Public Health Local and Global Perspectives

Today, the concept that health is influenced by social determinants is widely accepted. There is more and more evidence pointing to the importance of the social determinants of health. Societies that support the most disadvantaged and are respectful of their Indigenous people have better health outcomes. Improving the social context means that contemporary public health has to be cross-disciplinary, encompassing not only medicine, but also sociology, psychology, anthropology, ecology, urban planning, architecture, engineering, social work, political science and economics. This chapter introduces the social determinants of public health. It discusses the relative contribution to health of individual behaviours, the factors external to individuals such as the healthcare sector and structural racism. Then it introduces the concepts of social justice and health equity which underpin healthy societies. Finally, it introduces a social determinant of health that has been identified by key workers in the field as having a profound influence on health namely unemployment. Spotlight case studies are provided throughout to give a practical understanding of the social determinants of health.