Health Disparities, Diversity, and Cultural Competence - Assignment Example

Socioeconomic Health Disparities Model s Socioeconomic Health Disparities Model According to Carter-Pokras and Baquet (2002), a health disparity is a described as a chain of events signified by a variation in: health status, access to, use of, and quality care, environment, or a certain health outcome that requires scrutiny. There are various models that outline the reasons as well as causes of health disparities (Dressler, Oths, & Gravlee, 2005). The model that best describes the reasons and causes of health inequalities is the socioeconomic model.

The description and explanation of socioeconomic health disparities have been demonstrated across the world irrespective of the race and even behavior. Various hospitals have been built to provide healthcare to people of different classes in the society. According to Shavers (2007), the socioeconomic status is the relative position of a person or community based on their access to wealth and prestige. The socioeconomic status influences health via its association with environmental exposure, lifestyle, and health behavior.

The current income and occupation can enable a person to access a particular standard of healthcare. Another socioeconomic factor that impacts on health is education. Education has been evidenced to have a direct effect on a person’s professional development and career opportunities. As noted by Hillemeier et al. (2003), higher education levels are often predictive of better jobs, working conditions, neighborhoods, as well as medical care. On the contrary, low education is a projector of low living standards, volatile income, and poor health care access.

Galama and Van Kippersluis (2010) add that this forms the low-income and high-income quartiles. In this regard, socioeconomic model of health disparities posits that the socio-economic status predicts the health status of a person. As a consequence, the health interventions are being developed to ensure equality in order to mitigate this disparity. Another effect is that some health interventions are tailored to cater for the high-end patients while certain programs are aimed at people of low income status in the society, but are of similar quality.

Most states are providing coverage for children from low income families under Medicaid along with the State Children’s Health Insurance Program. ReferencesCarter-Pokras, O. & Baquet, C. (2002). What is a "health disparity"? Public Health Reports, 117(September-October 2002), 426-434. Dressler, W., Oths, S., & Gravlee, C. (2005). Race and ethinicity in public health research: Models to Explain Health Disparities. Annual Review of Anthropology , 34 (1), 231-252.Galama, T., & Van-Kippersluis, H. (2010). A theory of socioeconomic disparities in health over life cycle.

Retrieved March 17, 2015, from http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/working_papers/2010/RAND_WR773.pdfHillemeier, M., Lynch, J., & Harper, S., et al. (2003). “Measurement Issues in Social Determinants. Measuring Contextual Characteristics for Community Health,” Health Serv Res, 38:1645-1717.Shavers, V. (2007). “Measurement of Socioeconomic Status in Health Disparities Research,” Journal of the National Medical Association , 99(9), 1013-1024.