The Physical and Mental Status of a Person - Research Paper Example

number INTRODUCTION Health pertains to the overall physical and mental status of a person. Physical health refers to an individual’s physical well-being, pertaining to having a sound body, while mental health refers to a person’s emotional well-being. There are several factors that can be considered to have positive or negative effects on an individual’s health, physically or mentally. These are the environment, financial status, educational attainment, and interpersonal and social relationships. Taken as a whole, these factors contribute to the state of living and the situation of the community where we live. With each single factor in a community contributing to the general quality of life of each and every individual residing there. Dr. Trevor Dummer stated that: “Geography and health are intrinsically linked. Where we are born, live, study and work directly influences our health experiences: the air we breathe, the food we eat, the viruses we are exposed to and the health services we can access”. (Health Geography: Supporting Public health, Policy and Planning, 2008) Richards, et al. (2006) indicated in his paper, that according to the World Health Organization, “deficiency of water, electricity, sanitation, ventilation, food preparation and storage in informal dwellings are associated with a range of health risks and diseases.” This paper tackles the effects of the state of living and the situation of the informal settlers’ community in Johannesburg in Africa on a person’s or a resident’s physical and mental health. Specifically, this paper discusses the informal settlers’ situation in Johannesburg, Africa and its effects on the settlers’ health, thus, aiming to try to help establish a correlation between diseases and location, prevalence and how diseases spread, a main concern in the study of health geography. REVIEW OF LITERATURE According to Mathee et al (2009), urbanization is currently taking place in areas of concentrated disadvantage, meaning in areas where large numbers of urban dwellers congregate and live in informal settlements. Jo Vearey, in the book Migration and Inequality (2013) stated that South Africa which has long been associated with the movement of people and cross-border migration was related to labor migration within the agricultural and mining sectors. Migration into South Africa has increased since the end of apartheid and Johannesburg is one of the cities that became a destination for people from different parts of the country and even from outside the continent. In Johannesburg where the population is composed of 3.2 million individuals, inequality among inhabitants is rapidly growing. And because of rapid urbanization, housing and other services proves to be challenging which results to poor households still living in informal settlements, and occupying small brick and corrugated iron backyard dwellings and derelict inner-city buildings (Mathee, et. al. 2009). Few et al. (2004) stated that in the late 1980s to early 1990s, industrial buildings such as offices, factories, warehouses and bakeries were converted and taken over for residential purposes, with 5% of the dwellings found to be overcrowded, with some buildings housing as many as 72 people. He further stated that these dwellings often have very small rooms, densely occupied, having poor or no ventilation and insulation, lacking privacy, with inadequate lighting or light sources, having common access and circulation routes and generally have inadequate sanitation facilities and water supply. Johannesburg is considerably young, having been only established in the 1880s as an off-shoot to the discovery of gold in the area. The city is an interesting area to study African urbanization relationships pertaining to health, inequality and migration. Informal urban locales are generally associated with significant health concerns and consequences as informal settlements are recognized to be important and related to migration in cities (Migration and Inequality, 2013). Studies show that there is increasing evidence linking social economic inequalities to the state of health within a given community (Mathee, et. al. 2009). Mathee, et al. stated that the poor living conditions existing within the environment of informal settlements directly have a negative effect on the people’s health and well-being. As Dummer (2008) identified it, unplanned city growth and its dynamically changing nature, historically and continuously effects health and well-being of the people residing within them. Vearey (2010) identified that weak or inadequate tenure arrangements, urban poverty, inequity, increasing population, and unplanned urban growth are just some of the challenges facing informal settlements in Johannesburg. These factors contribute to social disparities in urban health, where the increasing population translates to increasing pressure on the local authorities in providing basic social and healthcare services. This translates to a point where governments could not provide adequate care for the increasing population within informal settlements. Vearey further adds that studies by Ambert in 2006, Konteh (2009) and Thomas in 2003 and 2006, show an association between urban informal settlements and poor health among its residents. Richards et al. in 2006 states that aside from diorrheal and respiratory diseases, the Nelson Mandela/HSRC Study of HIV and AIDS in 2002 showed that “residents in informal settlements were more prone to diseases such as HIV/AID than were residents in formal suburbs”. Another study in 2010 stated that “in South Africa, HIV is increasingly associated with urban areas, particularly urban informal areas where prevalence is double, and residents of informal settlement were significantly more likely to report ever having tested for HIV” (Vearey, et. al. 2010). The population of informal urban settlements in Johannesburg presents a unique challenge to authorities as people from