Discuss about the Australian Health Policy And Cultural.
Australia is recognized to be one of the most culturally diverse nations in the world. The diversity is signified by many communities who practice different cultural activities, religious, social and political interactions as well. The difference makes Australia unique as a representative society that attracts many, but it also brings along challenges. In such like a diverse community, provision of quality health services is one of the challenges that face it. The struggle to give the population appropriate medical care is usually not as easy and requires a new and advanced approach to have a positive impact. Willis, (Germov, 2014, p 7-8) presents a template of sociological imagination, discuss the evolutions that the health care sector has undergone to provide quality services to the Australian culture.
Use the sociological imagination (SI) template to reflect on your feelings, thoughts and behaviors in response to knowledge, experiences and observations in relation
Healthcare happens to be one of the most crucial sectors of food and security, as nobody can survive without it. My prior experience with the issue is entirely different from all the things I am learning. I always thought that Australia has strategies that ensure for the fair and equal distribution of health in all the hospitals (Broom, & Germov, 2014). I, however, observed that due to diversity, there are discriminations based on age, gender, religion and cultural belonging. I discovered the extents of discrimination regarding the way nurses and doctors treat people in both public and private hospitals. In government hospitals, there is a rather cold and bitter attitude from the health professionals (AIHW, 2016). I could not help but ask one of the nurses who told me that they get a less pay as compared to their duties and therefore feel demotivated. They also feel that the large numbers flocking into the hospitals all have different traits with some of them being disrespectful and stubborn (Charles Sturt University,2012). I saw a pregnant woman being pushed around and getting abuses from the nurses due to the way she was screaming out of pain. The private sector is on the different side of the coin as patients received personalized treatments by the medical personnel (Henry, Houston, & Mooney, 2004). I just observed the kind of people around that hospital and concluded that economic standards determine the way health services are administered to different individuals. The doctors and nurses seemed happy and fulfilled to serve the public as they are paid well and also given the best employee consideration.
Next, Identify and cite one of the readings, articles or videos from eModules and discuss how this resource helps you to expand and deepen your original reflections on this topic
Considering my prior observations and experiences in the Australian health sectors, the class materials emphasized on the same. Most of the lectures, articles, and videos gave of the course are clear and precise about the issue of diversity in the health sector and the impacts it has on the expected outcomes. My research on site revolved around the inequality experienced in the hospitals due to the factors of socioeconomic belonging. The Youtube video, ’Community Services and Health’ (2009) expresses the concerns of money when it comes to health care. It is clear that people of a higher living standard receive better services than their friends from the low-income backgrounds. It has become a concern that those with the ability to pay for better services in the Australian society are the only ones who get quality services. I saw the situation on the ground, and it is true that only expensive healthcare organizations treat their clients with respect (RACGP, 2012). Money motivates people into conducting their activities with the most consideration they know that the reward is worth it.
The video shows statistics of the mortality rate of the Australian population as per their location. The indigenous Australian people are more likely to lose their lives due to inadequate health care services as compared to the lives of urban and high-class individuals. Although I had the prior knowledge, the video advanced my thinking and helped me understand that diversity has many negative impacts (Queensland Health, 2016). Although the nation is trying to enable equality in the systems, I would say that there are so many things that hinder this dream. No one is going to work well as they get a less pay and the institutions will differ depending on the investors. The government should, therefore, invest in increasing the salaries of their medical professionals and also improve the situations of public hospitals. Health care services should be made available to the population in an equal measure and ensure that even the rural areas are well covered.
Continue reflective writing using the SI template to answer the original question you identified in Step 1, using Germov (2104) and a minimum of at least six other academic sources (e.g. journal articles, research reports from the HLSC120 e Modules) to support your answer. Locate these academic sources through your own information search. Analyse how these resources helped you to expand and deepen your original reflections on this topic. (1000 words)
The current number of Australia’s population is around 23 million people who reside in different regions of the nation. They are all differentiated by their cultures, religions, social status and political disparities. According to research, Australian is the most culturally and linguistically diverse country around the world. The diversity is brought about by the excessive immigration experienced in the country as there are many people born overseas but living as registered citizens in Australia. Due to a different background, these people all have a different view of life and the way they conduct their day to day activities. Healthcare also goes hand in hand with diversity, and there are therefore many issues that come with providing quality medical cover to the vast population (Muslims Australia, 2010). It is usually a great challenge providing health care services to a diverse population since every group has a different view according to their cultural and religious beliefs.
Health as a sector in the Australian society usually depends on taxpayers money to develop and advance on a daily basis. That means most of the medical organizations are public as they have to reach out to the millions of people around the nation. The civil servants feel the pinch as they pay taxes to the government which in turn are used to develop the health sector. Public hospitals and dispensaries are usually paid for by the administration, and the patients might only pay for a small fee of registration (University of Notre Dame Australia, 2009). That makes people around flock in large numbers especially in regions of the low-income group as they do not want to spend more on their health bills.
