Public Health is the Life Hack

Did you know that April 7th- 13th is National Public Health week? Did you also know it’s about more than just disease prevention and vaccines? If you didn’t, well that’s okay! Often when people hear ‘Public Health,’ they assume it only has to do with stopping the spread of infectious diseases, but there is a so much more that goes into keeping our communities healthy. Let’s go on a journey to discover what else this week includes and how you can contribute!

Going Beyond Medicine

Public Health is in everything that is around us; maintaining air and water quality, creating policies that are made into law, road and motor vehicle safety, improving sanitation and food safety, mental health services, maternal and child health, advocacy, and preparedness. Public Health is a broad scope that touches many career fields and aspects of everyone’s lives, creating a need for collaboration across the nation.

The first full week of April is a time where organizations come together to reflect on the successes of the last year and address continuing or new issues that communities are facing.

The Rope That Ties Us Together

Each of the listed public health areas (and there is MORE) has an important role in keeping the community functioning. It can sometimes be hard to see the importance of public health when things seem to be functioning well, our anxieties have come down from a pandemic (we won’t say the c-word here), or we don’t know what’s going on in our community!

Currently, our nation faces potential major financial cuts for a vast majority of the programs that maintain the above listed services and sciences. Every person needs and expects robust public health; we as a community can achieve that if we continue to show up for each other. It doesn’t matter your economic status, personal identity, religious or political affiliation, Public Health is for everyone.

Public Health Equals Longer Lives

For those of you who like numbers and statistics, this is your section! Due to improvements in medicine, sanitation of air and water, nutritional regulation, policy changes for infrastructure and work regulations, and other factors; life expectancy has increased from age 46 to 76 in men and from age 48 to 81 in woman (1900 to 2010). This is an additional 30-ish years per life, 25-ish being contributed to increases in public health wellness. (1)

I am not one who wants to live forever by any means, but I will happily take an additional 25+ years to check more cool places off my bucket list!

Do It for Everyone

So, how can you do your part if you don’t work in a public health field? There is actually a lot more options out there than you may realize!

• Partake in city council meetings

• Vote in local elections

• Gain experience through volunteering:

  • Food Bank

  • Health Fairs

  • Health Clinics

  • Community Centers

  • Parks & Recreation Events

• Advocate for public health policies that end negative practices

• Stay informed and promote health awareness

• Show kindness/gratitude to public health workers

Whether you are fighting for the equality in healthcare access, volunteering to clean the environment, sharing your voice at a city meeting, or simply listening to other perspectives of what is important to others in our community, we can all do something.

1 Whitmore Schanzenbach, Diane, et al. "The Changing Landscape of American Life Expectancy." The Hamilton Project, Brookings Institution, June 2016,

www.hamiltonproject.org/assets/files/changing_landscape_american_life_expectancy.pdf. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.