Health is A Multidisciplinary Approach
Once upon a time, there lived a young girl who loved her family very much. This young lady was very close to her father, but because of work, she couldn't see him often. He worked very hard to make ends meet so that his family would live a decent life.
Despite knowing all these, the young girl missed him very much. He couldn't be home for long hours because he was on call, or he was the doctor everyone sought when a patient came in just as he was leaving for home.
She grew up missing her father very much. As she got older, she resolved that she never wanted to be a medical doctor. She thought of the long Christmas days and nights when he had to work, and her heart broke.
Her mother was very busy too, and the young lady realized, as she got older, that more than ever, she didn't want to work an 8.00 to 8.00 job.
When she was finally an adult, she became a public health officer. She was very happy to help prevent the diseases her father was treating for hours and hours on end in hospital, but she forgot one thing.
The national government was made of laymen, and they never saw or understood the importance of public and environmental health officers.
Heartbroken, the little girl withdrew into her shell and became depressed. She was a former shadow of herself for the longest time. She even forgot why she decided to be a public health officer.
°•°•°•°•
Who is a public health officer?
What does a public health officer do?
Our little girl could answer those questions when she first began the journey into this diverse field, but now, she doesn't even see the point of talking about it anymore.
How can she hold the national government accountable?
Our little girl, let's call her Xiao. Xiao means Little in Chinese Mandarin I guess? Plus it just sounds like a really cute name.
Xiao would tell you before that there are numerous branches of medicine. Public health falls into one, termed preventive medicine. Medicine isn't always about pills and capsules and injections. Sometimes, it includes how well you tuck your net in.
How clean your hands are.
How well you cleaned up your salad before you put it into your mouth.
Oh, and she will remind you that building structures that are acceptable could help eliminate vector and vermin infestation. Yes, vermin like rats that carry the causative agent of the plague which was a top communicable disease outbreak in Madagascar last year.
Xiao will tell you, that a public health officer will advice doctors, nurses and other hospital staff on proper waste segregation methods, infection prevention, and proper food storage and use.
Why then do we have so many unemployed public health officers in Kenya?
°•°•°•°•
Is this propaganda?
Well, have you seen the job adverts with public health on them? What do most of them say? Assistant public health officer?
Who is an assistant public health officer?
Well, Xiao will tell you the answer very quickly. An assistant public health officer is a individual who studied a diploma in public or environmental health.
See, public health follows and almost similar system as clinical medicine. Clinical officers study a diploma program similar to a medical doctor's degree.
Public health officers are a result of a B.Sc in Environmental or Public Health. The Public Health Act CAP242 recognizes them as Public Health Officers.
Why then, does the government not employ PHOs despite a pressing shortage? Why has it chosen to instead employ assistant Public Health Officers?
Well, some might say that it is because we are poor. However, this might not necessarily be the case. How many scandals has Kenya had in the last twenty years? How much money has the treasury lost? How many fully equipped and staffed level six hospitals could we build with all that money?
A lot.
While people might say that being a public health officer is easy, and that filling the gap with diploma officers is much easier, one cannot help but start to wonder about a few things.
Exactly how messed up are we to allow things to spiral out of control? How long has it taken the ministry of health to contain cholera? How many measures have been put into place in case of a seriously virulent disease outbreak coming in from our points of entry and exit? What measures have been put in place to control toxic waste flow into water? Why are so many disease cases on the rise today? Can we even implement Vision 2030? Or are we walking the path to our own destruction?
How could we let ourselves get this far in our suicide tale?
°•°•°•°•
A public health officer, luckily, doesn't have to work within the confines of a government job.
Unfortunately, whoever manipulates the strings on that side makes it really hard for public health professionals in NGOs and Non-Profit Organisations hard.
Xiao can't forget how the public health department is plagued by bribes and controversy. A lot goes on behind closed doors, not only in Afya House, but in the field too.
She hates the murky waters. After all, all she ever wanted to do was help her daddy come home much earlier than he did when she was much younger.
