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Top Ten Public Health Stories and Challenges Published by CDC And
Berkeley School of Public Health
As is common at the
turn of the year, multiple groups with interests in health as well as
other topics are quick to compile their lists of the most significant
events. Not to be left out, The Epidemiology Monitor has compiled its
list of the most notable stories published in 2014 (see related
article). Examples of other lists covering topics of interest to our
readers are those compiled by the Centers for Disease Control which
identified top public health challenges tackled in 2014 and by the
Berkeley School of Public Health which identified the top public
health stories published in 2014.
Top Ten Public Health Stories Of 2014 According To Berkeley School of
Public Health
Ebola as expected is on this list, but the focus was on Ebola in the
US and the misinformation and panic that ensued. Some of the other
topics on the list are:
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· the
growing sales and regulation of E-cigarettes, |
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· the
controversy about calling into question the role of saturated
fats, |
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the legalization of medical marijuana in many
states and for recreational use in some states,
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· closer
scrutiny for the medical advice given by Dr Oz,
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· outbreaks
of vaccine preventable diseases caused by refusals to vaccinate
children for religious and other reasons, |
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· concerns
about antibiotic resistance, |
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· the
adoption of a city tax on sugar containing soft drinks in Berkeley
(a penny per ounce), |
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· the
implementation of the Affordable Care Act resulting in an increase
of 8 million medically insured persons, and |
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· FDA
proposals for large changes to nutrition food labels. |
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Top Ten Public Health
Challenges of 2014 According to the CDC
Again Ebola was first on the list as the agency’s
largest outbreak response ever “because the health of Americans
depends on stopping the outbreak in West Africa”. Other challenges
were:
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antibiotic resistance, |
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the mysterious outbreak of Enterovirus D-68
possibly the cause of paralysis in some children, |
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Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV)
reported from Saudi Arabia and with a sudden increase in cases in
2014, |
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the continued fight against the HIV pandemic and
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the end-stage battle to complete the eradication of
polio, |
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achieving an even higher standard of safety in
light of the breaks in safety occurring at CDC, |
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the continued efforts to reduce chronic diseases
such as heart disease and |
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the preventable deaths caused by smoking.
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Perhaps most surprising on the list is what CDC called
“the silent epidemic” of prescription drug overdose which kills an
estimated 44 people every day. ■
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