The Five Social Determinants Of Health

Why are higher income and social status associated with better health? If it were just a matter of the poorest and lowest status groups having poor health, the explanation could be things like poor living conditions. But the effect occurs all across the socio-economic spectrum. Considerable research indicates that the degree of control people have over life circumstances,

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:

“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

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

Social Determinants of Health are conditions such as living conditions or environments one has experienced while living their life and how that affects one’s health (Mikkonen, J., & Raphael, D., 2010). In this case study of Norma James presented above, the three Social Determinants of Health (DOH) relevant to this case study are Income and Income Distribution, Health Services and Social Safety Net. The following of the paper will discuss the three DOH’s relevant to Mrs. James and how they are affecting her.

Social determinants can strengthen or undermine the health of individuals and communities (Wilkinson & Marmot 2003). For example, in general, people from poorer social or economic circumstances are at greater risk of poor health than people who are more advantaged.

Of all social determinants of health, we can agree that the most insidious and universal might be poverty because this economic factor influence health in several ways, and it can be both physically and mentally damaging. Poverty affects every aspect of our lives; it determines the distribution of resources; the food we can afford, the access and ability to health care, the level

Interestingly there is a large number of people that are not in the proper state of health. The purpose of using social determinants is to create the optimal social/physical environment that will contribute and allow individuals to enjoy a healthier lifestyle, and thus become healthier. ("Social Determinants of Health - Healthy People", n.d., p. 01) The Five key areas that are addressed in the social determinants of health are: Economic Stability, Education, Social and Community Context, Health and Health Care, and Neighborhood and Built Environment. Even though these five determinants of health are different, they are all oriented towards the common objective to better the environment and living conditions so people are empowered and supported in making healthier lifestyle choices and develop the habits that will support these choices. ("Social Determinants of Health - Healthy People", n.d., p. 3)

The social determinants of health can be defined as social and economic conditions in a population that have different effects on the individual and groups levels on health status. They are factors that promote health in an individual`s working and living condition like wealth rather than individual factors like genetics. In this paper, social determinants approaching mental diseases such as depression and as a health issue are addressed. The social determinates that will be discussed is income inequality, discrimination and finally Chronic stress. Depression is timeframe of several weeks whereby an individual has a lot of unhappiness or low morale. In this period, that individual may commit suicide or cause a self-inflicted injury. From the determinant social perspective, this illness is seen to result from

Social determinants of health — examples include gender, socioeconomic status, employment status, educational attainment, food security status, and availability of housing and transportation, colonization and health system access and quality,

 SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH  MUHAMMAD AZIZ  BENEDICTINE MPH STUDENT  SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH Definition: We can define the social determinants of the health as “”These are the circumstances which deal with the daily living conditions of the individuals in a community. In other words these describe in which people are born, live, grow, work and age.

Another challenge is addressing equity in the social determinants of health. Income shapes medical care, housing options, nutrition, physical activity, neighborhood conditions and stress (Braveman, 2012). Education is another important social determinant, which affects higher-income attainment, knowledge on health, literacy problems, problem-solving and coping skills (Braveman, 2012).

The Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) look at the different aspects of “sociodemographic, educational, cognitive, psychological, cultural and behavioral variables” (Meyers et al., 2014, p. 4) that lead to the many health disparities we see in individuals and communities. Income is the most dominant SDOH, as it influences “overall living conditions, affects psychological functioning, and influences health-related behaviours such as quality of diet, extent of physical activity, tobacco use, and excessive alcohol use” (Mikkonen & Raphael, 2010, p.12). Individuals with HF who have a higher income are able to more easily access health care services, as well as achieve “adherence to treatment and better food intake that ultimately increases the

"It has many causes and it is very common at any time, whatever the economic situation. One of the well-known risk factors for depression is unemployment," he explained.

The key strength of Fundamental cause theory is its emphasis on how the resources available to individuals that influence health are patterned by particular social conditions, and how this social patterning causes health outcomes. The authors are arguing that social conditions cause, rather than merely contribute, to health and mortality. The authors are arguing that risk factors associated with a particular social condition—health behaviors, neighborhood environment, health-related knowledge, access and utilization of health services and the like—are the symptoms of particular social contexts. If we want to address how particular social conditions cause health outcomes, we need to address said social conditions.