Will Public Health be Able to Meet the New Challenges of a Changing World?

Abstract

The organisation of society into social systems led, from the nineteenth century onwards, to the differentiation of medicine. Its object has been diseases, with the sub-systems of healthcare, responsible for diagnosis and treatment, and public health, responsible for communicating the truths of medical science to the population with the aim of preventing and treating diseases. This organisation, which remains effective, is currently facing two problems: Its possible extension of its scope to include health as understood by international organisations, in order to meet the challenges posed by the rapid transformation of the planet: global warming, overpopulation, ageing, poverty, etc. The ability to make this advice effective at a time when there is no longer an entity that can generate the confidence needed to apply its recommendations. To overcome the silos that have prevented the changes we are undergoing today, it will be necessary to organise collaborations that the revolution brought about by Artificial Intelligence may be able to facilitate.