Question:
Discuss about the Income Inequality and Social Epidemiology.
The social model of health highlights the limitations of biomedical model as the social model emphasizes on the health determinants and health interventions in the society. It demonstrates ill health as a process of interaction between the individuals and the environment. The biomedical model plays a significant role in understanding the causes of the disease and appropriate treatments related to it but it has been criticized due to social and behavioral factors like sociology and psychology and also medicine. The social model demonstrates the health and illness by focusing on scientific or medical reasons as well as other factors that may lead to a deprived state of health such as poverty, low socio economic management, lack of housing and nutrition, stress related to employment and pollution in the environment (Riekert, Ockene & Pbert,2013).These factors affect the physical as well as the psychological health of individuals because health largely depends on the society and the culture the individuals are living in. The main limitation that is experienced by the biomedical model is that it neglects the social and psychological factors by underestimating the complex nature of health and disease. In this model, the overall health aspects are linked to changes in the society and the environment and not the medical changes. The social model explains that a proper balance between the individual and the social interventions is mandatory. It assumes that good health is the main responsibility for the individuals living in the society. It can be done by properly examining the social determinants of the health such as status and the behavior related to the health of individuals.
The social model of health focuses on the discrimination that is faced by the individuals on the basis of caste, creed, religion, ethnicity, socioeconomic status etc. It provides equal importance in preventing the health issue by providing proper treatment and reduces the discrimination between the individuals (Germov, 2009). It works by promoting the participation of communities and incorporating several interventions in the state such as social services and public policies including control in the pollution levels and safety at the workplace. There are three major aspects of the social model of health. These include social production and the distribution of the illness and the health, Social construction of illness and health, Social organization of health care (Germov, 2009).The biomedical model focuses in the treatment of the disease and the ability of taking risks in the individuals. There are several disadvantages of the biomedical model such as the patients who suffer from any health disease are known by their diagnosis and not by their individuality. They are not provided quality care and more importance is given on the use of modern and scientific technology (Kidd, Kenny & McKinstry,2015).
Health care services delivered by the privatized health care systems are more efficient and sustainable as compared to public health sector organizations especially in developing and poor countries. Private health care in Australia is funded by health insurance funds. Medibank is the largest provider of health fund with a 30% share in the market ( Eldredge et al., 2016). There are a large number of individuals who prefer to take the assistance of health care professionals in private hospitals. This is because private hospitals provide proper assistance and are responsive towards patients as they are well equipped in providing personalized attention to their patients. The nurses, doctors, clinicians and other health care professionals have a few patients and hence can provide individual attention to them (Barbour,1995). They have proper amenities and involve the usage of modern and scientific technology to deliver the health care services. Hence, the services are quite expensive and cannot be afforded by all the patients. The waiting time of the patient is short in private health care systems as compared to public health care systems. Private hospitals provide individual attention and personalized care to their patients related to the health disease and treatment. The nursing staff and other health care professionals provide self help and rehabilitation care to the patients after the treatment if required.
Public health care is provided by the government through national health care systems. The health care funding in Australia is through Medicare which provides funding to a major part of the cost of health care services. The amount that is paid by the Medicare includes the health cost of the specialist and the general practitioner. A large number of people do not prefer visiting public hospitals for health care services especially in the poor and the developing countries. This is because public hospitals lack in providing proper hospitality and person centered care to all their patients. The patients do not get enough time to discuss their concerns with the doctor as there are a large number of patients. The waiting time of the patients is also large in a public health care system (Leeder, 2003). The number of nursing staff and the doctors is large in public hospitals but they do not provide personalized care to their patients. Public health care systems lack equipments based on modern technology as they are expensive and hence are unable to provide proper health care services to patients.
There are several initiatives and measures that are being taken in order to improve the quality of health care services in the public hospitals. These include providing proper attention to patients suffering from complicated health issues, responding to their phone calls and reducing the cost of the treatment. It is important to provide person-centered-care and take appropriate measures in order to provide quality health care services to the patients. The patients should be provided proper counseling after the treatment and should be explained about the preventive measures to be taken to enhance their experience as a patient. Proper measures for the safety and the prevention of infection in patients should be taken by the nurses and other health care professionals. They should wash their hands with soap solution or any other alcohol based hand wash during examining the patient. The instruments used should be disinfected and sterilized before using and the waste products should be disposed of safely to avoid any harmful infections especially in public hospitals in developed countries.
Economic equality refers to gap between the individuals who have a high income and a low income. It acts as threat to good health in several ways. Income produced by an individual plays a crucial role in meeting his or her basic needs and also impacts health such as provision of proper medical facilities, nutritional diet and adequate housing facilities. A high income increases the chances of good health in human beings and a low income leads to several health issues in individuals. This is because they mainly reside in poverty –stricken areas which are more prone to risks related to health issues(Kawachi & Subramanian,2014).
People who earn a low wage struggle everyday to meet their needs as well as their family members. They have to choose between different activities such as buy food items, health care services or housing facilities. They do not receive any support from anyone and hence suffer from several mental and physical health issues such as low self esteem, depressive symptoms, anxiety, fear and sadness. It has been observed that people who have a low income are discriminated on the basis of low socio economic status in the society. They are excluded from economic management, social and political life. Individuals who earn a high income can lead to improved health condition and well being. People who live in poverty conditions experience violence, crime, environmental pollution and unhygienic environment. They have less access to education, employment, recreational facilities which lead to a negative impact on the individuals as well as the entire community (Reuss,2001).
