The purpose of this paper is to discuss a public health issue, including the specific population affected and the level of its occurrence. The paper will also discuss the appropriate strategies that can be applied to address the public health issue. The public health issue of choice in this paper is air pollution. According to the World Health Organization, air pollution can be defined as air contamination by physical, biological, or chemical agents. The contamination can either be indoor or outdoor, depending on the place of exposure to the harmful agents. The agents tend to modify the nature of the atmosphere by producing gases such as nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, and sulfur oxide, among others (Kinney, 2018). As a result, people breathe in harmful gases, leading to respiratory diseases. Hire our assignment writing services if your assignment is devastating you.
As stated above, air pollution generally refers to air contamination by biological, chemical, and physical agents. Air pollution occurs due to releasing harmful gases into the atmosphere, such as nitrogen oxide, sulfur oxide, and carbon monoxide. The gases are generated through combustion devices, fire, industrial processes, and motor vehicles. Data from the World Health Organization shows that the worldwide population breathes in the air with contaminations exceeding the WHO-provided limits and containing high doses of pollutants (“Air pollution,” n.d.). The population suffering most from air pollution includes people living in middle and low-income nations due to high chances of exposure. Policies have been implemented to control other environmental pollutants, such as noise pollution. However, the policies have not effectively reduced air pollution, which has high mortality and morbidity. The policies against environmental pollution include a nationwide policy to help overcome the increasing air pollution. Besides, given its adverse effects, air pollution is now considered a global public health issue. According to Tran, Park & Lee (2020), air pollution is associated with an increased risk of lung cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and respiratory diseases. Worldwide, approximately two billion people are exposed to high levels of air pollutants, especially individuals using kerosene stoves or biomass for cooking. In developed countries, the primary cause of air pollution is motor vehicles and industrial plants. Other sources of pollution include power generation, residential energies, incineration, and agricultural wastes. For this reason, a sectoral policy was implemented to address the health issues associated with air pollution.
Despite implementing national policies to control air pollution, air pollution remains a significant public health issue. Even though the U.S. is a developed country and sources of air pollution have been eliminated, newer sources of air pollution result from development, such as increased industrial units and modern housing (Liang et al., 2020). Besides, a rise in air pollution-associated diseases has been recorded. Furthermore, air pollutants have been identified as risk factors for malignancies such as lymphoma, lung cancer, and breast cancer. For this reason, there is a need to review the current policy and change to policies that are protective against air pollution-associated diseases.
Air pollution is inevitable due to the daily production of air pollutants. The current policies are designed to modify activities that are thought to cause air pollution. However, these policies do not protect against pollutants produced by motor vehicles. Furthermore, air pollutants are released into the atmosphere unnoticed. Therefore, the best way to address the health issue is by reviewing the current policies and modifying them to cover personal protection guidelines. As such, the best way to overcome the health issues associated with air pollution is by personal protection against inhaling harmful agents. This may include advising people to use face masks in areas with high air pollutants.
The policy change process is never linear; sometimes, things might be out of order. Nonetheless, the process should involve identifying the problem, identifying solutions, analyzing the solutions suggested, and finally adopting and evaluating the policy. Before initiating the process, it is essential to identify the stakeholders participating in the policy change process. The stakeholders who are important for this health issue are public health professionals. The public health team has a vital role in the pr
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