
already certain health
problems that the medicine is
meant to keep under control
Balanced and low-fat
diet and regular ex rather
than medication avoid
becoming obese
prevent heart diseases.
2.Simple to adopt
and effective
Certain forms of medication
are merely quick medical
fixes. They have side effects
and do not tackle root causes
Healthy lifestyle ( avoid
harmful habits) mental
health.
Anti-depressants
(Prozac) addiction,
anxiety.
3.Everyone is able
to adopt
Cost Medication for HIV/AIDs
is costly. In poor nations,
many cannot afford basic
medical treatment
basic healthcare edn on
healthy lifestyle is key
The key to good health is lifestyle rather
than medicine. How far do you agree?
(2010)
How can we dismiss the importance of medicine in
keeping us healthy?
4. Those with health conditions
(especially those with hereditary
conditions) need to pay attention
to their medication as well as
lifestyle
Eg :those with diabetes,
heart conditions, cancer .
How can we dismiss the importance of medicine in keeping
us healthy?
5. Immunisation has proven to be
effective in improving the health
condition of millions of children
in both rich and poor countries
Eg: Immunisation
against measles
and hepatitis B.
How can we dismiss the importance of medicine in
keeping us healthy?
Our fast-paced life + modern methods of
food production + pollution + frequent
travelling expose us to viruses the
need for health supplements + balanced
diet + regular ex
Eg:
defending
ourselves
against the
flu virus
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How can we dismiss the importance of medicine in
keeping us healthy?
Those with health conditions (especially
those with hereditary conditions) need to pay
attention to their medication as well as
lifestyle
Eg :those with diabetes,
heart conditions, cancer .
Immunisation has proven to be effective in
improving the health condition of millions of
children in both rich and poor countries
Eg: Immunisation against
measles and hepatitis B
Our fast-paced life + modern methods of food
production + pollution + frequent travelling
expose us to viruses the need for health
supplements + balanced diet + regular ex
Eg: defending ourselves
against the flu virus
Reconciling 2 sides
Despite its side-effects, we cannot simply dismiss the
importance of medicine in helping us stay healthy.
In todays context, our state of our health is determined by
factors within as well as beyond our control.
As such, an integration of lifestyle practices and careful use
of medication is key in ensuring our good health.
Remember
Do not simply cut and paste content to your essay
Understand the question fully
Consider relevant perspectives
Tweak /Tailor your ideas/arguments to address
the question directly
The end