TABLE OF CONTENTS
Volume 28, Issue 2 (2007)
Theory is the EYE of Practice
Articles
Preparing for and Responding to Public Health Emergencies in China: A Focus Group Study
Focus groups involving public health officials and practitioners in three provinces open a valuable window into the organization of public health emergency preparedness in China. The authors identify problems and urge immediate action.
Guoqing Hu, Keqin Rao, Ming Hu and Zhenqiu Sur
J Public Health Pol 28: 185-195; doi:10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3200130
Commentary: Global Preparedness for Public Health Emergencies
A global expert on public health emergency preparedness comments on the focus group participants' remarkable candor as they discussed their experiences in the China study. He notes a paucity of formal international comparisons of preparedness plans and processes, and explains how the article represents a welcome step towards global information sharing and transparency so all may learn fully from each other.
Stephen S Morse
J Public Health Pol 28: 196-200; doi:10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3200128
Diversionary Reframing of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement
Having studied the US-Canada review of the effectiveness of the 1978 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement to restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the waters of the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem, the authors argue that a reframing of the agreement more broadly – to maintain and restore ecosystem integrity for the entire Great Lakes basin – amounts to an unwarranted diversion from the agreement's original intent, detracting parties from a focus on water, particularly persistent toxic substances in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River Basin.
Michael Gilbertson and Andrew E Watterson
J Public Health Pol 28: 201-215; doi:10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3200134
Commentary: The Importance of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement
Carpenter details how the "ecosystem integrity" approach to the Great Lakes also has validity, and why any approach to preventing degradation of water quality must also address sources far away, such as mercury entering the Great Lakes not from direct discharge, but rather from air deposition from coal burning power plants in the US and even from coal combustion in Asia; and volatilization of PCBs and pesticides from landfills and other contaminated sites far removed from the Great Lakes.
David O Carpenter
J Public Health Pol 28: 216-220; doi:10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3200129
History of Public Health Crises in Japan
The authors identify serious public health crises in Japan over the last 50 years (environmental pollution, food-borne diseases, and health hazards due to pharmaceuticals), and analyze commonalities. Lack of corporate ethics and ill-timed disclosure of information emerge as the principal problems, and the basis for their recommendations for corrective measures.
Tomoaki Imamura, Hiroo Ide and Hideo Yasunaga
J Public Health Pol 28: 221-237; doi:10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3200131
Portion Sizes and Obesity: Responses of Fast-Food Companies
By comparing portion sizes at leading fast food chains over time, these nutrition experts observe little response to calls for these vendors to reduce size or calories per portion. They argue that voluntary efforts by fast food companies are unlikely to be effective.
Lisa R Young and Marion Nestle
J Public Health Pol 28: 238-248; doi:10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3200127
An End to Perinatal HIV: Success in the US Requires Ongoing and Innovative Efforts that Should Expand Globally
The dramatic reduction of perinatally transmitted HIV in the U.S. has been a striking success story in the HIV epidemic. The authors propose strategies to maintain these gains and reach the goal of eliminating perinatal HIV in the USA using routine HIV screening during pregnancy followed by appropriate therapy that has been extremely effective. They offer lessons for primary HIV prevention for women worldwide.
Carolyn K Burr, Margaret A Lampe, Sharron Corle, Frances S Margolin, Chad Abresh and Jill Clark for the National Organizations' Collaborative to Eliminate Perinatal HIV in the US
J Public Health Pol 28: 249-260; doi:10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3200126
Applying an Equity Lens to Tobacco-Control Policies and Their Uptake in Six Western-European Countries
This study identifies policies that may be effective in reducing smoking among socio-economically disadvantaged groups. It also examines trends in their application between 1985 and 2000 in six western-European countries. This overview indicates how tobacco control strategies have evolved to target smoking inequalities, and identifies areas for further improvement of existing policy.
K Giskes, A E Kunst, C Ariza, J Benach, C Borrell, U Helmert, K Judge, E Lahelma, K Moussa, P O Ostergren, K Patja, S Platt, R Pr
ttl, M C Willemsen and J P Mackenbach
J Public Health Pol 28: 261-280; doi:10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3200132
Federation Pages
WFPHA: World Federation of Public Health Associations FREE
The Federation Pages incorporate an Editorial on Challenging Developments in Universal Insurance Coverage; Special Reports on social health insurance: Not modern, but not old-fashion; and, WFPHA News & Notes on Strengthening Public Health Associations, An Initiative Led by the Canadian Public Health Association since 1985.
J Public Health Pol 28: 281-289; doi:10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3200133
Letter
Health Worker Emigration from Poland
Krzysztof Krajewski-Siuda and Piotr Romaniuk
J Public Health Pol 28: 290-292; doi:10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3200125
Thanks to Reviewers
Thanks to Reviewers
J Public Health Pol 28: 293-295; doi:10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3200136
