This essay will discuss ways in which a person’s socioeconomic class and his/her social situation can have an impact on his/her health, using examples. We believe that there is a direct link between socioeconomic/social class and health (Adler et al. 1994). I will be defining the key terms: socioeconomic and health, social class then proceed to discuss about how poverty, income, employability, environment and housing can impact on a person’s social situation and their health.
Socioeconomic status is a term used to weigh up a person’s/family social and economic standing. This status is determined by factors such as income, education, occupation and social environment (Leary, 2007). A person’s socioeconomic status can fluctuate over time depending on the person improving their life choices or by making poor life choices.
The World Health Organisation defined health: “State of complete physical and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity” (WHO, 1946 p.100). Many factors influence health such as family traits, behaviours, access to quality healthcare and environment (quality of air, bad/good water and housing conditions) (WHO, 1946). The holistic view of health combines the mind (mental), body (physical), emotional and spiritual elements to a person (Ewes & Simnett, 2003).
British society is split into hierarchical categories with “higher” “middle” and “lower working” class. The British class structure is shaped like a pyramid cut into three
The definition of socioeconomic status; The social standing or class of an individual or group. It is often measured as a combination of education, income, and occupation. (American Psychological Association.) I’m going to compare and contrast the education, occupation, income and poverty during the 1900’s and compare that these things in today’s world. Some things were better back then and some things are better now. I will also be comparing the poverty rates from the 1900’s to the 2000’s.
For a variety of reasons, it is easier for the monied classes to access quality health care when needed and, in general, lead healthier lifestyles. People of higher socioeconomic groups have been shown to live longer (Scrambler, 2012). Beginning with higher infant mortality rates, lower socioeconomic groups often face a lifetime of challenges to good health and longevity.
It is well documented that lower socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with worse health among adults(Adler, Boyce, Chesney, Folkman, & Syme, n.d.) and adolescents.(Finkelstein, Kubzansky, & Goodman, 2006; Goodman, 1999; Starfield B, Riley AW, Witt WP, Robertson, 2002) Objective measures of SES such as level of education, income, and occupation are the most common methodology used in health literature to describe socioeconomic-based health disparities.(Shavers VL, 2007) However, subjective social status (SSS) is also a relevant predictor of health, independent of SES. (Adler NE, Epel ES, Castellazzo G, & Ickovics, 2000; Aneshensel CS, Sucoff, 1996) Indeed, there is a small but growing body of literature about people’s perceptions of
Growing up in a refugee settlement and later in a low-income immigrant family with limited access to healthcare, I understand the importance of addressing the socioeconomic disparities in health. Whether it is organizing workshops on hygiene for Tibetan refugees in rural India or providing HIV testing and counseling to the local Asian LGBT community in the Twin Cities, I am driven to improve the health of vulnerable populations. In addition to the excellent medical education and early clinical exposure, what really draws me to Geisel School of Medicine is the Urban Health Scholars Program (UHS). As an Urban Health scholar, I look forward to exploring the intersection of race, refugee or immigrant status, LGBT identity and health. Given my strong
Health can be defined in many different ways, for example, the Bio-Medical model of health believes health to be the absence of pain, biological abnormalities and diseases. Whereas most Socio-medical models of health such as the World Health Organisation consider health to involve a range of different factors such as environment, social life and mental wellbeing alongside the more recognised factors of health e.g. pain and sickness. From a personal perspective, health should cover all aspects, whether it is social, environmental, psychological and physical. All of these aspects are important aspects to a person’s wellbeing. (Taylor & field 2003)
Social influences and class structure affect people’s health. People who live in poverty and are at the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder have worse health than those who have more money. In essence, inequality in society is making people sick. For example, the United States is a country that has very wealthy people along with a staggering amount of poor individuals, yet it is one of the richest countries in the world. It is clear that there is a widening gap of inequality in America, and according to the film Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making Us Sick? (2008), the United States spends $2 trillion per year on medical care, but American citizens live shorter, sicker lives than most industrialized countries. But how is this possible?