°•°•°•°•
Please help Xiao so that her father can come home early.
Despite knowing all these, the young girl missed him very much. He couldn't be home for long hours because he was on call, or he was the doctor everyone sought when a patient came in just as he was leaving for home.
She grew up missing her father very much. As she got older, she resolved that she never wanted to be a medical doctor. She thought of the long Christmas days and nights when he had to work, and her heart broke.
Her mother was very busy too, and the young lady realized, as she got older, that more than ever, she didn't want to work an 8.00 to 8.00 job.
When she was finally an adult, she became a public health officer. She was very happy to help prevent the diseases her father was treating for hours and hours on end in hospital, but she forgot one thing.
The national government was made of laymen, and they never saw or understood the importance of public and environmental health officers.
Heartbroken, the little girl withdrew into her shell and became depressed. She was a former shadow of herself for the longest time. She even forgot why she decided to be a public health officer.
°•°•°•°•
Who is a public health officer?
What does a public health officer do?
Our little girl could answer those questions when she first began the journey into this diverse field, but now, she doesn't even see the point of talking about it anymore.
How can she hold the national government accountable?
Our little girl, let's call her Xiao. Xiao means Little in Chinese Mandarin I guess? Plus it just sounds like a really cute name.
Xiao would tell you before that there are numerous branches of medicine. Public health falls into one, termed preventive medicine. Medicine isn't always about pills and capsules and injections. Sometimes, it includes how well you tuck your net in.
How clean your hands are.
How well you cleaned up your salad before you put it into your mouth.
Oh, and she will remind you that building structures that are acceptable could help eliminate vector and vermin infestation. Yes, vermin like rats that carry the causative agent of the plague which was a top communicable disease outbreak in Madagascar last year.
Xiao will tell you, that a public health officer will advice doctors, nurses and other hospital staff on proper waste segregation methods, infection prevention, and proper food storage and use.
Why then do we have so many unemployed public health officers in Kenya?
°•°•°•°•
Is this propaganda?
Well, have you seen the job adverts with public health on them? What do most of them say? Assistant public health officer?
Who is an assistant public health officer?
Well, Xiao will tell you the answer very quickly. An assistant public health officer is a individual who studied a diploma in public or environmental health.
See, public health follows and almost similar system as clinical medicine. Clinical officers study a diploma program similar to a medical doctor's degree.
Public health officers are a result of a B.Sc in Environmental or Public Health. The Public Health Act CAP242 recognizes them as Public Health Officers.
Why then, does the government not employ PHOs despite a pressing shortage? Why has it chosen to instead employ assistant Public Health Officers?
Well, some might say that it is because we are poor. However, this might not necessarily be the case. How many scandals has Kenya had in the last twenty years? How much money has the treasury lost? How many fully equipped and staffed level six hospitals could we build with all that money?
A lot.
While people might say that being a public health officer is easy, and that filling the gap with diploma officers is much easier, one cannot help but start to wonder about a few things.
Exactly how messed up are we to allow things to spiral out of control? How long has it taken the ministry of health to contain cholera? How many measures have been put into place in case of a seriously virulent disease outbreak coming in from our points of entry and exit? What measures have been put in place to control toxic waste flow into water? Why are so many disease cases on the rise today? Can we even implement Vision 2030? Or are we walking the path to our own destruction?
How could we let ourselves get this far in our suicide tale?
°•°•°•°•
A public health officer, luckily, doesn't have to work within the confines of a government job.
Unfortunately, whoever manipulates the strings on that side makes it really hard for public health professionals in NGOs and Non-Profit Organisations hard.
Xiao can't forget how the public health department is plagued by bribes and controversy. A lot goes on behind closed doors, not only in Afya House, but in the field too.
She hates the murky waters. After all, all she ever wanted to do was help her daddy come home much earlier than he did when she was much younger.
°•°•°•°•
Please help Xiao so that her father can come home early.
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