Online Public Health Education in Developing Countries

Public health education is the process of promoting and improving the health of communities through education, awareness, and behavior change. It involves the dissemination of information about public health issues, strategies for prevention and control of diseases, and resources for accessing healthcare services. The history of online public health can be traced back to the early days of the Internet. In the 1990s, the World Health Organization (WHO) and other public health organizations began to recognize the potential of the Internet for disseminating health information and promoting public health. Online medical education plays an important role; nowadays, it provides many opportunities to the students and healthcare professionals. Importance of distance and online education has been increased during the last decades, especially after 2019. Online education and learning had/have great impact on the continuous teaching and learning cycle in medical education worldwide, saving the medical and health sciences schools from closing for at least one year because of lockdown after COVID-19 pandemic. This chapter covers the history, importance, advantages, and disadvantages of online public health education. Moreover, it includes the achievements and challenges of online public health education in the developing countries.