Lack of Universal Healthcare amongst people of Low Socioeconomic Status - Essay Example

?Introduction It is a birthright of every human being to enjoy health care facilities provided by the government and the health sectors. Living a healthy life is not only beneficial for personal life but is also important for healthy growth of the nation. Every nation should try to provide equal treatment and opportunities to its people, regardless of their background and socioeconomic status (SES). However, people belonging to lower SES still suffer from discrimination and disparity in utilization of health care facilities. The health disparity has led to increase in deterioration of health and premature mortality rates among people with lower SES. The health disparity is also the result of the increase in the inequality level of the income in last thirty years (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.5). This disparity in the income level has severely distorted the equal distribution of health and social resources (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.5). In today’s world, where every little problem of human beings is being solved with the help of innovative ideas and technology, the helpless and hopeless situation experienced by people with lower SES is a blot on humanity. Strong drive and efforts from people belonging to higher SES and government offices is needed to eradicate the health disparity as it is proving extremely dangerous to the moral and physical health of the nation. Background Of Health Disparity Health disparity occurs when certain groups of people do not get access to the available health resources due to their disadvantageous social or personal status (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.6). For example, people belonging to lower SES do not get proper and easy access to health screening, treatment options, culturally knowledgeable staff personnel, information on health benefits etc. (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.6). Health disparity is considered “unfair and unjust” as it proves that the element of prejudice and discrimination still exists in the society (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.6). Relation Between Lower SES And Health Disparity The relationship between health disparity and SES is not a new thing (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.7). A research by Rudolf Virchow in the mid 1800 showed that the social elements like lack of education, unemployment and low income work as a source of disease (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.7). The situation has not changed since then. Pappas et al. has found that between 1960 and 1986, the gap between the mortality of people coming from low financial status and high financial status had increased a lot (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.8). It was also found that as the income increases, the mortality rate decreases (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.8). This makes it very clear that vulnerability to diseases and mortality of a person strongly depends on his financial status (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.8). People in adult age group coming from lower income families suffer from poor health five times more than the people coming from high income families (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.5). The sad thing is that, this situation applies even in case of children. Cohen et al. found that children belonging to lower SES families are more likely to develop health problems like “injury, asthma, ear diseases, physical inactivity etc.”, than the children from higher SES families (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.9). One of the main factors for this difference is the environment. Environmental Hazards It has been found that the toxic waste of the different nature is dumped in areas where people from lower SES live (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.12). These people are exposed to environmental hazards and they lack the resources to fight these hazards (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.12). Moreover, people living in the lower SES communities follow unhealthy lifestyle as they are addicted to junk food, smoking, drugs and physical lethargy (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.12). Also, the number of people who smoke is very large in the lower SES communities. This affects not only the health of people who smoke but also the health of their children and their neighbors (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.12). Moreover, the rate of smoking has decreased among people with high SES as they had resources and access to the knowledge about the bad effects of smoking (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.13). However, people with lower SES lack exposure to health awareness and knowledge and hence, the rate of smoking has not decreased among them (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.13). Also, due to lack of physical activity, addictions and unhealthy eating behavior, health problems like stroke, obesity, heart failure, type 2 diabetes and several types of cancer, are common in people with lower SES (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.13). Moreover, the feeling of hopelessness and lack of resources to handle the stress lead to physical, emotional and psychological problems in people with lower SES (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.14). It is also found that disadvantages suffered by people with lower SES in every area of their lives have resulted in acceleration of their aging at the cellular level (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.13). All these problems indicate an urgent need of action. Importance Of Urgent Action Recent studies have revealed that the physical health of people depends on the SES conditions in their childhood (Cohen, Janicki-Deverts, Chen & Matthews, 2010, P.37). Review of 40 different studies by Galobardes et al. revealed that individuals who were raised in lower SES families suffered from risk of premature mortality due to various diseases, regardless of their SES during adulthood (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 37). Review of 49 studies by Pollitt et al. also revealed that the cardiovascular related health problems that develop during the childhood due to the lower SES, do not improve with the improvement of SES during the adulthood (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 38). Hence, even if the a child from lower SES works hard and succeeds in remaining uninfluenced by all the negative aspects of lower SES, he still remains at risk of premature mortality or ill health as the seeds of ill health are sown during his upbringing itself (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 38). This shows how important it is to introduce the health related programs for children coming from the lower SES communities. The intervention has to begin right from birth of children in lower SES communities. One of the reasons for children of lower SES developing future health risks is that their parents lack financial resources to receive necessary and preventive medical care (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 40). Insufficient care, unhealthy food, polluted environment and addictions lead to development of weak immune system and health risks. Children with lower SES are exposed to similar unhealthy habits in their school and neighborhood also (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 40). Children with higher SES enjoy spacious homes, open space for playing, pollution free environment at home and schools, adequate and timely medical