The inequalities that are experienced in health care are closely related to social determinants of health which are inclusive of one’s lifestyle, age, gender, geographical location and community background. Canada uses a universal health care system program which allows for citizens to have access to health services, despite this, there are some difficulties for some ethnic groups such as the Aboriginal people and First nations people of Canada to access it (Cameron, Carmargo Plazas, Salas, Bourque Bearskin, & Hungler, 2014). Research shows that one of the reasons this population experiences difficulty accessing health care is due to their demographic location. Aboriginals who live off-reserve, First Nations people who live on-reserve and …show more content…
The constant inequalities that this population face to obtain health care services raises serious concerns as they have to face obstacles in order to achieve equitable access to health care compared to the overall population of Canada. Canadian immigrant women are another group of individuals that face inequalities with the health care system. They understand the importance of health and disease prevention in comparison with the women who were born in Canada, but they face challenges in being able to access the resources that allow them to stay healthy (PHAC,2008). Research analysis states language barriers and working low income jobs, while struggling to take care of their young children and maintain their household at the same time are the cause of it (PHAC, …show more content…
Global health is an area of study, research and practice that makes it a priority on improving health and achieving health equity for all people worldwide (Kelly Brooks, 2010). The awareness of global health issues helps us improve our ability to care for our patients by having the knowledge to know it exists. The understanding and knowledge of global health issues help health care providers use it to make a difference to people’s life choices, therefore improving health equity (World Health Organization, 2008). The education provided to our patients about what global health is and the awareness of its impacts on lives, in turn improves the health care professional ability to provide care. Secondly, being aware of issues globally allow health care providers to develop and implement models of care which will contribute to the renewal and strategic development of sustainable quality primary care (Kelly Brooks, 2010). Thirdly, health care professionals are in a good position to contribute to the development of health system reforms and health care capacity (Kelly Brooks, 2010) Lastly, health care providers can improve our ability to care for patients by shaping policy of how care should be given and develop best case scenarios for improvement in life. (Kelly Brooks,
Healthcare systems are microcosms of the larger society in which they exist. Where there is structural violence or cultural violence in the larger society, so will there be evidence of systematic inequities in the institutions of these societies. The healthcare system in Australia is one example—from a plethora of similarly situated healthcare systems—in which the color of a patient’s skin or the race of his parents may determine the quality of medical received. Life expectancy and infant mortality rates are vastly different for non-Aboriginal, Aboriginal, and Torres Strait Islanders residing in Australia. The life expectancy of Aboriginal men is 21 years shorter than for non-Aboriginal men in Australia. For women, the difference is 19 years. The infant mortality rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander male infants is 6.8% and the infant mortality rate for female infants is 6.7%. For non-Aboriginal infants, the infant mortality rates are 1% for male infants and 0.8% for female infants. Further, the Aboriginal population is subject to a wide-range of diseases that do not exhibit comparatively high incidence rates in non-Aboriginal Australians.
Raphael, Dennis. Poverty in Canada: implications for health and quality of life. 2nd ed. Toronto: Canadian Scholars' Press Inc., 2011. Print.
Saggers, S., & Walter, M. (2007). Poverty and social class. In Bailie, Carson, Chanhall + Dunbar Social determinants of indigenous health. Crows Nest, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin.
... To provide Indigenous people with adequate health care, emphasis needs to be placed on understanding indigenous beliefs and the social detriments Indigenous communities are faced with. Applying a suitable model of health to each individual situation will provide the best outcome. This was evident in the case study discussed in the essay. Rodney’s experiences within the medical world ended with a positive and desirable result, but if the appropriate transcultural care was not given, that positive result would have created a negative outcome, which could have been detrimental to Rodney’s future health.
Health care inequality has long been customary in the United States. Those in lower classes have higher morbidity, higher mortality, higher infant mortality, and higher disability. Millions of low-income families and individuals have gone with out the care they need simply because they cannot afford it. Denial of benefits due to pre-existing conditions, outrageous deductibles, and unreasonable prescription prices are in large part why the low-income class suffers. In addition, not receiving preventative health care, lack of access to exercise equipment and lack of availability to fresh foods all create health problems that become to expensive to fix. Low-income families need to have better, more affordable access to health care, specifically preventative health care, and be more educated about the benefits of health care in order to narrow the gap of inequality. The new Affordable Care Act under the Obama administration expands heath care coverage to many low income families and individuals by lowering the eligibility requirements for Medicaid, although it is not mandatory for individual states to make this expansion for Medicaid coverage.(CITE) It also requires that preventative health care be included in coverage by insurance companies. So with all the benefits the expansion of Medicaid could offer, why would some states choose not to offer it?
