| Course | SOS-3700 Challenges in U.S. and Global Public Health |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 1 |
| Paper type | Discussion forum: initial response and two comments |
| Length | About 641 words |
| Format | Discussion post with APA 7 citations |
| School | Thomas Edison State University |
| Program | B.S. in Health Studies |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for SOS 3700 Module 1
Module 1 Discussion: Who Runs Public Health Here and There?
Close to the Community, Short of Money: Public Health in the United States and England
When I started this course I assumed the CDC ran public health in the United States the way a national health ministry might. The Module 1 readings corrected that. Constitutionally, the broad authority to guard residents' health and safety rests with each state, and Washington reaches public health mostly indirectly, by attaching conditions to money, regulating trade between states and writing federal rules (Wilensky & Teitelbaum, 2023). Each state then decides how much authority to hand to counties and cities. In New Jersey, where I work as a school nurse, local health departments enforce the state sanitary code, investigate disease reports and run clinics, while the state health department sets rules and the CDC sends money and guidance. The result is thousands of local health departments with very different budgets, staff and services.
England offers a useful contrast because it made a deliberate choice to move public health closer to local government. The Health and Social Care Act 2012 shifted responsibility for health improvement, including services such as sexual health clinics, drug and alcohol treatment and school nursing, from the National Health Service to upper-tier local councils in April 2013, paid for by a ring-fenced public health grant from the national government. Directors of public health became council employees, working alongside housing, transportation and social care. Researchers who followed commissioners after the change found that responsibilities had been split among more organizations, which made joined-up work harder even as public health gained a seat in local government (Gadsby et al., 2017).
The two systems share a strength and a weakness. Both put public health near the community, where officials can work with schools, employers and housing agencies. That fits what DeSalvo et al. (2016) called Public Health 3.0, a model in which the county or city health office stops working alone and instead pulls schools, landlords, transit agencies and employers into joint work on what is making residents ill. But both also depend on budgets that can shrink quietly. England's public health grant was cut in real terms after 2015, and American local health departments rely on a patchwork of state money, local taxes and federal grants tied to specific diseases. A national system does not guarantee strong local public health, and a decentralized one does not guarantee responsiveness.
My question for the class: would a county like mine be better served by a stronger state role, or does local control matter more?
Comment on Tanisha's Post
Tanisha, you argued that federal funding should simply be increased so every county can offer the same services. I agree that money is the binding constraint, but England's experience suggests the form of the money matters as much as the amount. A ring-fenced grant protected public health from being absorbed into other council budgets, yet it still shrank when the national government decided to cut it. In the United States, most federal public health money arrives in categorical grants for named diseases or programs, which makes it hard for a county to shift funds toward whatever its own residents need most. Would you favor a flexible block grant, even if it came with less federal control over how the money is used?
Comment on Luis's Post
Luis, your point about data was a good one. You described waiting days for state laboratory results during a foodborne outbreak at your restaurant job. DeSalvo et al. (2016) list timely, local data among the conditions Public Health 3.0 requires, and decentralized systems make that harder because each level keeps its own records. England's councils had to rely on national agencies for much of their surveillance data after 2013. In both countries, I think data sharing across levels of government may be the least visible and most important part of public health infrastructure.
References
DeSalvo, K. B., O'Carroll, P. W., Koo, D., Auerbach, J. M., & Monroe, J. A. (2016). Public health 3.0: Time for an upgrade. American Journal of Public Health, 106(4), 621-622. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2016.303063
Gadsby, E. W., Peckham, S., Coleman, A., Bramwell, D., Perkins, N., & Jenkins, L. M. (2017). Commissioning for health improvement following the 2012 health and social care reforms in England: What has changed? BMC Public Health, 17, Article 211. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-017-4122-1
Wilensky, S. E., & Teitelbaum, J. B. (2023). Essentials of health policy and law (5th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
SOS 3700 Module 1 instructions, in plain terms
The Module 1 forum opens the course's ten graded discussions, which share 25 percent of the grade, and comes alongside an ungraded introductions forum. Each forum has two parts in the syllabus: your own answer to the mentor's question and then two or more replies to what classmates wrote. Comments must add value; agreeing or disagreeing is fine only when the reason is stated and supported. The module covers what public health policy is and how systems are organized in the United States and abroad, so prompts here usually ask you to describe who holds public health authority and compare it with one other country. Your mentor posts the exact question in the classroom, so read it before choosing a comparison country.
How this SOS 3700 Module 1 example is built
The initial response moves in four steps. It starts with a misconception the readings corrected, which gives the post a natural opening, then explains the constitutional basis of American public health and shows how one state divides the work. The comparison country gets one focused paragraph on a specific reform, England's 2013 transfer of public health to local councils, rather than a tour of the whole National Health Service. A third paragraph draws the shared strength and weakness, linking both to the Public Health 3.0 idea of the local chief health strategist. Each comment answers a classmate's actual argument with something new: the form of funding in the first, data sharing across levels of government in the second, and both end with a point or question the classmate can take further.
Reading the SOS 3700 Module 1 grading rubric
The syllabus says forum work is graded on quality and quantity: use of course information, awareness of what classmates posted and responses that move the discussion forward. Mentors grade each activity from 0 to 100. In a comparison forum, higher marks go to posts that name the legal or structural source of authority in each country, use the textbook's terms correctly, such as police power and delegation to local government, and draw a conclusion rather than listing differences. Citing the course text and one outside source shows engagement with the readings. Comments earn credit when they bring new evidence or a question, and lose it when they only praise. Proofreading and a respectful, professional tone are named expectations, so mentors also notice careless writing and sweeping claims about either country.
SOS 3700 Module 1 help from the desk
The usual problem in this first forum is a post that describes the American system in general terms and the other country in a sentence or two, so nothing is really compared. Pick one feature to compare, such as who holds authority or how public health is funded, and treat both countries on that feature. Another mistake is calling the CDC the head of American public health; explain the role of states instead. Keep your own workplace stories brief and anonymous. Post your initial response early so classmates can comment, and spread your two comments over the module. Our writers can draft the initial response and both comments around your mentor's question and the country you picked, starting with a free first draft.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Thomas Edison State University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
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SOS 3700 Module 1 questions, answered
Where can I find a free SOS 3700 Module 1 sample paper?
Scroll up: this page carries the whole Module 1 forum entry, an initial response comparing public health organization in the United States and England, two comments on classmates' posts and the references they cite.
Who has public health authority in the United States?
States hold the police power to protect health and safety and delegate parts of it to counties and cities; the federal government acts mainly through funding, commerce and regulation.
What changed in English public health in 2013?
Responsibility for health improvement services moved from the National Health Service to upper-tier local councils, funded by a ring-fenced public health grant.
What is Public Health 3.0?
DeSalvo and colleagues' 2016 proposal that county and city health departments lead coalitions of schools, housing agencies and employers against the conditions that make people sick, backed by better data and more flexible money.
How do SOS-3700 discussion comments get graded?
Mentors look for comments that add value by stating and supporting agreement or disagreement, bringing new information or asking a question that advances the discussion.