A global charter for the public\u27s health - The public\u27s health: the role, functions, competencies, education

Political leaders increasingly perceive health as being crucial to achieving growth, development, equity and stability throughout the world. Health is now understood as a product of complex and dynamic relations generated by numerous determinants at different levels of governance. Governments need to take into account the impact of social, environmental and behavioural health determinants, including economic constraints, living conditions, demographic changes and unhealthy lifestyles in many of the World Health Organization (WHO) Member States. This understanding and increasing globalization means it is very timely to review the role of (global) public health in this changing societal and political environment

EXPLORING THE VIBRATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE VINYLIDENE ANION USING ARGON PREDISSOCIATION SPECTROSCOPY

Author Institution: Sterling Chemistry Laboratory, Yale Universtiy, PO Box 208107, New Haven, CT 06520We report Ar-mediated vibrational spectra of the vinylidene anion, a relevant intermediate in various chemical processes, and its fully deuterated form in order to characterize the vibrational energy levels present in this species. Identification of the C-H asymmetric and symmetric stretching frequencies was made and confirmed by the deuterium isotope shift. This information could then be used to clarify the origin of two higher energy peaks around 4000 and 4200 cm^-^1 in the light isotope, which occur quite close to the photodetachment threshold. Preliminary analysis indicates their assignment to combination bands involving excitation of the C=C stretch along with the C-H fundamentals. The work was then extended to include the NNO molecule as a messenger species

Treatment of hypertension in Germany: is there a social gradient?

Laaser U, Breckenkamp J, Bjegovic V. Treatment of hypertension in Germany: is there a social gradient? International Journal of Public Health. 2012;57(1):185-191.Effective hypertension control remains low without much improvement since the 1990s. However, information is limited whether and how social status impacts on hypertension control. Data from the German Health Survey 1998 are used to explore the role of social status according to educational achievement in treating hypertension, adjusted for key determinants in a logistic regression. Actual as well as population prevalence (a parts per thousand yen140 mmHg/a parts per thousand yen90 mmHg) is highest in the lowest of the three social classes with 59.4 and 51.9% as compared to 44.5 and 40.5% in the highest. Physician contacts during the previous year were also highest in the lower class with 76.0% as compared to 59.0% in the highest. The logistic regression revealed insignificant odds ratios (OR) of 1.46 for the highest and 1.12 for the middle class for treatment of known hypertension after adjusting for gender (OR for females, 1.38), age (OR for 60-69 years, 13.13), GP visits (OR, 1.43) and living in East Germany (OR, 1.56). German survey data for antihypertensive treatment do not show any significant disadvantage for the lowest social class