Economic Factors as Barriers to Effective Health Care - Literature review Example

Economic factors as barriers to effective health care affiliation Economic factors as barriers to effective health care Introduction Global health is one of the most sensitized issues on the global map. As centuries pass on, health issues become more significant in the society. Coming up with solutions to create a healthy globe has been the aim for major international bodies. With years, the seriousness of chronic and other diseases increased. This has made it paramount for nations and international health organizations to come up with global strategies to deal with health issues. According to Patricia & Mary (2007) ensuring a health rich globe, may take a million years if all health hazards remained constant. With this scenario impossible it becomes the duty of nations and health bodies to protect their citizens against health hazards. Making it hard to control global health is the fact that there are emergences of diseases which have no permanent treatment yet. However, other factors play a major role in the hindrance of provision of health care. These factors are influenced mostly by human activity. They mostly include economic and social factors. In many occasions social factors get all the attention disregarding the influence of the economic factors. In an argument by Ralph (2011) economic factors pose many threats than social factors yet they don’t get enough attention as the social factors. Economic factors that hinder effective health care include poverty, job descriptions and illegal trade of counterfeit drugs. The three factors are the leading economic factors that affect the global front in terms of provision of effective health care. This paper will focus on these three economic factors as barriers to proper provision of health care. Additionally, the paper will provide guidelines which may effectively address these issues. Also included will be the probability of the issues to be addressed permanently and effectively. Economic factors Poverty levels In words by Roslyn & Rick (2008) poverty is the largest hindrance to access of quality health care in many nations. The most affected nations are in their third world stage of evolution. Nations in the third world have large numbers of their population living under the poverty level line. This is greatly attributed to the fact that unemployment levels are at high levels. As a general assumption in many third world countries, basic needs are the first priority. Health care does not fall under the brackets of basic needs in these parts of the globe. Due to poverty levels large numbers of populations prefer to use over the counter drugs to treat any form of illness. According to Simon & Heather (2007) this tendency is an evidence of how quality health care is made difficult to obtain. For the past five years thousands of people have succumbed to diseases due to lack of proper health care. Health researchers argue that it is not out of will that individual choose to seek poor health care. If given the chance and ability, every single individual on the face of the earth would opt to seek the best health care services. The living conditions and financial abilities determine the quality of health care one can get. It is for this reason that health bodies advocate for free provision of health care when it comes to very serious diseases. A good example is the treatment of HIV/ Aids. The treatment of HIV/Aids was made voluntary and free since the medication of the ARVs was too expensive. This step made it possible for people with poor living standards t access the medication. the results of this move is very significant as there is evidence of people living with the virus and live up to seven years before succumbing to death (Mwabu & Ishola, 2010). In an argument by Tracy (2009) it is an obvious assumption that a person living below a dollar per day may put proper medication as a last need in their budget. Poverty or low income levels also affect nations. Below the third world nations there are nations with low revenue income. This affects their ability to establish quality medical institutions. According to Mwabu & Ishola (2010) the type of medical institutions found in the United States and in Europe can never be compared to the medical institutions found in some nations in Africa. This creates rift between the two classes of societies. As the health conditions are improved in European nations, African nations suffer the cost of having poor medical institutions. In this case the solutions will lie on the ability of international health bodies to bridge the gap between the two societies. Finding permanent solutions to this problem may prove difficult since poverty in all nations cannot be eradicated. Making all medications free or affordable for all may also be an illogical solution to implement due to the production costs involved in the invention of medications. To this problems health organization in nations should provide quality and affordable to their citizens. To do this nations need funding from international health bodies. Charitable health organizations can also be helpful in this problem since they can provide free medication to the less fortunate. According to Simon & Heather (2007) individuals should also play the role of accessing quality health care. The problem of poverty in hindrance of quality health care may not be permanently or fully tackled because of other factors influencing the poverty levels. In word by Tracy (2009) the only solution to this problem is for the poor countries to outsource medical services from well developed countries. The World Health Organization should also try to regulate the prices of medication to poverty stricken regions of the globe. Job descriptions Another economic factor is the job description of people around the globe. Different people around the globe have different job description depending on will or availability. In the modern century job description are dictated by availability. Out of will and in need of an income people around the globe take up jobs with poor working conditions which may hinder affect their health status. According to Wolf & Robert (2011) health hazards caused by poor job descriptions can be estimated to be three out of a sample of ten people. The author further argues that these individuals are out of options and perceive their current jobs as the best option they have. In recent years health bodies have advocated for proper working conditions in working places. Many companies and organizations have taken up insurance covers for their employees but this is not enough to shield their employees from possible chronic disease. The most affected places of work are the manufacturing companies. These companies have many employees working in terrible working conditions. These companies are referred to as sweatshops. According to