The private sector also contributes much to the area of health as there are many non-governmental organizations that invest in the field. They try to provide quality healthcare and highly compete with the public sector. The public hospitals are definitely in poor conditions at times because of the numbers they serve on a daily basis. Private institutions, on the other hand, maintain the highest quality and hygiene which attracts clients. However, there are some restricting factors of cost which limit a significant portion of the population from accessing healthcare in private institutions. There is, therefore, a great rift between the wealthy and low-income earners in the Australian health care provision (Hendricks, & Cope, 2013). Some people are well catered for when it comes to quality as they have money, while others can only dwell on the public services.
Health care was considered a luxury in the early 20th Century and hospitals were only for the private owners. People were largely dependent on traditional medicine as it was the only accessible and affordable form of treatment. However, that changed later on when traditional medicine started getting scarce, and now the public was in need of an improved and advanced form of health care. Government institutions were then started, and thought they were not well equipped; the population felt relieved. However, the emergence of the private sector, later on, showed how much diverse the population was regarding their living standards (Newall, & Scuffham, 2008). There was a notable difference between services at public and private hospitals and although there are similar diagnosis and treatments, the way each institution handles their daily activities.
The Australian society does all the possible actions to ensure that the entire population is well catered for regarding their health. In as much as the whole population cannot get equal health services due to issues of income and social status, there are well laid out strategies. Public hospitals and dispensaries provide free or cheap services to the population, and that attracts mostly the low and middle-income earners (NACCHO, 2016). It is clear that these institutions host a significant portion meaning that there is a large number of people who cannot afford to spend much on their health needs. The government tries all the best to make sure that medical care is available to all individuals across the nation. They have developed hospitals in the rural areas to reduce the problem that people in the upcountry face in the search for health care. They have also taken a step to employ more health personnel’s in their hospitals to improve delivery. The private organizations have also invested heavily in health and constructed institutions that cater to the needs of the people. The industry is, however, more advanced regarding infrastructure and that results in higher bills on the side of the patient. It is therefore obvious that only a certain percentage of the population can afford to access private medical care.
The low-income earners are usually left behind regarding the quality of services that they receive when they visit the hospitals. Only a few public hospitals provide surgery and operation services which everyone regardless of their social status might need at times. I had to look into a case study of an indigenous woman who had breast mouth cancer and could not get the proper medical attention as those services were not available at the local dispensary. She finally lost her life trying to get medical help, and the same case would have been different for a wealthy individual.
Finally, explain how answering this question has helped you to achieve one of the four ACU Graduate attributes aligned with HLSC120 by reflecting and critically analysing your thoughts and feelings about the original question based on your research. (250 words)
The course attribute 1 was of great importance in the learning of the unit and research that involved looking for all the relevant information. The attribute states, ‘demonstrating the dignity and diversity of all individual,’ which is a great concern in Australia. The variety in the population impacts negatively on the health care provision, and therefore the government should try all their best to deliver in the sector of health. I feel that if the public and private institutions were similar regarding delivery and quality of service, then it would reduce the disparities that come with social standards in the health sector (Productivity Commission, 2015). In as much as Australia’s health is concerned, then diversity should not be allowed to make people differ in their quality of life but rather connect the population.
References
AIHW [1]. (2016). Socio-economic disadvantage and health. Retrieved from: https://www.aihw.gov.au/socio-economic-disadvantage-and-health/
Broom, A., & Germov, J. (2014). Global public health.
Charles Sturt University. (2012). Working with Indigenous Australian Staff. Retrieved from: https://www.csu.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/851415/Working-with-Indigenous-Australian-Staff.pdf
Community Services and Health. (2009). Policy Reform in Nursing – Pushing for Change [Video file]. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6Em8to5NHc
Hendricks, J. M., & Cope, V. C. (2013). Generational diversity: what nurse managers need to know. Journal of advanced nursing, 69(3), 717-725.
Henry, B. R., Houston, S., & Mooney, G. H. (2004). Institutional racism in Australian healthcare: a plea for decency. Medical Journal of Australia, 180(10), 517.
NACCHO. (2016). Major developments in national Aboriginal health policy since 1967. Retrieved from: https://www.naccho.org.au/about/aboriginal-health/history/
Muslims Australia. (2010). Caring for Muslim Patients. Retrieved from: https://www.icv.org.au/icvdocs/caringformuslimpatients.pdf
Newall, A. T., & Scuffham, P. A. (2008). Influenza-related disease: the cost to the Australian healthcare system. Vaccine, 26(52), 6818-6823.
Productivity Commission. (2015). Improving Australia’s health system: what we can do now. Retrieved from: https://www.pc.gov.au/news-media/pc-news/pc-news-may-2015/improving-australia-health-system
Queensland Health. (2016). Interpreting and translating. Retrieved from: https://www.health.qld.gov.au/multicultural/interpreters/interprtng_trnsltng.asp
RACGP. (2012). The Aboriginal Medical Service Redfern. Retrieved from: https://www.racgp.org.au/afp/2012/june/the-aboriginal-medical-service-redfern/
University of Notre Dame Australia (2009) Diversity in the context of multicultural Australia: Implications for nursing practice. Retrieved from: https://researchonline.nd.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=nursing_chapters
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