care, educated parents and crowd free accommodation (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 40). These advantages help the children from higher SES to develop strong immune system, healthy eating habits and psychological well being. Availability of nutritious and healthy food like dairy products, fruits and vegetables also make them healthy and strong. Moreover, living in the residential area that has all the healthy lifestyle elements like clean air, clean water, parks, adequately maintained streets, low noise level, sidewalks and public spaces etc., makes the life of children with higher SES comfortable, healthy and meaningful (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 40). This helps them to develop a positive outlook towards life and their psychological satisfaction adds to their physical health. On the contrary, children with lower SES lack all these advantages available to children with higher SES. The environment in which children with lower SES are raised is detrimental for physical, psychological and emotional growth. For example, exposure to tobacco smoke in the environment leads to “increased stress, depression, school related anxiety, unreal expectations about their abilities, lower self-esteem” etc (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 41). Children with lower SES lack attention from their guardians and hence, these psychological problems remain untreated. The suppression of the emotional problems converts into different physical problems. The body responds to these psychological triggers by developing health problems and health damaging behavior and addictions (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 41). It has been found that children living in crowded homes suffer from social withdrawal, aggressive behavior, mental distress and maladjustment at school (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 42). All these problems lead to different diseases in the adulthood (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 42). These studies show that there is an urgent need for efficient and effective prevention intervention to be provided to children belonging to lower SES (Cohen et al., 2010, p. 49). Analysis Of Initiatives There are many problems which stop people with lower SES from taking the advantage of the health care facilities. It has been found that people belonging to Black and Hispanic ethnic background are unable to utilize range of different procedures and treatments due to the inadequacy of their health insurance and lack of money (Katz, 2001, p. 1507). Also, the cultural differences, lack of knowledge and illiteracy do not allow them to form a trustworthy relationship with their physicians (Katz, 2001, p. 1507). It has been found that people with lower SES base their medical treatment preferences on the availability of financial resources (Katz, 2001, p. 1508). Also, one of the most important reasons for health disparity due to lower SES is the lack of universal coverage. People with low income and with jobs which do not provide insurance are unable to get insurance (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.11). However, only providing the insurance to the people from lower SES is not going to solve the problem of disparity. The root cause of health disparity is the unhealthy, prejudiced and toxic social and environmental conditions. That is the reason why many health initiatives were not a complete success. The health initiative of ‘Healthy People 2010’ was started in January 2000 with the aim of increasing the health quality and longevity of people and removing the disparity occurring due to race, ethnicity, income etc. (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.5). However, research has revealed that the program has failed to bring any relief to the problem of disparity due to race, ethnicity and SES (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.5). It is interesting to note that these aspects are related to each other. That is, people belonging to minority ethnic groups are the people who have lower income and lower social status. Hence, the chances of these people getting equal share of the health resources become even less. However, the initiatives which were specially introduced for people with lower SES were a success. When the New Jersey initiative was introduced in which the women from minority ethnic group were provided with increased prenatal visits, increased provider reimbursement, post pregnancy follow ups, case co-ordination and health education, it was found that the likelihood of having a low birth weight infant was reduced by 3.7% (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.12). Also, the Hypertension Detection and Follow-up Program was instrumental in eliminating the socioeconomic disparities in mortality due to hypertension as all the participants, regardless of their SES, were treated with equal care and warmth (Adler & Stewart, 2010, p.12). This shows that if initiatives are taken to provide health care with focus on equal treatment, care and unbiased attitude, then people with lower SES will respond enthusiastically and positively. However, what is important is that the intention and the message of the programs should reach every child and person living in the lower SES community. Recommendation On the basis of a recent review, Niederdeppe et al. proposed a strategy to communicate the message about social determinants of health through narratives and evocative visual images to make the health related communication more effective (Kim et al., 2010, p. S299). The preventive measures like “vaccines, drugs, vitamins, oral rehydration salts and contraceptives” should be made available at affordable rates (Mosley & Chen, 1984, p. 40). Also, people from lower SES should be educated about the importance of using soaps, boiling water and toilets to keep their bodies and environment clean and germ free (Mosley & Chen, 1984, p. 40). These measures will help to build a foundation for healthy personal and public places for people with lower SES. Conclusion The study of the background and the researches regarding the health disparity due to lower SES shows that the root cause of the problem is not just the lack of health care initiatives but also the poor living conditions and the lack of opportunities for people with lower SES. Hence, the only way to eradicate the disparity in health care for people coming from lower SES is to provide them with adequate environmental facilities along with health care programs. However, what is most important is to treat them with love and warmth and to make them feel cared for. It will not only cure their health problems but will also heal them emotionally and psychologically. References Adler, N.E. & Stewart, J. (2010). Health disparities across the lifespan: Meaning, methods, and mechanisms. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1186(2010), 5-23. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2009.05337.x Cohen, S., Janicki-Deverts, D., Chen, E., & Matthews, K.A. (2010). Childhood SES and adult health. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1186 (2010), 37-55. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2009.05334.x Katz, J.N. (2001). Patient Preferences and Health Disparities. JAM,286 (12), 1506- 1509. doi:10.1001/jama.286.12.1506 Kim, A.E., Kumanyika, S., Shive, d., Igweatu, U., & Kim, S. (2010). Coverage and Framing of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities in US Newspapers, 1996–2005. American Journal of Public Health, 100 (S1), S224-S231. Mosley, W. H., & Chen, L.C. . (1984) An Analytical Framework for the Study of Child Survival in Developing Countries. Population and Development Review, Vol. 10,pp. 25-45. Read More