Individuals who live in the lowest poverty conditions are expected to live longer as compared to those who live in highest poverty conditions. Economic equality plays a significant role in affecting the health condition of individuals. The distribution of income within the individuals or the population also affects the health status along with the income and poverty levels among individuals. The country spends around 2 times in providing health care services per individual as compared to other countries; it ranks 49 in terms of life expectancy (Pickett & Wilkinson, 2015).
Countries which have a higher rank on the basis of life expectancy have several policies in order to support families and protect their workers. They can provide a safe environment by providing several health care facilities to individuals. These policies address the inequality of income/wealth by lowering down the gap between the two in order to provide appropriate resources to everyone to survive (Eldredge et al., 2016). It can also be done by reducing the connection between health and wealth and promoting the availability of resources for each and every individual, by not being dependent on income or the assets of individuals.
Gender inequality results in the discrimination between men and women. It leads to a negative health issues among females and women on a global scale. It provides men with authority and control over the lives of women and results in emotional and mental health issues such as depressive symptoms, anxiety and sadness in women. The health care professionals should be educated about gender inequality because discrimination on the basis of gender is a major social and health issue ( García-Moreno et al., 2015).Nurses can play a crucial role in addressing the rights of women and they can help in reducing health inequalities among men and women. It is important to provide information and knowledge to the nursing staff and other health care professionals about gender inequality. This will play a crucial role in the identification of women who had been the victims of physical and sexual violence (Bowler, 1993).
The nurses and the doctors can make a significant contribution in helping women and protect them from the destructive behavior against them. These are the analysis of personal attitude towards the issue, empowering women by the use of nursing practice and the formation of specific interventions. The nursing staff and the health care professionals should provide proper health care services to both men and women and discriminate them on the basis of gender, caste, religion and socio economic status. Since, majority of the nursing staff are women; they will not question women candidates that would support her being a victim of abuse (Miers, 2002). Nurses will remain sensitive towards women who have been abused. Nursing staff can help in empowering the women who have been assaulted physically and psychologically. They will examine her physically and make her comfortable while listening to her ordeal. The nurses, doctors and other health care professionals should make them comfortable and provide proper counseling sessions. Victims of sexual or physical assault should be treated using proper communication skills so that they feel comfortable in sharing their problems and issues (Pickett & Wilkinson, 2015).
Women have always been treated as a burden in the society since ages due to lack of education and wealth. They are treated as an object in their homes by men specially husbands and are not allowed to work according to their wish (Riekert, Ockene & Pbert, 2013).They are not given a well- balanced diet.Nurses should provide information about the practice of having safe sex and encourage them the use of condoms to prevent the infection from sexually transmitted disease and unwanted pregnancy in females (Chrisler, Barney & Palatino, 2016).Nurses can also provide emotional and physical support to women. They should be provided appropriate health care services by the nurses and other health care staffs.Hence, it is very important to educate health care professionals about the gender inequality in order to prevent discrimination among men and women in the society (Sampselle, 1991).
References
Barbour,A(1995) Introduction. In Caring for Patients: A critique of the medical model.Stanford,Stanford University Press.
Bowler,I (1993) They are not the same as us: Midwives stereotypes of South Asian decent maternity patients. Sociology of Health and Illness,v15(2): 157-177.
Chrisler, J. C., Barney, A., & Palatino, B. (2016). Ageism can be hazardous to women’s health: Ageism, sexism, and stereotypes of older women in the healthcare system. Journal of Social Issues, 72(1), 86-104.
Eldredge, L. K. B., Markham, C. M., Ruiter, R. A., Kok, G., & Parcel, G. S. (2016). Planning health promotion programs: an intervention mapping approach. John Wiley & Sons.
García-Moreno, C., Hegarty, K., d’Oliveira, A. F. L., Koziol-McLain, J., Colombini, M., & Feder, G. (2015). The health-systems response to violence against women. The Lancet, 385(9977), 1567-1579.
Germov, J.(2009) Imagining health problems as social issues. In Second Opinion: An introduction to health sociology.4th edition. Melbourne, Oxford University Press.
Kawachi, I., & Subramanian, S. V. (2014). Income inequality. Social epidemiology, 126.
Kidd, S., Kenny, A., & McKinstry, C. (2015). The meaning of recovery in a regional mental health service: an action research study. Journal of advanced nursing, 71(1), 181-192.
Leeder, S.( 2003) Achieving Equity in the Australian Healthcare System, Medical Journal of Australia,v179:475-478.
Miers,M (2002) Developing an Understanding of Gender Sensitive Care: Exploring concepts and knowledge. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 40(1):69-77.
Pickett, K. E., & Wilkinson, R. G. (2015). Income inequality and health: a causal review. Social Science & Medicine, 128, 316-326.
Reuss,A( 2001) Cause of Death : Inequality .Dollars &Sense ,v235:10-12
Riekert, K. A., Ockene, J. K., & Pbert, L. (Eds.). (2013). The handbook of health behavior change. Springer Publishing Company.
Sampselle, C ( 1991) The Role of Nursing in Preventing Violence Against Women. Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic,& Neonatal Nursing, v20(6): 481-487.
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