Ellen, Cecile &Martin (2009) a significant number of employees working in sweatshops acquire permanent diseases or injuries. Even as health bodies advocate for the closure of sweatshops, the factories remain health hazards to a significant number of people. If these employees are saved from these poor working conditions, the global health will rise by one percent (Dr. Erica, 2010). Another job description that makes it difficult to contain health conditions are the jobs involving travelling from nation to nation. In case of any health pandemic in any part of the world the diseases could be easily transferred from country to country. This makes it very difficult for health bodies to come up with efficient diagnosis formulas. The scenario is made worse if the disease is not detected in time. This is evidence during the outbreak of the Swine Flu. The disease travelled across the globe within no time. But in this case the disease was detected in time and airport authorities were instructed to screen all incoming and outgoing passengers. This is one of the solutions which was effective and prevented a global pandemic. Solutions to the job description factor should start from the organization’s management of human resources. Proper management of human resources entails includes good and safe working conditions. To make it effective, rules, regulations and conditions should be developed to streamline the working conditions employees are exposed to. Government bodies should also go an extra mile to ensure safety of worker by closing down companies which fail to meet the working conditions drafted. Additionally, sweatshops should be advised to use machines instead of human labour (Barton, 2007). Organizations should also provide each and every employee with a logical health insurance cover. In this way promotion of quality health care is enabled within organizations. In the case of travelling jobs, airports authorities should always be vigilant on screening patients in any threat of a disease. From the three factors, this category is the easiest of factors to contain and come up with permanent solutions. Production and trade of sub-standard drugs Illegal trade of drugs and medical apparatus is another economic factor that hinders effective provision of quality health care. It is estimated that out of ten people that die from disease two of them die due to use of sub-standard drugs (Tracy, 2009). This factor is more rampant in less developed countries which are in dire need of affordable health products. The World Health Organization says that this is the main hindrance to acquire a safe globe in terms of health (Ellen, Cecile & Martin, 2009). The use of sub-standard drugs may not just make a disease resistant but may also lead to death. Sub-standard drugs have increased in the market due to the harsh economic conditions. As the global economic conditions become harsh, individuals and organizations produce sub-standard drugs to cut production costs and increase their profit levels. Making it more significant is the fact that these drugs have the similar physical appearance as the certified drugs. This makes it difficult and even impossible for individuals to detect. Unknowingly, people buy these drugs which later on lead to death or other dire consequences. The most affected of patients are those diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. The number of sub –standard antiretroviral drugs in the market has increased significantly. This has made it difficult for health bodies to successfully aid HIV positive patients. Due to their weak immune system, they easily succumb to death from taking the substandard drugs. This is just one scenario where innocent patients fall victim of sub-standard drug producing companies. To curb this, international health bodies should provide standardization models which will be used to measure the quality of drugs produced. This can be made possible if all drug manufacturing organizations are certified by health bodies. After manufacturing, drugs should be tested and analyzed for quality. In this way the amount of sub-standard drugs in the market would decrease significantly. Governments should also certify all medical imports before releasing them to the public. They should also make sure that medical institutions use proper and certified medical apparatus (Mwabu & Ishola, 2010). The certification of medical institutions should be made by the requirements of health bodies. The general public should also be sensitized on the importance of purchasing drugs from certified medical institutions and drug stores. The problem of counterfeit drugs can be easily dealt with and permanent solutions established. With the above recommendations adhered to, quality provision of health care would be made easier and efficient. Conclusion Provision of quality health care has been a matter of great importance in the modern society. With more international bodies being established it is assumed that health care has become a more sensitive matter. As much as health bodies are sensitizing the issue, the globe is far from achieving a health safe environment. Economic factors are becoming even harsher with the rising economic levels (Barton, 2007). The task is then left to governments and health bodies. Are the two parties doing enough to shield their citizens from health hazards? Are their actions enough to protect the globe from health hazards? These are some of the questions the globe directs to the bodies. However, with globalization levels rising there is hope for a more health secure globe. Individuals should also play part of ensuring that they receive quality health care. The positive thing about economic factors is the fact that they can easily changed and permanently found solutions to. With high levels of technology it will be easier for health bodies to tackle any threats of health hazards. References Barton, L. (2007). Illegal Drugs and Government Policies. New York: Nova Publishers. Dr. Erica, B. (2010). Research for Health Policies. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Ellen, N., Cecile, K., & Martin, M. (2009). Managing Chronic Conditions. WHO regional office, Europe. Mwabu, G. & Ishola, D. (2010). Reproductive Health, Economic Growth, and Poverty Reduction Africa: Frameworks of Analysis. Nairobi: University of Nairobi Press. Patricia, S. & Mary C. (2007). Nursing the Law. Chats wood: Elsevier Australia. Ralph, C. (2011). Vocational Learning. New York: Springer Publishers Roslyn, S., & Rick, L. (2008). Managing Clinical Processes in Health Services. Chats wood: Elsevier Australia. Simon, B., & Heather, G. (2007). Analyzing Health Policy. Chats wood: Elsevier Australia. Tracy, H. (2009). The U.S Oral Health Workforce in The Coming Decade. Washington DC: National Academic Press. Wolf, K., & Robert, C. (2011). Global Perspective in Workplace Health Promotion. Boston: Jones & Bartlett Publishers. Read More