Future Public Health

“This excellent book could not be more timely. It must now be apparent to almost everyone that we cannot go on as we have done in the past … The authors set out a vision of a future in which we have rebalanced our relationship with the world around us. They give us a sense of purpose and reason for hope that, together, we might be able to attain it.”
Professor Martin McKee CBE, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK

“This book grounds the new approach to public health in systems thinking, challenges mantras of modernity and prioritizes sustainability and well-being. Read it and take the third public health revolution the next step forward.”
Professor Ilona Kickbusch, Director Global Health Programme, The Graduate Institute, Geneva, Switzerland

“With the emerging evidence from the Human Genome Project that genes play little part in the genesis of most illness, this is a particularly timely book: it shows the central part that public health interventions must play in creating a healthy population.”
Oliver James, Broadcaster, journalist, clinical psychologist and bestselling book author

Obesity, depression, addiction, loss of wellbeing: these are issues which sap the resources and spirit of modern practitioners. Public health is being challenged by the existence of an 'ingenuity gap' – the gap between an interacting kaleidoscope of problems and our capacity to respond effectively.

This innovative text bridges the gap between current public health values and skills and those required to tackle future challenges. The authors introduce the key models and theories of public health, as well as the factors that have shaped its history and development.

The book also:

• Establishes the links between current public health problems and emerging threats like global warming and resource depletion
• Explores the true nature of modern and emerging threats to health
• Creates a new model for the ‘future public health’
• Explores what these changes will mean for the future public health practitioner

This is a book which sets out the reasons why we need a fundamentally new approach to public health and explores how this might be achieved.

The Future Public Health is informed by a six year research project, commissioned by the Scottish Government, to trace the development of our current situation and look for solutions to the challenges facing public health. Visit the AfterNow website (www.afternow.co.uk) to access an array of resources including:

• Introductory videos
• 12 Audio podcasts
• Over 30 short papers and essays