The phenomenon of urbanisation from a public health perspective. Urban spaces as a possible source of epidemics and pandemics caused by an infectious disease

PRUSZYŃSKI, Jacek, KOCIK, Janusz, PRUSZYŃSKA, Irena, CIANCIARA, Dorota, SĘKOWSKI, Kuba & WŁODARCZYK-PRUSZYŃSKA, Inga. The phenomenon of urbanisation from a public health perspective. Urban spaces as a possible source of epidemics and pandemics caused by an infectious disease. Journal of Education, Health and Sport. 2023;13(4):42-52. eISSN 2391-8306. DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.12775/JEHS.2023.13.04.004

https://apcz.umk.pl/JEHS/article/view/42034

https://zenodo.org/record/7644683

 

 

 

 

 

The journal has had 40 points in Ministry of Education and Science of Poland parametric evaluation. Annex to the announcement of the Minister of Education and Science of December 21, 2021. No. 32343.

Has a Journal's Unique Identifier: 201159. Scientific disciplines assigned: Physical Culture Sciences (Field of Medical sciences and health sciences); Health Sciences (Field of Medical Sciences and Health Sciences).

Punkty Ministerialne z 2019 - aktualny rok 40 punktów. Załącznik do komunikatu Ministra Edukacji i Nauki z dnia 21 grudnia 2021 r. Lp. 32343. Posiada Unikatowy Identyfikator Czasopisma: 201159.

Przypisane dyscypliny naukowe: Nauki o kulturze fizycznej (Dziedzina nauk medycznych i nauk o zdrowiu); Nauki o zdrowiu (Dziedzina nauk medycznych i nauk o zdrowiu).

© The Authors 2023;

This article is published with open access at Licensee Open Journal Systems of Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun, Poland

Open Access. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial License which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author (s) and source are credited. This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non commercial license Share alike.

(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) which permits unrestricted, non commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited.

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests regarding the publication of this paper.

Received: 21.01.2023. Revised: 29.01.2023. Accepted: 16.02.2023.

 

 

 

 

 

The phenomenon of urbanisation from a public health perspective. Urban spaces as a possible source of epidemics and pandemics caused by an infectious disease

 

Jacek J. Pruszyński

orcid.org/0000-0003-2123-6488

jacek.pruszynski@cmkp.edu.pl

School of Public Health, Centre of Postgraduate Medical Education, Warsaw, Poland

Janusz  Kocik

orcid.org/0000-0003-0983-1751

janusz.kocik@cmkp.edu.pl

School of Public Health, Center of Postgraduate Medical Education, Poland

Irena Pruszyńska

orcid.org/0000-0003-0784-8066

irena_pruszynska1@sggw.edu.pl

Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Poland

Dorota Cianciara

orcid.org/0000-0002-0318-8649

dorota.cianciara@cmkp.edu.pl

School of Public Health, Center of Postgraduate Medical Education, Poland

Kuba Sękowski

orcid.org/0000-0003-1651-8819

kuba.sekowski@cmkp.edu.pl

School of Public Health, Center of Postgraduate Medical Education, Poland

Inga Włodarczyk-Pruszyńska

orcid.org/0000-0003-2719-1815

i.z.pruszynska@gmail.com

University Clinical Center of the Medical University of Warsaw, Poland

 

 

 

Abstract

Introduction

Urbanisation is a global process leading to development of urban infrastructure and thus an increase in the population of urban areas. Health threats, including epidemics of infectious diseases that may break out in growing urban areas, can spread quickly and their effects could spread outside of the local territory.

Purpose

To outline the relationship between globalising, post-modern urbanisation processes, in particular the specific form of extended urbanisation, and the risks posed by infectious diseases that could give rise to new epidemics or pandemics.

State of knowledge

Health risks occurring at the local level of an urban area react to, and simultaneously affect, health situation occurring at an indefinite distance from the original site of the event. An important impact on the situation are the expanding or newly emerging urban areas, which cause negative changes in social conditions, and the increase in spatial mobility of the global population, which facilitates the spread of infectious diseases.

Summary

Understanding 21st century urban trends is the key to improving collective health. Adopting a "public health perspective" regarding values and attitudes towards social phenomena and reality, as well as the necessary methods of conduct, seems to be one of the main challenges of the current era in which people around the world, regardless of the country's development status and level of resources, currently live in within one “ecosystem of infectious diseases”. Planned and controlled urbanization, taking into account the achievements of modern epidemiology, including molecular epidemiology, will help will help along the remediation of the cities of the future.

Keywords: globalisation, urbanisation, peri-urbanisation, urban poverty penalty, urban health, infectious diseases, public health