Discussion and Responses

Write a 175- to 265-word response to the following questions:

  • What impact does the use of demographic data have on public health initiatives?
    • What type of data do you believe is most valuable for this purpose? 

Respond 2 the following students post with 50 words minimum 

Response 1: Israa 

Demographic data has a huge impact on public health initiatives. The data helps dictate on what initiatives should be prioritize to help the community better. It also allows the community to see that their information is being valued and used to help cater more to their concerns. These days although all the data is critical I believe that age is the biggest factor. Because we are in global pandemic and a heavy percentage of deaths from COVID-19 are in individuals from age 65 and above I believe that information is vital. I also believe that information concerning previous health history because those persons are more at risk when it comes to COVID-19. Like I said earlier though all the data is important because it helps drive the changes that are needed to keep the community healthy and safe. Another big piece of data that should be considered is ethnicity. Some ethnicities or more acceptable to certain diseases. So that information is very vital that the correct public health and community precautions can be taken.

Response2: Ricardo 

This weeks question regarding the importance of demographic information/data has on public health initiatives is a vast one. The demographic information of the community surrounding a clinic or hospital can help asses what tools they need to better serve them. Whether pulling information from the Census, medical or school forms, the socioeconomic data will help educate and get the community what they need. There are so many demographic categories that can help depending on the area like:

  • Gender
  • Race
  • Faith
  • Salary
  • Education
  • Zipcode

Depending on what information is needed, somethings may affect men over women (vise versa), understanding a persons faith or culture may assist in how to communicate medical information, some things affect lower income families than higher income families, some diseases affect different races differently. Understanding cultures is a big demographic importance in my opinion because it lets you approach the community with the understanding of how they will receive the information or care you are trying to provide to them. Age is another category that is important as well to better understand the generations of people that are in the community and even serve them better.