outlying rural areas and other countries in South Africa migrate to the city in search of better income or economic activity. In 2010, it is home to an estimated 3.9 million individuals, having a growth rate of 1.3 percent. By 2015, it is expected to have an estimated 4.1 million residents and by 2040, between 6 to 8 million (Vearey, 2013). As such that conditions within informal settlements have a significant contribution to health, it is imperative that studies be undertaken to better understand this phenomena in order that policy makers and implementers of social programs be able to address the growing social disparity within these areas. METHODOLOGY There have already been many researches undertaken regarding the phenomenon of urban settlements in Johannesburg, studying the different factors that affect its structure. This paper would utilize the outcomes of those researches and would try to draw significant findings developed by their respective authors. Although this paper utilizes both qualitative and quantitative methods and values, the research will be more focused on the qualitative method or outcomes derived from past undertaken researches of the locale. The researcher recognizes that it is more important to focus on the overall effects of geography to the people’s health and well-being. The data and findings collected for this paper are all from secondary sources, ranging from books, research journals and medical journals. An analysis and understanding of these findings will be undertaken by the researcher in the aim of helping establish the relationship that geography and all that factors concerning and affecting it, is linked to an individual’s health. COURSE RELEVANCE Dr. Trevor Dummer (2008) defines health geography as the interaction between people and environment from a holistic perspective of the different elements of socio-environmental factors and patterns such as location, well-being, societal roles, health and diseases. He argues that geography and its studies are vital to public health by studying and understanding health risk factors, environment, lifestyle and societal interactions, including, but not limited to economic and health inequality, urbanization patterns, and an individual’s exposure to health risks. Dummer states that there are already findings linking migration and population movement and spread of diseases to the spread of infectious ailments at a global scale. These include, HIV/AIDS, avian influenza and severe acute respiratory syndrome among others (2008). Today’s world is characterized and driven by the global economy. With advent of faster and more efficient ways of travel and transport, economies of every nation are affected by other countries on a global scale. Be it dependency on raw materials from other countries or to marketing and being markets of products, every country is linked economically on a global scale. Travel between borders is also fast and efficient. Migration in search of better work or economic opportunities is also prevalent. The better transport systems enable everyone to travel to other areas of the world. It is also for this reason that many diseases spread at a faster pace and is far-ranging as a result of efficiency in transport systems. In order to better understand the phenomenon of health geography, it is important to understand the intricate social structures and environment within a given locale. In this case, this research focuses on the informal settlements within Johannesburg, South Africa and the existing health, social and environmental conditions which prevail or exist in the area. The truth to the theory that greater connections between people and places and the rising global inequalities lead to more disease and ill-health can be seen clearly in the data gathered and used in this paper. In the paper Inequity in Poverty, Mathee, et al (2006) stated that there is evidence linking the existence of economic inequalities to an individual’s or community’s well-being - the greater the economic inequality, the worse the average health picture within a given area. Mathee’s study indicates that in Johannesburg, where economic and living conditions in informal settlements are poor, there is clear evidence on the diseases being borne by these communities especially chronic and infectious disease and mental ill-health. Poor living structures existent within the area and the degradation of housing infrastructures such as cracked walls and leaking roofs may lead to proliferation of fungal spores and an elevated risk of asthma. Few (2004) in his study identified that houses within informal settlements in Johannesburg, originally intended to house 4 to 6 people are crowded to more than ten times capacity. This increases spread of communicable diseases due to the high concentration and close proximity of individuals within a small space. Just one person contracting a disease would significantly endanger others with infection. Social interactions by infected individuals with other residents in such a densely populated region like Johannesburg are highly probable. One thing is certain, the evidence of inequity among residence of informal settlements greatly affects quality-of-life of the people within them. Mathee states that due to this inequality, there is multiple-burden among residents with regard to health risk and chronic diseases. Any one person can easily act as carrier of a disease and spread it among other residents and nearby communities easily. CONCLUSION This paper aimed to help establish that there is a link between greater connections between people and places and the rising global inequalities and diseases and ill-health. Based on the secondary data gathered, there is enough evidence to the truth about the theories mentioned in the Course Relevance part of this paper, and in fact, Vearey, in his book Migration and Inequality (2013), stated that the relationship between migration and health is made complicated by heterogeneity and that different migrant groups