Population Health vs. Public Health: Differences Explained

Written by Coursera Staff • Updated on

Population health and public health both strive to improve the health of the communities they serve. But the size and focus of these two fields often differ.

[Featured Image]: A public health care worker, working at their desktop computer, is analyzing the charts of a patient.

Key takeaways

 

While public health tends to focus on the general public, population health pays closer attention to more narrowly defined communities.

  • One example of population health is the Healthy Tribes Program offered through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Public Health.

  • Both population health and public health are concerned with educating the public, disease control and prevention, and expanding health care access to those in need.

  • You can enter careers such as public health policy advisor, public health analyst, environmental health scientist, and epidemiologist by studying either discipline. 

Learn more about each of these important health care fields, what differentiates them, and the jobs that define them. You can also begin learning with the Foundations of Public Health Practice Specialization. In as little as four weeks, you can reflect on and cultivate the behaviors required to become an effective public health professional, whether as an academic, practitioner, clinician, manager, or leader. By the end, you’ll have had the opportunity to build skills in health policy, program evaluation, disease prevention, and more.

What is population health vs. public health? Differences and definitions 

Public health and population health are intimately related to one another—and are often even used interchangeably. But, despite their similarities, the two terms typically focus on different populations, even when those populations overlap with one another. Also, while public health tends to focus on the public at large and population health pays greater attention to more narrowly-defined communities, both fields are concerned with educating the public, disease control and prevention, and identifying the social determinants of health to expand primary care access to those in need. Take a look at each of these terms and how they differ: 

What is public health?

Public health is a subset of health care focused on improving the health outcomes and overall well-being of the public at large rather than individual patients. Used primarily to describe the health practices and policies of local and federal governments, public health encompasses a wide range of duties, responsibilities, and jobs that all work to ensure positive health outcomes for the public and all the various communities comprising it.

While some jobs within public health require you to research within laboratory settings, other public health work allows you to interact directly with the public or collaborate with others to craft public policy. 

What is population health?

Population health is a subset of public health focused on improving the well-being and health outcomes of a specific group of people or a community within the public at large. While population health and public health are sometimes used interchangeably and can sometimes even focus on the same group, health care professionals working in population health usually focus their efforts on very specific groups defined by such common demographic factors as geographic location, ethnicity, age, or a shared disability. 

Much like public health professionals, population health professionals can work in either research environments or directly with community members to address their health concerns. 

What is an example of population health?

One example of population health is the Healthy Tribes Program offered through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Public Health. Designed to help combat chronic disease and increase life expectancy for American Indian and Alaska Native adults by teaching them ways to make healthier choices that align with their cultural traditions.

Jobs and functions 

You can find a wide range of positions within the fields of public and population health. If improving your community by researching the factors that influence health inequities or preventing the spread of disease by educating the public sounds enjoyable to you, then you might consider a career as either a population or public health professional. 

Whether you prefer to focus on the public at large or a specific population within it, consider these jobs: 

Read more: 7 Public Health Careers Worth Exploring

Explore public health vs. population health career paths with our free resources

Find the right career for you and explore public and population health career pathways by subscribing to our LinkedIn newsletter, Career Chat. Here, you can learn about educational opportunities, in-demand skills, and more. Or, explore these resources to learn more about this industry:

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