Analyzing a Current Health Care Issue – Health Inequality/Disparity

Posted: January 4th, 2023

Analyzing a Current Health Care Issue – Health Inequality/Disparity

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Analyzing a Current Health Care Issue – Health Inequality/Disparity

Although the term disparity is usually applied to refer to ethnic or racial differences, many aspects of disparity exist in the U.S. and other parts of the world, especially in health (Purtle et al., 2018). If health outcomes are perceived to a greater or lesser extent between different groups of people, it is possible to experience disparity. Information by HealthyPeople show that sex, ethnicity or race, age, sexual identity, socioeconomic status, geographic location, and disability all lead to an individual’s capacity to receive good health. It is imperative to identify the repercussions that social determinants have on healthcare delivery and outcomes of particular populations and take appropriate measures to deal with the concern.

Elements of the Problem

Over the years, efforts to eliminate discrepancies and attain health equity have largely paid attention on illnesses and health care delivery. The Community Health Organizations (CHO) and Adult Basic Education (ABE) have partnered to look into the issue of health inequality among groups with limited capability to speak English (Marcia et al., 2019). Thus, the activities by the partners indicate that improving the level of literacy among vulnerable groups may improve their chances of accessing health care. Providing necessary training on why everyone has the right to healthcare may help to lessen the disparity. The other issue that contributes to health disparity is lack of adequate awareness among caregivers on how to deal with transgender patients (McDowell & Bower, 2016). Thus, it may be necessary to train the caregivers on the most effective ways to reduce the discrepancy. Consequently, members of the population find it difficult to access health care resulting in considerable disparities. Moreover, lack of effective policies may result in racial stereotypes when offering care, resulting in considerable constraints in how some individuals reach the vital services. Other factors that contribute to health disparities in the U.S. according to Baciu et al. (2017) include, community-wide complications such as unemployment, poor housing, poverty, depreciating neighborhoods, improper public transport, and interpersonal violence also contribute to the health disparities. Baciu et al. (2017) add that the past and present interplay of laws, policies, norms, and structures that influence lives also magnify the effects of health inequalities. It is appropriate to develop mitigation measures that would address the matter to avoid the adverse effects that come with the imbalance.  

Analysis

It is important as a medical practitioner to understand many issues regarding health disparity to be in a position to take effective remedies. One should understand the possible implications of the problem and identify the groups that are likely to suffer the most. For instance, they need to understand that inequities result in higher rates of serious ailments among the segregated groups, and may cause higher rates of premature death (Baciu et al., 2017). The alienated population may also experience considerable challenge in accessing quality health. For instance, at least 13.7% of African Americans have reported having poor or fair health compared with the 8% of non-Hispanic white (Baciu et al., 2017). Similarly, 80% of African Americans women live with obesity compared to the 65% of non-Hispanic white women (Baciu et al., 2017). Therefore, interveners should develop proper plans that would guide them through the intervention process to handle the matter effectively.

Context for Patient Safety Issues

People usually take advantage or may be disadvantaged because of their individual feature, which could influence how they reach out for health care. Furthermore, practitioners may fail to give adequate attention to particular patients because of their distinguishing factors, such as sex, gender, or race (Mota, Atkin, Trad & Dias, 2017). However, it is such restrains that deter people from overcoming the restrictions that deter them from seeing each other as equal partners. Besides, some health facilities lack adequate measures to ensure that patients receive the necessary care they require when they seek help. Therefore, it is imperative to overcome these restraining factors and adopt a new perspective that would offer equal opportunity for everyone.

Populations Affected

The highly affected groups in this case are those who face social discrimination because of their status. For example, people from racial minority groups are likely to experience segregation in accessing health services, in the same manner transgender people may find it hard to access care (Mota, Atkin, Trad & Dias, 2017). Besides, individuals with low education may find it difficult to access care because they might not know the appropriate steps to follow when reaching out for health care. In addition, those who lack health cover are at a higher risk of failing to get the relevant health services, which calls on relevant groups to take adequate measures to include such people in receiving care (Mota, Atkin, Trad & Dias, 2017). Segregating these groups in offering care results in a scenario where only some people get appropriate care while others lack these vital services (Mota, Atkin, Trad & Dias, 2017). It calls on relevant stakeholders to consider possible solutions that would address the concern.

