Everyone knows what physicians do. We go to them when we’re sick, they examine us and prescribe a treatment. In this case, we’re the patient. But what happens when the patient isn’t a single individual, but a community, a society, a nation, or perhaps even the world? What happens when the healing that most needs to occur is at the level of the system? That’s where the practice of public health comes in. In this episode, we discuss what public health is, why it’s important, and we zoom in on a few specific public health issues, including our ailing healthcare system, the dangers of racial disparities in health and healthcare, and the looming effects of social media on youth mental health. Host David B. Feldman speaks with Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, physician, epidemiologist, host of the “America Dissected” podcast, and author of three books, including Healing Politics: A Doctor’s Journey into the Heart of Our Political Epidemic.

The post 1/1/24 The “Why” of Public Health appeared first on KPFA.