Social Class And Health Inequality Essay

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Since the end of World War II and the creation of the National Health Service (NHS) in 1948, Britain has experienced numerous improvements in the medical sector. Among these advances are the pre and postnatal management, development of vaccines, tests, treatments, drugs and machines. These developments have allowed life expectancy to increase from 66 to 78.8 and 70 to 82.8 for males and females respectively from 1950 to 2010, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). One of the main causes for the increase in life expectancy was the reduction of infant, childhood and elderly mortality. Another significant circumstance is that the NHS provides free medical care, regardless the patient’s financial condition. Logically, that would mean life expectancy would be similar between individuals of different social classes. However, several studies have linked socio-economical inequalities to patterns of disease in the UK. In this essay, the relationship between patterns of health inequality and social class will be assessed, as well its implications for health practitioners. One...

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