What is Public Health?
Public Health is an international, multi-disciplinary peer-reviewed journal, published by Elsevier. It is one of the world’s oldest public health journals, having been in continuous publication since 1888.
The journal aims to publish international articles focused on all aspects of the science and philosophy of; public health, public health services and public health systems, seeking to challenge the status quo to improve the health and care of populations or communities.
The journal will publish robust and ethically sound articles of any study type whereby the focus is consistent with our aim. This includes but is not limited to:
• Public health theory, models and frameworks
• Epidemiology – social and political
• Need or impact assessments with a strategic/population level focus
• Effectiveness, management and re-design of health and social care services/support, and wider determinant services such as education, welfare, employment services to improve public health
• Health Protection including control of communicable diseases
• Health promotion and disease prevention
• Development of public health programmes or interventions
• Public health governance, audit and quality
• Public health law and ethics
• Public health policy and comparisons
• Capacity in public health systems and workforce
The target market of the journal is researchers, practitioners, and policymakers who are engaged in public health policy and programmes, public health services and public health systems.
Log in to RSPH first, then click the button (below) to access the Latest Issue of Public Health:
Call for papers: Violence as a Public Health Issue
Violence in its many forms impacts individuals, communities and nations around the world. This special issue would welcome submissions that focus on documenting the systemic components of interpersonal violence (from local to global), assessing the nature and extent, and risk and protective factors that contribute to the development of patterns of violence, and/or exploring system changes and their consequences in response to interpersonal violence.
Guest Editors include Professor Zara Quigg and Dr Linda Degutis.
The deadline for submission to this special issue is 31st December 2025.
Call for papers: Psychology and Public Health
This special issue welcomes high-quality submissions that cover a wide range of issues in applications of psychology to public health challenges worldwide. We are particularly interested in population-level papers, as well as studies on interventions in developing countries or programmes conducted in resource-restricted settings.
Guest Editors include Professor Jim McManus, Dr Fiona Day and Professor Richard Amlot.
The deadline for submission to this special issue is 30th September 2025.
Call for Papers: Health Literacy
This special issue takes a proactive approach to review what has been collectively achieved in health literacy research in the past decades as well as to provide research directions for the future of health literacy with a public health perspective. We invite scholarly discussions with reflection on achievements and for the next steps of the global health literacy community. We are keen to receive high quality articles that cover a wide range of health literacy research areas across the globe with a particular emphasis on their public health perspectives. Quality interventional studies in developing countries or programmes conducted in resource-restricted settings are particularly welcome.
Guest Editors include Professor Gill Rowlands, Professor Tetine Sentell and Dr Kelvin Ling.
All the information on how to submit an article is provided in the document below. Full papers should be submitted online by 31st March 2025.
Call for papers: Climate Resilient Health Systems
Beyond their documented risks to human health, climate hazards such as floods, heat extremes, hurricanes and drought are affecting health systems around the world. This special issue welcomes submissions that focus on documenting the effects of climate change or specific climate hazards on health systems at any system level (from local to global), assessing related health system vulnerabilities, and/or exploring system changes and their consequences in response to climate hazards.
Guest Editors include Professor Jo Borghi, Professor Susannah Mayhew, Associate Professor Renzo Guinto and Dr Dell Saunier.
The deadline for submission to the special issue is 28th February 2025.
Contribute to the Journal - Submit a Paper
If you wish to submit a paper for consideration, please use the online submission system. Our guide for authors includes information about our open access options.
Interested in reviewing for the Journal?
Public Health is always looking for new reviewers to review papers and books. If you are interested, you are very welcome to register as a reviewer, filling in your areas of expertise and interest on our online submission system.
Editorial Board
Visit the Public Health editorial board page for information on the editorial team behind the journal.