experience and have different levels of exposures and vulnerabilities, and also consequences of ill health and poor health outcomes. Vearey also said that in a region associated with high prevalence of communicable diseases such as HIV and Tuberculosis, and increasingly those of drug-resistant strains of Tuberculosis, population mobility should considered public health imperative. With globalization comes migration. And with migration comes the influx of people from different parts of a country, even from different parts of the world, with the same goal of finding a chance for a better life. Majority, if not all of these migrants end up living in informal settlements, with poor living conditions, building new connections to more people and places and experiencing global inequalities which result to emergence of new diseases, spread of existing diseases and ill-health. Dr. Dummer’s statement in his article (2008) about the methodologies being used in geographic research in health sharing a common theme, which is the role of place and space, further solidifies and gives credence to the theories mentioned above. REFERENCES Dummer, T. J.B. Md. (2008). Health geography: supporting public health policy and planning. Retrieved from http://www.cmaj.ca/content/178/9/1177.short. Few, Roger, Gouveia, N., Mathee, A., Harpham, T., Cohn, A., Swart, A., & Coulson, N. (2004). Informal sub-division of residential and commercial buildings in Sao Paulo and Johannesburg: living conditions and policy implications. Habitat International 28, 427-442. Mathee, Angela, Harpham, T., Barnes, B., Swart, A., Naidoo, S., de Wet, T., & Becker, P. (2009). Inequity in poverty: the emerging public health challenge in Johannesburg. Development Southern Africa 26(5), 722-732. Richards, Robin, O’Leary, B., & Mutsonziwa, K. (2006). Measuring Quality of Life in Informal Settlements in South Africa. Social Indicators Research 81, 375-388. DOI 10.1007/s11205-006-9014-1. Vearey, J. (2013). Migration, urban health and inequality in Johannesburg. In T. Bastia (ed.), Migration and Inequality (131-214). New York, NY. Routledge. Vearey, Joanna, Palmary, I., Thomas, L., Nunez, L., & Drimie, S. (2010). Urban health in Johannesburg: The importance of place in understanding intra-urban inequalities in a context of migration and HIV. Retrieved from http://www.elsevier.com/locate/healthplace. Informal Settlements in Johannesburg Johannesburg is one of the major cities in Africa and to an extension in the world that has some of the highest prevalence in informal settlements as indicated by a number of studies. With Soweto being the most outstanding of the informal settlements, various scholars have conducted research with the objective of finding out the main factors accentuating the trend. They have also gone a step further in suggesting possible mitigation measures for this tendency in order to enhance the standards of living in Johannesburg, particularly the informal settlement zones, commonly known as the slum areas. This assignment presents an annotated bibliography of the informal settlements in Johannesburg. Dummer, T. J.B. Md. (2008). Health geography: supporting public health policy and planning. Retrieved from http://www.cmaj.ca/content/178/9/1177.short. In this article, Dr. Trevor Dummer (2008) discusses health geography, current developments in the field and its importance in public health and its recognition of the importance of context, setting and spatial scale — from global to local — in determining health outcomes. Dr. Dummer presents examples of some common research areas relevant to public health policy and discusses research themes and providing insight into the role of health geography to public health. Dr. Dummer (2208) also discusses spatial scale, globalization and urbanization and their implications on public health and well-being and health policy. Also discussed were approaches to geographic research mentioning possible limitations. This article is useful to researchers as source of secondary information with regards to developments in geographic health research. Richards, R., O’leary, B., & Mutsonziwa, K. (2007). Measuring Quality Of Life in Informal Settlements in South Africa. Social Indicators Research, 81, 375–388. Richards, O’leary and Mutsonziwa (2007) employ regression analysis in their article in which they explicitly assess the quality of life of South Africans living in the informal houses in the major cities like Johannesburg. The article measures the individual parameters such as basic amenities, infrastructure, and socio-cultural perspectives of the inhabitants of these ‘shacks’. The authors have in their research, pinpointed issues such as unemployment, poor infrastructure, and poor sanitation, among others as being the key contributors of the pathetic living conditions in the informal settlements of Johannesburg. In an attempt to improve the situation in the informal settlements in Johannesburg, Richards, O’leary and Mutsonziwa (2007) have come up with concrete recommendations persuading the South African government, particularly the ruling party (ANC) to engage in certain improvements measures to negate the effects of the situation. The authors of this article specifically point out the major issues and possible mitigation measures, aspects that are crucial to this research topic. The authors have made a significant contribution to this topic in that they have brought to light the main obstacles to enhancement of the living standards within the informal settlements of Johannesburg. This aspect of poor quality of life in the informal settlements is a major issue that the South African government has to grapple with before the situation gets out of hand. Few, R., Gouveia, N., Mathee, A., Harpham, T., Cohn, A., Swart, A., & Coulson, N. (2004). Informal sub-division of residential and commercial buildings in Sao Paulo and Johannesburg: living conditions and policy implications. Habitat International, 28, 427–442. A study by