Possible Options

The interveners should consider the possible remedies that can help to deal with the inequality in access to health care. One of the possible remedies is to educate members of the public about the need to avoid factors that make them look different from each other. The other possible solution would be to introduce better policies on ending health disparities, and to refine the one that already exist.

Solution

The best solution would be to create policies that advocate for equal access to care, and to ensure implementation of these regulations. Even though it possible to increase access to care through public awareness, especially by reaching out to the highly vulnerable populations, that might not work out in areas that are difficult to access (Purtle et al., 2018). Furthermore, people many people already understand the need offer or receive medical care without any form of segregation but because of the existing dominating social effects such as racial and gender affiliation, it is still difficult in many scenarios to provide equal care and attention (Marcia et al., 2019). The most suitable option, therefore, would be put more focus on policies that advocate for equal access to healthcare because it is possible to apply these regulations across the country or over a wide region. The other possible remedy would be train medical workers the importance of offering care to everyone without considering their differences. McDowell and Bower (2016) identify lack of adequate awareness among caregivers as one of the major obstacles in providing equal care, and are confident that empowering the health workers may help to address the issue. The third possible solution would be to develop more health facilities such that people find it easier to access health services (Purtle et al., 2018). The government should target the interior regions and places that lack such vital facilities to improve how individuals get medical attention (Purtle et al., 2018). Thus, interveners and other stakeholders should consider these remedies that have the potential to change how people access health services.

It is also possible to apply some of the programs introduced to address the issue of health disparity. A good example is the Healthy People 2020 (HP2020) program that the Department of Health and Human Services started in 2010. The initiative provides possible remedies to the problem because it aspires to achieve high-quality and longer lives for everyone (Hesse et al., 2014). It also aspires to end all forms of health inequity, and to establish physical and social environments that encourage good health for everyone (Hesse et al., 2014). However, failing to take any measure to address the matter could result in significant constraints because many people will continue to lack the essential health services anyone might require. Only those who are advantaged in one way or the other will reach the service while those who lack particular resources or features will continue to face alienation.  

Implementation

Implementing the option would require different stakeholders to play essential functions that would result in the desired outcome. Various teams will examine the existing policies and identify the gaps that require more attention. Implementers will perform the exploration phase by finding possible ways of advancing policy formation and execution, before proceeding to the installation phase, which entails familiarizing people with the new changes and the benefits of adhering to them. Administrators and policy makers should dispatch officers to various regions to ensure that practitioners and members of the public are aware of the changes and act as directed therein (Purtle et al., 2018). The implementers may have to make some necessary modifications on the developed regulations to identify whether it is necessary to make further adjustments. Otherwise, it may be appropriate to expand each phase and reach for the best results.

Ethical Implications

Developing policies that advocate for equal access to health is ethical and would send a positive image to the highly vulnerable groups. Refining the policies so that it is possible for everyone to access care without reference to their status is in line with the utilitarian theory of ethics, which implies that a good action is one that yields the best results for everyone (Kemparaj & Kadalur, 2018). Moreover, working towards offering healthcare to everyone helps to promote justice, which suggests that an element of fairness should exist when making medical decisions and offering care (Kemparaj & Kadalur, 2018). Striving to offer care to everyone promotes justice because it provides the opportunity to make decisions that influence most people (Kemparaj & Kadalur, 2018). Forming these regulations should focus on achieving autonomy such that patients are able to make decisions on the health practices that suit their needs, and should emphasize on achieving beneficence such that nurses conduct their operations while seeking to promote good (Kemparaj & Kadalur, 2018). In addition, the policies must encourage nurses to practice non-maleficence while offering care to all patients by not causing any harm deliberately (Kemparaj & Kadalur, 2018), such as secluding them from health care. Developing polices and ensuring that all health practitioners adhere to them is likely to represent the interests of most people because legislations often have effect on the entire state or country.

Conclusion

The study illustrates the significance of developing better policies that would ensure that every person get unregulated access to health care regardless of their distinctive features. The report describes how such seclusions deny many people reach to the vital services, which put them in more threat. It is essential to overcome the notion that some people or particular groups deserve better health serves than others because this could propel the situation where vulnerable groups continue to suffer yet they can have the chance to attain medication in the same way as others. The process requires the relevant teams to abide by effective implementation techniques to achieve the desired outcomes because the approach is ethical and wants the best for everyone.

References

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McDowell, A., & Bower, K.M. (2016).  Transgender health care for nurses: An innovative

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