Social Determinants Of Health Essay

As stated by the World Health Organization (WHO), ‘health’ is defined as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” (WHO, 1948). The health and wellbeing of individuals is generally determined by their circumstances and environment, a phenomenon referred to as the social determinants of health. WHO describes the social determinants of health as:

Communities are sometimes largely unaware that social factors rather than medical ones, such as income, and employment status, shape our health. Our health is also determined by the health and social services we receive, and our ability to attain high education levels, food and safe housing, among other factors.

According to the dictionary, the word health is “the state of being free from illness.” At a first glance, this defination seems to be very direct and simple, however the meaning of the word ‘health’ nowadays is much more complex. The above definition pretty much sums up our view of health in the first half of the 20th century.

Health as a whole is determined by the quality of life, as well as an individuals’ ability to create personal positive social and physical environments. These environments include homes, schools, workplaces and the community as a whole. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO, 2003), the social determinants of health are conditions in which people live, work, and grow, where these factors are influenced by money, power and available resources. There are five main aspects of social determinants: economic stability, social/community health, general health, education, and the surrounding built environment, where each determinant refers to multiple key issues. These determinants commonly affect health, the functioning of people, their quality of life, as well as social, economic and physical risks. Examples of social determinants include:

Health is a concept that relates to and describes a person's state of being. It is highly subjective as good health means different things to different people, and its meaning varies according to individual and community expectations and contexts. In this paper the definition of health, care and wellbeing is looked from an Aboriginal perspective taking into account the history of Aboriginal health and contemporary issues in health and wellbeing of Aboriginal communities.

The determinants of health are economic and social conditions that affect people’s health status. These influence the living and working conditions that impacts people’s everyday living condition. Factors such as the place and the environment we live in, genetics, educational level or work status and income, as well as friends and family are some of the aspects that affects our health condition. On the other hand, the people that have an access to good health care and have financial stability are less susceptible and are often less affected. (NANB, 2009)

The relationship between the determinants of health and health outcomes had been thoroughly studied. In policies or programs to reduce and prevent health disparities, factors that contribute to the rise in trends are called the determinants of social health. It is equally important to recognize that childhood is an important time in which interventions can have a significant impact on health outcomes throughout life. (Dubiel et al, 2010)

The social determinants of health are the circumstances that impact and surround people, since are born, grow, work, live, and age, education, income, race and gender, and the broader set of powers and systems that shaping the circumstances of daily life. It is important because it impacts all aspect of daily life of people, and it caused direct and indirect health problems.

Social determinants are regarded as the life you were born in i.e. your ethnicity, age ,gender etc. this also links to the determinant factors i.e. environment, economic, social status and lifestyle (REFERENCE) Social determinant of health strongly impact on the health outcome of individuals Many health researchers regard social position as the fundamental cause of health (REFERENCE). Social determinant can influence the care and support each individual received in order to manage their diabetes. Living in a deprived area where there is no availability of community based resources, ‘men and women of working age in the most deprived population groups are twice as likely to die prematurely as those who are relatively affluent;’(Inequality in Health and Social care use 2003) therefore you have to access healthcare services outside the area, this can stop individuals from seeking treatment as they might not have bus fare or access to a private car.(Reference).The impact of austerity cuts also impact on individuals of the

According to the 2010 U.S. Census, approximately 36 percent of the population belongs to a racial or ethnic minority group. They suffer higher rates of chronic illness

Every Community faces a variety of community health problems. The health of a community relies on four factors: physical, social and culture, community organization and individual behaviors. I believe my hometown struggles most with individual behavior, specifically poor and unhealthy lifestyle decisions. How individual community members behave reflects back onto the community as a whole. Unhealthy lifestyle decisions can have a lifetime affect on the individual as well as the community.

The range of personal, social, economic, and environmental factors that influence health status are known as determinants of health. Social determinants of health reflect the social factors and physical conditions of the environment in which people are born, live, learn, play, work, and age. According to Florida Public Health, Heart disease was the second leading cause of death in 2012, accounting for41, 643 deaths. The heart disease age-adjusted death rate per 100,000 populations decreased between 1990 and 2012 from 286.5 to 155.3. Heart disease was the leading cause of death among individuals 85 years or older, accounting for 30.0percent of deaths in this age group.

Acting in different levels, from micro to macro, those determinants have effect in a complex interplay of a multidirectional flow between the individual and the social scope. They are normally and roughly grouped into categories, such as individual factors interpersonal factors, institutional and community environments, broader social, economic and political influences. That concept allows explain why some people and groups are at higher risk for develop some diseases instead of others, and that is a very important key for a better understanding of its prevalence and to design more effective prevention strategies.

An array of factors like personal, social, economic, and environment issues influence and determines the health of individual and population, acting in various combination (Knickman & Kovner, 2015). These determinants of health, known as population health determinants generally include genetics, access to health care, individual behavior, social determinant, physical environment (Knickman & Kovner, 2015).

Understanding social factors in health has become a central issue recently and a large number of studies has been dedicated in this regard. Social factors are phenomena seen in the interaction between individuals and social groups. In this essay, the importance of understanding such factors and their influence on health are addressed by studying socioeconomic status. Studies results are incorporated to explain health inequalities that arise from socioeconomic status and possible explanations including the material and structural, social selection, cultural and historical explanations cited in the literature are briefly discussed.