Assessing communities by Wards have been articulated through a set of constructs, referred to as social determinants of health. Social determinants of health consider how neighborhood and social conditions collectively impact outcomes on individual and community levels. Access to health protective resources like clean air and water, healthy food, recreational areas, high quality education, employment wages, and decent housing have an impact on the health of individuals living in the community. Therefore, if good health is not shared equally in Ward 2 by Jacksonians, then understanding these factors that contribute to health and differences in health status is essential to identifying and implementing solutions to this challenge. Disparities
According to About.com (Elizabeth Boskey, 2014), socioeconomic status is defined as a arrangement of elements including income, level of education, and occupation. It is a way of looking at how individuals or families fit into society using economic and social measures that have been shown to influence individuals ' health and well-being. Socioeconomic status is broken into three categories: high, middle, and low social economic status. These three categories are used to describe the three areas a family or an individual may fall into. When placing a family or individual into one of these categories, these three variables, income, education, and occupation, are usually evaluated. Socioeconomic status and health are closely related, and socioeconomic status typically have significant effects on a person 's health due to differences in ability to access health care as well as dietary and other lifestyle choices that are associated with both finances and education.
The definition of social determinant of health defined as a condition one are born, live, work or grow in. These factors are shaped by the distribution of money, and resources at global, national, and local level. So with that I do believe that access to health care is a social determinant of health. Even with all the new advance technology and medication that make our lives healthier, or live a longer life, many women who do not receive healthcare because of their lack of education, employment, or other factors that lead them to be uninsured. President Obama new Affordable Care Act will help the uninsured get insurance. The only down fall from the Affordable Care Act is that it will take between now until 2020 to take full effect. With no
Social class have a significant impact on the health of individuals and the ability to obtain sticking to health services, nutrition, and life expectancy. Despite the fact that the demographics of other factors play a significant role on the health of individuals but social class is the greater factor that affects the health and access to health care.
Socioeconomic status is a major determinate of health even more than race or gender. (Umberson 150) For example, when the middle class families have to work two jobs and living in a community that not safe would decrease the risk of illness. The biological reaction is a stress and this is happening “when we feel threatened or do not have control in our lives” ( 24) When individual have chronical stress all the time as the one in the people in the poor communities, the high risk of illness would be dangerous. “The accumulation of stressors or the
The socioeconomic status is a social class of individuals or a groups, they are measured by education, income, and occupations. A small town in Maine wants to show off that we have hard working individuals and families and that we want to protect the community from bringing
The American Medical Association (AMA) approximates that at least 25 cents of every dollar spent on health care in the U.S. is allocated to the management of diseases or debilities that stem from personal behaviors that can be changed by the individual (Andre et al)1. To what extent are people responsible for their own personal conduct and poor health decisions that result in serious, yet avoidable illnesses and disabilities? Will charging people higher health insurance premiums help curb poor health habits?
Nicholas C. Arpey, Anne H. Gaglioti, and Marcy E. Rosenbaum, three interesting authors, claim a person's socioeconomic affects their health outcomes and the health care they recieve and that more people should be aware of this problem. The authors claim that people of lower SES are more likely to have worse self-reported health, lower life expectancy, and suffer from more chronic conditions when compared with those of higher SES. Few studies have investigated whether patients of low SES are aware of the attitudes and practices physicians have been shown to have when caring for low SES patients, in order to show how such perceptions affect the way low SES patients interact with the health care system and their providers. The author’s seem like
This essay will be discussing the extent to which social class and poverty affects health and illness. Firstly, what is social class? Each person’s perception of social class can be different; is social class defined by a person’s accent, the area they live in, or something as simple as their income? Project Britain describes social class as “The grouping of people by occupations and lifestyle”. (Cress, 2014). To find social class Sociologists group people according to common factors, they compare people and various criteria can be conveniently used to place people in social groups or classes. Next we ask the question what determines a person’s health, the NHS defines health as “Physical and mental, it is the absence of disease”. (NHS 2017).