Social Determinants of Health and Phenomenology to Practice

Another U.S. study found that low availability of emotional support and low social participation were associated with all-cause mortality.

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:

“Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people have a greater amount of disadvantage and significantly more health problems than the non-Aboriginal & Torres strait Islander population in Australia”

“The social determinants of health 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” (World Health Organisation (WHO), 2009). The social determinants of health can be divided into 5 categories, age, sex and hereditary factors, individual lifestyle factors, social and community networks, living and working conditions and general socioeconomic, cultural and

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.

There is growing research into what has become known as the social determinants of health; the central claim arising from this research is that “various social factors have a strong influence on population health and on inequalities in health outcomes across social groups”. (Preda & Voigt, 2015) Social determinants of health are conditions in the environments in which people are born, live, learn, work, play, worship, and age that affect a wide range of health, functioning, and quality of life outcomes and risks. Conditions such as social, economic, and physical in various environments and settings such as school, church, work, or neighborhood have been referred to as “place”. (HP 2020) According to Healthy People 2020 (2016) understanding the relationship between how population groups experience “place” and the impact of “place” on health is fundamental to the social determinants of health. Healthy People 2020 (2016) have developed an approach to social determinants by organizing a “place-based” framework, reflecting five key areas of social determinants of health. Each of these five determinant areas, economic stability, education, social and community context, health and healthcare, neighborhood and built environment; reflects a number of critical components that make up the underlying factors in the arena of social determinants of health. Differences in social, economic, and environmental circumstances lead to health inequalities that are socially produced and therefore

emphasis was on relationships to family, group and country rather than the development of an

M2 Use different sociological perspectives to discuss patterns and trends of health and illness in two different social groups.

these issues though those might be temporary. A final solution will have to be a national policy change in immigration, however, until then we could pursue some international options to aid undocumented immigrants in the United States.

St. Paul's L'Amoreaux Centre provides programs and services for older adults from all backgrounds. Most of these clients have children living nearby or in the GTA area. The clients at SPLC are all independent and can live on their own. Some of the important determinants of health that are relevant to this client group is income and social status, social support networks, education and literacy, social and physical environments, personal health practices, coping skills, biology and genetic endowment, health services, gender, and culture. All these social determinants of health will affect each individual in a different way, so as a nursing student we have to pay attention to how one determinant of health may be a concern for one specific client.

The sociological approach to health and illness focuses on the social determinants of health and how this affects the health of society. It explores where we are on the socio-economic ladder and how this determines access to healthy food, a healthy lifestyle, education, income, accommodation, healthcare, transportation and good working conditions. This approach considers culture, the behaviour of individuals and the social structures we live in, with a belief that when treating health and illness if all these areas are considered and changes are made in conjunction with modern medicine then the health of society will be improved. “If the major determinants of health are social, so must be the remedies. Treating existing disease is urgent and will always receive high priority but should not be to the exclusion of taking action on the underlying social determinants of health” (Marmot, 2005: 1103).

Social determinants of health are social, economic and physical factors that affect the health of individuals in any given population. There are fourteen social determinants of health but Income is perhaps the most important of these because it shapes living conditions, influences health related behaviors, and determines food security. In Canada, people with lower incomes are more susceptible to disease/ conditions, higher mortality rate, decreased life expectancy and poorer perceived health than people with high incomes. In numerous Canadian studies and reports, there has been more emphasis on health being based on an individual’s characteristics, choices and behaviours, rather than the role that income plays as a social determinant of health. Although Canada has one of the highest income economies in the world and is comprised of a free health care system, many low income families are a burden on the system because of the physical and mental health issues influenced by income insecurity. Low income individuals are heavier users of health care services because they have lower levels of health and more health problems than do people with higher incomes. This essay will address income as a social determinant of health in three key sections: what is known on the issue, why the issue is important and how can health and public policies address the issue. The main theme that runs through the essay is the income related health inequalities among low income groups compared to

A communicable disease chain is the mechanism by which an infective agent or pathogen is transmitted. The chain requires an infective agent, a source of infection, a mode of transmission and a host. An example of an infective agent could be bacteria, a virus, fungus, protozoan or helminth. The source of infective agents can be transmission from host to host, an infected human or animal, insects, soil or livestock. The mode of transmission is how the infective agent is carried from host to host. Transmission can be by air, ingestion or physical contact. To complete a life cycle or to replicate, the infective agent requires a host.

In the last few years, nurses and other healthcare professionals (HCPs) are under the spotlight of the media and the public due to issues addressed in documents such as The Francis Report (2010). This is good in a sense though as it gives us the opportunity to better ourselves as HCPs and improve the standard of care for everyone. It is now a widely known idea that there are many different factors that affect our health and wellbeing not just biological factors as believed to be the case not very long ago when a biological view was taken when addressing a person's health. However, this has all changed for the better where now healthcare is individualised, holistic and takes in to account the individuals own circumstances i.e. the social determinants of health and wellbeing (social determinants), not a simple one size fits all approach. This essay is going to discuss some of these factors so that we can learn to reduce these inequalities in healthcare and make great healthcare more accessible to everyone. The factors that will be discussed are individual lifestyle choices, housing conditions and .

Small bowel obstruction (SBO) is a blockage that keeps food or liquid from passing through the small intestine or large intestine. It can be partial or complete. This disorder is very irritable and causes many discomforts like abdominal cramping, fever, “Abdominal pain, abdominal distention, nausea, and vomiting are the usual signs and symptoms of SBO” (Barzegari, et al. 2016, p. 201). According to Buttaro et al. (2013), the three differential diagnoses that can be included with this disorder are ischemic colitis, paralytic ileus, and gastroenteritis. Bowel obstruction occurs when the normal flow of intraluminal contents is interrupted. According to Bordeianou, et al. (2016), the pathology that causes the obstruction may be external to the