Poor people are more likely to have several kinds of family problems, including divorce and family conflict. Poor people are more likely to have several kinds of health problems. Children growing up in poverty are less likely to graduate high school or go to college, and they are more likely to commit street crime.

Poverty has negative impacts on children’s health, social, emotional and cognitive development, behaviour and educational outcomes. Children born into poverty are more likely to experience a wide range of health problems, including poor nutrition, chronic disease and mental health problems.

Restrictive benefits and insecure work But there are also significant mental health implications, including increases in stress, anxiety and even suicide rates as a result of some welfare reforms. People in poverty are also more likely to experience insecure work – for example, zero-hours contracts.

Poverty and low-income status are associated with a variety of adverse health outcomes, including shorter life expectancy, higher rates of infant mortality, and higher death rates for the 14 leading causes of death.

Some populations can have higher rates of cancer, for example, while others might be more likely to be obese or use tobacco. These differences in health or medical conditions are called health disparities, and they can have a profound impact on the public health of a community.

Health disparities adversely affect groups of people who have systematically experienced greater obstacles to health based on their racial or ethnic group; religion; socioeconomic status; gender; age; mental health; cognitive, sensory, or physical disability; sexual orientation or gender identity; geographic location; …

Many providers identified health care system factors that lead to disparities, such as lacking a diverse workforce, lack of interpreters, poor access to care, time constraints, and systematic factors that lead to differences in quality of care delivered (such as differences between public and private hospitals).

ADDRESSING HEALTH CARE DISPARITIES

1. Raising public and provider awareness of racial/ethnic disparities in care;
2. Expanding health insurance coverage;
3. Improving the capacity and number of providers in underserved communities; and.
4. Increasing the knowledge base on causes and interventions to reduce disparities.

In the literal sense, disparity merely implies a “difference” or a “lack of parity” of some kind [1]. Inequity, on the other hand, implies “a state of being unfair”[1]. In the context of health care, these two concepts may have distinct implications for practice and policy.

Health disparities are preventable differences in the burden of disease, injury, violence, or opportunities to achieve optimal health that are experienced by socially disadvantaged populations.

What causes health disparities?…

• Healthcare access –.
• Socioeconomic status–> lower income, unemployment – affects insurance.
• Unhealthy behaviors –> more likely to smoke, use alcohol, be overweight, physical inactive and have poor access to health foods (also related to community/environment)

Health inequalities go against the principles of social justice because they are avoidable. They do not occur randomly or by chance. They are socially determined by circumstances largely beyond an individual’s control. These circumstances disadvantage people and limit their chance to live longer, healthier lives.

Health equity means that everyone has a fair and just opportunity to be healthy. This requires removing obstacles to health such as poverty, discrimination, and their consequences, including powerlessness and lack of access to good jobs with fair pay, quality education and housing, safe environments, and health care.

Health disparities are preventable differences in the burden of disease, injury, violence, or in opportunities to achieve optimal health experienced by socially disadvantaged racial, ethnic, and other population groups, and communities. Health disparities exist in all age groups, including older adults.

One of the most powerful things nurses can do to reduce health disparities is to advocate for their patients. This may include advocating for patient rights, appropriate resources, interpreters, distress screening or even cultural-competence training in your workplace.

Socioeconomic status is a fundamental cause of health disparities because SES embodies an array of flexible resources, such as money, knowledge, prestige, power, and beneficial social connections that protect health no matter what the major predisposing factors of morbidity and mortality are at any given time (Link & …

In understanding the difference between health and wellness, in short, health is a state of being, whereas wellness is the state of living a healthy lifestyle (3). Health refers to physical, mental, and social well-being; wellness aims to enhance well-being.

SES and race are considered social determinants of health because different SES and racial groups have different health outcomes and health behavior patterns. Low SES is associated with more smoking, less physical activity, and poorer diets.

The social determinants of health (SDH) are the non-medical factors that influence health outcomes. They are the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, and age, and the wider set of forces and systems shaping the conditions of daily life.

In 2003, the World Health Organization Europe suggested that the social determinants of health included socioeconomic position, early life, social exclusion, work, unemployment, social support, addiction, food and transportation (Wilkinson & Marmot eds. 2003).

Healthy People 2020 organizes the social determinants of health around five key domains: (1) Economic Stability, (2) Education, (3) Health and Health Care, (4) Neighborhood and Built Environment, and (5) Social and Community Context.

The World Health Organization has identified 10 social determinants of health:

• the social gradient.
• stress.
• early life.
• social exclusion.
• work.
• unemployment.
• social support.
• addiction.

Social determinants of health include aspects of the social environment (e.g., discrimination, income, education level, marital status), the physical environment (e.g., place of residence, crowding conditions, built environment [i.e., buildings, spaces, transportation systems, and products that are created or modified …

The social determinants of health influence the health of populations. They include income and social status; social support networks; education; employment/working conditions; social environments; physical environments; personal health practices and coping skills; healthy child development; gender; and culture.

What can be done at the community level?

1. Partnerships with community groups, public health and local leaders.
2. Using clinical experience and research evidence to advocate for social change.
3. Getting involved in community needs assessment and health planning.
4. Community engagement, empowerment and changing social norms.

Social determinants of health such as poverty, unequal access to health care, lack of education, stigma, and racism are underlying, contributing factors of health inequities. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is committed to achieving improvements in people’s lives by reducing health inequities.