Public Health and Homelessness

By Hazel D. Dean, ScD, MPH, Deputy Director, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, CDC (Cross-posted from Health Protection, Perspectives Blog)

Homelessness is associated with disproportionate rates of various chronic and infectious diseases, poor mental health, substance abuse, and violence. These are real public health issues, and CDC is committed to addressing these issues in our public health work. Whether it's providing epi-aid assistance for a TB outbreak in a shelter, or facilitating integrative STD/HIV/Hepatitis/TB screening and treatment services for those affected by unstable housing, we are committed to ensuring the opportunity for good health to all through enhanced prevention efforts and improved access to care.

XVIII International AIDS Conference

By Kevin Fenton, Director, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention. Cross-posted from the Health Protection, Perspectives blog, July 21, 2010

Greetings from the XVIII International AIDS Conference in Vienna! It is invigorating to once again be among the more than 20,000 HIV/AIDS scientists, public health officials, advocates, and front-line workers in the fight against this disease. The International AIDS Conference always provides a platform for the world’s HIV/AIDS leaders to share the latest information and science on HIV prevention, treatment and care.

Act Against AIDS: the First Year

By Kevin Fenton, Director, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention. Cross-posted from the Health Protection, Perspectives blog, July 2, 2010

In April 2009, CDC and the White House launched Act Against AIDS (AAA), a 5-year, $45-million communication campaign. After almost 20 years since the last national HIV campaign, it was past time to again initiate a national conversation about one of the worst epidemics this country has ever experienced. In the United States, we have approximately 56,000 new infections annually. The AAA campaign was designed to combat complacency about the HIV/AIDS epidemic and support CDC"s goals for reducing new HIV infections in the U.S. Now, a little more than a year since its launch, CDC has released the First Year-End Report: April 2009–March 2010 (PDF, 442 KB). This report highlights some of the achievements and developments of this multifaceted campaign. Among the most significant accomplishments of AAA in its first year were the many partnerships forged and the successful releases of three AAA campaign phases. In all, the first year brought more than 430 million media impressions, which represent the estimated number of times a campaign message was seen or heard.

Public Health Reports Social Determinants of Health

By Dr. Kevin Fenton, Director and Dr. Hazel Dean, Deputy Director from the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention. Cross-posted from Health Protection, Perspectives blog, June 7, 2010

On June 7, Public Health Reports released a special issue that focuses on Social Determinants of Health in the Prevention and Control of HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, Sexually Transmitted Infections and Tuberculosis . This groundbreaking supplement brings to the forefront the broad impact social influences, standings, and characteristics can have on the health of each and every person.

Social Determinants of Health

This post covers a KEY ISSUE: this topic could impact the future of HIV/AIDS policy.

An emerging topic in public health promotion is the concept of “social determinants of health.” This concept focuses on the social, economic, and environmental factors that either contribute to an individual's risks of acquiring a disease or incurring poor health—or, conversely, protect an individual from those risks.