Title: As instructed by module leader “Outline the public health issues in 1840s and explain why the measures proposed to solve these problems were not popular. Is there anything today which we can learn from this period in developing current public health policies”?

Preparation
Writing is a process. In order to write my essay topic effectively, I will need to prepare how I want to go about the task. Good preparation will mean that I am able to focus on what and how I am going to write.

My preparation will involve having an essay plan. As stated in his book, (Greetham, 2008, p. 145), “The plan gives the essay a clear structure for examiners to follow as they navigate their ways through ideas and arguments that are unfamiliar to them”. The structure, and how I organise my piece of writing, is just as important as the content. As pointed out by (Cottrell, 2008, p. 182), “What matters is not just what you know but the way that you organise it”.

My plan will therefore present an essay based on an introduction, main body and a conclusion. This will be significant in how I will collect and collate information about the essay question. As a student, I will read and make my own notes, trying to include information from other sources but with my own interpretation.

The Introduction
In this essay, I will attempt to identify the important aspects of public health issues in 1840s. Firstly, I intend to define public health then identify and discuss briefly the public health issues during the period of 1840s. I will also talk about when and why the government started to take keen interest in reforming public health. I will mention Edwin Chadwick whose work was significant in making the reforms during the nineteenth century. Secondly, I will highlight the measures that were proposed to solve the public health problems. Thirdly, I will give reasons as to why these measures were not popular in solving the public health issues during this period. In the final part of this essay, I will summarise the important aspects from this period to help in shaping and developing the current public health policies. I will do this by comparing and contrasting issues discussed above.
The Main Body
Paragraph One
I will define public health as supported by any chosen author on this topic. I will then discuss increase in population, poor housing with rising rent, water pollution and poor sanitation as the identified public health problems in 1840s. I will give examples for each problem as mentioned in various books.
Paragraph Two
I will attempt to investigate the measures proposed to solve the health issues in 1840s in this section. I will write about the attempts made to do something about the public health issues with particular focus on Public Health Acts in 1848 and 1872 to 1875. This will be, backed up by some relevant text.
Paragraph Three
In this paragraph, I will explain why the measures proposed to solve the problems were unsuccessful during this period. I will write about the main and subsidiary points raised by my interpretation of the measures. The development of my argument will be, backed up by research evidence from resources like books, articles and journals.
The Conclusion
I will use this section to provide a summary as connected with the main body above. In order to achieve this, I hope to show a reflection of the main points regarding what have been learnt from 1840s in developing the current public health policies. From my findings, I will indicate some of the important aspects required today.

Bibliography
1. Cottrell, S. (2008) The Study Skills Handbook, 3rd Edition. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

2. Greetham, B. (2008) How to Write Better Essays, 2nd Edition. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.