Few, Gouveia, Mathee, Harpham, Cohn, Swart, and Coulson (2004) comprehensively compares the conversion of formal commercial and residential buildings into informal, high-density settlements in Sao Paulo and Johannesburg. Few et al. (2004) examine the policy implications and state of living conditions of once formal and decent buildings into dilapidated informal structures especially after the infestation by the urban poor. The main objective of Few et al. (2004) to conduct the survey was to find out the cause of the encroachment of informal settlements into formal commercial and residential zones. The authors were also eager to find out the implications, both policy and social, to the cities if the government takes a back seat concerning the problem. The survey by Few et al. (2004) is of great importance to the main research topic in this case as it directly delves on the various ways by which some informal settlements find their way into the ‘restricted’ areas. Although the study lacks accurate data, the authors call for further research into the matter in order to come up with recommendations that are more comprehensive. This is because despite the fact that the inhabitants of informal settlement contribute hugely to the economy, the shacks they dwell in are an eyesore to Johannesburg as a city. Mathee, A., Harpham, T., Barnes, B., Swart, A., Naidoo, S., Wet, T. & Becker, P. (2009). Inequity in poverty: the emerging public health challenge in Johannesburg. Development Southern Africa, 26(5), Mathee et al. (2009) investigated the link between inequalities in the distribution of resources to the degree of access to health services in Johannesburg, more so in the informal settlements where impoverishment is a way of life. The author conducted this research with the main objective of determining the prevalence of chronic and communicable illnesses in the informal settlements of Johannesburg and the effects of inability to access proper health services to the immediate community. Mathee et al. (2009) used the cross-sectional surveys in their bid to examine the quality of life and health of persons residing in five major informal sectors within Johannesburg city. The authors of the article found out that most dwellers of informal settlements do not have adequate access to health services due to poverty, which is a function of inequality. To that effect, these groups of persons suffer under curable illnesses and die of preventable and manageable diseases. This, they attributed to the increase in the number of informal settlements over the last five years, taking into consideration that South Africa rates high among the list of world’s unequal nations. This study is resourceful to the research topic because it elaborates on the socio-cultural and health challenges that most slum dwellers face in Johannesburg. They further recommend more research in this respect to come up with new approaches in curbing the health challenge in most informal settlements in Johannesburg. Indeed, the government of South Africa ought to do more as far as promoting health services in informal settlements in Johannesburg is concerned. Vearey, J. (2013). Migration, urban health and inequality in Johannesburg. In T. Bastia (ed.), Migration and Inequality (131-214). New York, NY. Routledge. Vearey studied migration and inequality in South Africa by exploring the structural, socio-physical conditions experienced by urban migrants, noting that health inequity may be avoided. He conducted the study using a social determinist perspective, arguing that migrant groups in Johannesburg experience unjust distribution or lack of access to healthcare. The study highlights the pressure of increasing population in urban informal settlements which result to increasing pressure on local authorities for the delivery of healthcare and social services which in the long run, authorities could not provide adequately for every resident, resulting to inequity to access. Increase of population results from migration in search of better economic activity or political asylum from nearby countries. The research based its findings on survey in 2008 conducted by the Johannesburg RENEWAL (Regional Network on AIDS, Livelihoods and Food Security), surveying 1,553 persons, collating data on histories, household profiles, livelihood and access to basic social, health and legal services. Vearey’s study presents a view on how different migrant groups’ experiences, positively or negatively in relation to access to healthcare. Vearey, J., Palmary, I., Thomas, L., Nunez, L., & Drimie, S. (2010). Urban health in Johannesburg: The importance of place in understanding intra-urban inequalities in a context of migration and HIV. Health & Place, 16, 694–702. Vearey et al. (2010) assesses the major factors to consider when evaluating the impact of migration and HIV on the urban health with Johannesburg a case study. The authors employed the cross-sectional survey method in determining the significance of understanding a place when reviewing the trends in inequalities and the general urban health. Particularly important in their study was the effect of migration of the rural folks to the peripherals of Johannesburg city, a factor that has close relationship with the emerging health trends in Johannesburg. The study plays a major role in the research topic in that it exposes the emerging trend of persons shifting places to the informal areas of Johannesburg to make ends meet, a process that only worsens the situation through the escalation of HIV cases and the overall poor health status of slum dwellers in Johannesburg. In summary, in as much as the inhabitants of these informal settlements in Johannesburg provide cheap labor and subsequently contribute the economy, it is evident that the challenges of having informal settlements in Johannesburg outweigh the benefits by far. This calls for urgent measures that would if not reduce the number of informal settlements, improve the living conditions of persons in such environments. Read More