However, Canada is working towards incremental equality when regarding this concept, which in turn, impacts reconciliation. The most universal outcomes of the physical environments of reserves are to do with substantial housing shortages and poor quality of existing homes. With the lack of affordable housing off reserves, there is overcrowding in First Nation communities, as well as homelessness for Aboriginals living in urban areas, (Reading & Wien, 2009, p.8). Homes that exist on reserves lack appropriate ventilation, which results in mold, which in turn can lead to severe asthma as well as allergies. Families on reserves do not have access to a fresh supermarket that carries nutritious foods because they live in a remote community. With this being said, health conditions may develop in Aboriginal peoples because of the lack of healthy, nutritious food. Canada is working towards equality within the physical environments as William F. Morneau (2016) describes, “Budget 2016 proposes to invest $8.4 billion over five years, beginning in 2016-17, to improve the socio-economic conditions of Indigenous peoples and their communities and bring about transformational change,” (“A Better Future for Indigenous Peoples,” 2016). All of these aspects play a key role in reaching reconciliation throughout
Health care inequities can be elucidated by the research that identifies the social, economic and political ideologies that reflect aspects of cultural safety (Crandon, 1986; O’Neil, 1989 as cited in Browne & Fiske, 2001). There are various factors that affect the mistreatment of aboriginal peoples as they access health care in local health care facilities such as hospitals and clinics. Aboriginal women face many barriers and are discriminated against as a result based on their visible minority status such as race, gender and class (Gerber, 1990; Dion Stout, 1996; Voyageur, 1996 as cited in Browne & Fiske, 2001). A study done on Aboriginal peoples in Northern B.C. showed high rates of unemployment, underemployment and dependency on social welfare monies (Browne & Fiske, 2001). This continued political economic marginalisation of aboriginal peoples widens the gap between the colonizers and the colonized. The existence of racial profiling of aboriginal peoples by “Indian status” often fuels more stigmatization of these people because other Canadians who do not see the benefits of compensations received with having this status often can be resentful in what they may perceive is another compensation to aboriginal peoples. The re...
Raphael, D. D. (2002). Poverty, Income Inequality and Health in Canada. CSJ Foundation for Research and Education, 1-32.
As we learned throughout the duration of the course through lecture, readings and discussions, Indigenous Canadians are faced with many determinants of health.
The goal within the United States government is to treat each individual as an equal citizen. Unfortunately, through the inadequate practice of public policies people have been treated unequal because of natural conditions and the countries social environment. In health policy, the two concepts that cause unequal treatment are health disparities and health differences. Health disparities are resulted from social factors that are avoidable and unjust. For example, saying ovarian cancer death rates are higher because men have better research on prostate cancer (Smith, 2016). “The extent and nature of health disparities changes over the life course” (Adler, 2008, p. 241). Health differences are inherently biological being completely natural and
It is often challenging to have health care services that meet the needs of Canada’s diverse population and the needs of both men and women. Gender influences access to care and women in particular are at risk for face difficulties to care (Ontario Women`s Health Equity Report, 2010 p.1). Women are more likely to be poor and have greater caregiver responsibilities in contrast to men. These both factors are barriers to accessing health services. The way the health care system is organized creates barriers to accessing effective care for women because it has failed to take into account that men and women use the health care system very differently. Canada’s health care system reinforces gender inequity rather than eliminating it. For instance, drug research bias favour males and epistemological bias assume that women’s health is only about reproductive health. As a result of these biases, women are often excluded and their health needs are not fully addressed. The Romanow Report (2002) and the Accord on Health Care Renewal (2003) has made a strong commitment to understanding the importance of the non-medical determinants of health, such as income and social status; employment; education; social environments; physical environments; healthy child development; personal health practices and coping skills; health services; social support networks; gender; and culture (Health Canada, 2001). They have also committed to gender based analysis and women’s health but, this is not visible in its work to date on Canada’s health care reform. This paper will address how the Romanow Report, the Accord on Health Care Renewal and current health policies have failed to address the health needs of women in regards to support for family ...
Bryant, Toba, Chad Leaver, and James Dunn. 2009. “Unmet healthcare need, gender, and health inequalities in Canada.” Health Policy 91(2009): 24-32.
Positive rights are rights that everyone is entitled to including: the right to a public education, access to public roads, and the right to health care. There are no guarantees when it comes to life, but having health insurance makes a huge difference with preventing, diagnosing, and treating diseases. Of course having insurance itself is a great resource to ensure medical care and containing costs, but not all insurance programs are created equal. Insurance programs have caveats, exclusions, varying co-payments, and access to certain doctors and hospitals, which creates an ethical dilemma. Receiving the best care is subjective in most cases, but with money you can buy almost anything, including the best care. Although those living in poverty are given access to healthcare, that does not mean they receive the best or equal care as those who are wealthy.
Primary health care is the indispensable care based on the real – world, systematically sound, socially adequate technique and technology which made unanimously available to the families and every individuals in the community through their fully involvement where the community is capable to afford at a cost to uphold at every phase of their growth in the essence of self-reliance and self-government. Primary health care in international health is associated with the global conference held at Alma Ata in 1978; the conference that promoted the initiative health for all by the year 2000. “Primary health care defined broadly at Alma Ata emphasized universal health care across to all individuals and families , encouraged participation by community members in all aspects of health care planning and implementation and promoted the delivery of care that would be scientifically sound , technically effective , socially relevant and acceptable” (Janice E.Hitchcock,2003). Primary health care is commonly viewed as a level of care or as the entry point to the health care system for its client. It can also taken to mean a particular approach to care which is concerned with containing care, accessibility, community involvement and collaboration between other sectors. The primary health care policy has some principals that have been designed to work together and be implemented simultaneously to bring about a better health outcome for the entire society.
This report is based on the major and specific global health problems in the world. Global health refers to the health of all people in the world which concerns about the health issues that go beyond the borders of each country due to the globalization ( Dyar & Costa, 2013). As well as health issues are referred to the health problems created due to this globalization.