Year 12 PDHPE Health Priorities (Task One) By Amelia Johnston
Part A: Priority Issue Health Profile
Health priority issues are identified as health issues that have an effect on the overall health of Australia as they are a great concern to Governments and support organisations, which can create a national burden of health on the economy. Mental Health Problems and Illnesses, is a major health priority issue in Australia as it is widely found nationally within the current Australian population, due to the multiple types (depression, schizophrenia, personality disorders, post-traumatic stress disorders, dementia and anxiety) and varying impacts. These have an effect on the overall health within the Australian population and is a burden of health
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on the economy. a) The Current Trends Associated To This Issue: The mortality (number of deaths in a given population from a particular cause and/or over a period of time) of Mental Health Problems and Illnesses in Australia has a large impact on the overall health and the health of the national economy. According to Beyond Blue, “324 Australians (10.5 per 100,000) aged 15-24 died by suicide in 2012. This compares to 198 (6.4 per 100,000) who died in car accidents (the second highest killer).” In the contrasting of the two statistics, it has alluded to an increasing trend of suicide in the Australian youth as it in 2012 is a higher rate of death then that caused by car accidents, which is “the second highest killer” within the overall population. The comparison shows that Australian youth is becoming more effected by mental illness as suicide rates have increased within the population and has (in 2012) accounted for the most amount of deaths within the Australian youth compared to those of motor vehicle accidents. This could be due to a lack of support related to stigma for mental, physical and or social health, from family, friends, employers, which can gradually lead to types of mental illness and problems such as depression. Furthering this, in 2006 an Australian study related to stigma by the Government of Western Australia found that “one in 5 said that if they had depression they would not tell anyone”. This individual attitude of seeing their mental illness and or problem as a feature of shame will sets a person apart from others, leading to experiences of hopelessness, misrepresentation and stereotyping of a person. Due to this an individual will not want to seek help as they are embarrassed of their illness and feel like an outcast to society. This can contribute to self-harm and ultimately life-threatening actions (suicide). Making mental health problems and illnesses in Australia a priority issue as it is impacting on a large proportion of the population, specifically the youth and is contributing to the overall health of the nation. The morbidity (the patterns of illness, disease and injury in a given population that do not result in death) of Mental Health Problems and Illnesses also has an effect on the overall health of Australia, as it has a large impact on the health of the national economy. Mental Health Problems and Illnesses within women and men have different effects and trends. In 1997, the National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing estimated “women were more likely than men to have had symptoms of anxiety disorders.” The ABS 2007 (16-24 year’s) National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing stated “young women were most likely to experience an anxiety disorder…compared to only 4 percent of men”. These statistics shows that women have ongoing trends related to anxiety giving them a higher prevalence towards anxiety disorders then of men in between 1997-2007. This could be because some women during pregnancy and early parenthood go through significant changes on their lives. These can be challenging and intimidating to an individual as caring for a child is a huge responsibility and therefore can create higher stress levels. Beyond blue recognises “anxiety”, “depression”, “bipolar”, and “puerperal (postpartum) psychosis” can occur during and after pregnancy, making some women experience mental illness at a high rates. However, majority of these can either be prevented and or treated allowing for an improvement towards Australia’s health. Also, Health services are important in decreasing the morbidity levels (preventing ill health) and improving an individual’s overall wellbeing, as it enables the priority issue to improve in a positive way.
Many health problems and illnesses such as post-traumatic stress disorder and or anxiety is mainly preventable and or treatable, creating a positive outcome for the individuals. However, the survey by SMHWB in 2007 (aged between sixteen to eighty-five years) estimated “Nearly two-thirds (65%) of people identified by the survey as having symptoms of a mental disorder in the past 12 months did not use a service for mental health problems.” This statistic is negative as there are a large trend of people not using health services relating to the priority issue of mental health and is therefore damaging the health on the economy. The trend could be because of geographic location making it hard to access the services, education level impacting on their knowledge of health, individual attitudes towards health that could reflect their own family background, socioeconomic status and or sociocultural values. These all are a factor that can impact on the overall health of Australia, making mental health issues and problems a priority
issue. Year 12 PDHPE Health Priorities (Task One) By Amelia Johnston Part A: Priority Issue Health Profile b) The Groups Most At Risk Of Mental Health Problems And Illnesses: Australian Youth: The priority issue of mental health in Australia is becoming an area of risk for the younger aged groups within the national population as it has been increasing within the years. Australian youth are also becoming more educated and exposed to mental health, due to services, school programs, other peers and its impact on media. Mind Frame recognise “mental illness was highest in younger people, with the prevalence decreasing with age. Twenty-six per cent of 18-24 year olds had experienced a mental disorder, while only 5.9% of people aged 65 years and over had experienced a mental disorder” alluding that Australian youth are a group within the population that are high at risk of the health issue of mental health problems and illnesses. Furthering this, Beyond Blue discovered “In 2013, almost one in four young people (24.3%) said they were sad, very sad or not happy when asked to report how happy they were with their life as a whole.” These statistics reveal the huge impact that mental health problems and illnesses are having on this Australian group, which is certainly at risk. The Australian youth between the ages of 16-24 years old undergo a lot of changes and challenges in their lives that can be stressful such as school task, hormonal changes, pressure from family and peers, employment, leaving home, finding an apartment, earning a steady income, paying bills and other issues that are impacting towards stress levels leading to possible health issues if not looked after. Also, the youth are less likely to seek help due to stigma, which impacts on their perception of themselves creating a barrier between the individual and other’s within society who could possible help them. Therefore, the Australian youth is a large group at risk to the health issue as they are being exposed to higher levels of stress and not seeking enough help with their mental health problem and or illness. Unemployed And Or Financially Disadvantaged Australian’s: Unemployment and financial disadvantages in Australia can have a negative impact on an individual as it increases stress levels, leading to an experience of social isolation and a disconnection to others as it economically creates differences and difficulties within their lives taking away a sense of equality. “People unemployed or not in the paid workforce had the highest rates of mental disorder, a prevalence rate of 26% for unemployed men and 34% for unemployed women” stated by Mind-frame (In 2007, the Australian Bureau of Statistics). These percentages of the prevalence rate (number of cases of a disease that are present in a particular population at a given time) show that “26%”of unemployed men and “34%”of unemployed women suffer from the priority health issue of mental health problems and illness. The impact of the unemployment and financial disadvantages can impact on an individual’s mental health because they might need to support a whole family with needs that aren’t being catered for due to the lack of income creating a stressful environment, or they could be unable to pay of debs indicating that money will have to be gained in other forms (such as selling a house) and or simply not being able to pay for the day to day needs such as food could cause a lot of anxiety as it’s vital for life. Consequently making Australian’s who are unemployed and or financially disadvantaged a key group at risk of having a mental health issue. Indigenous Australians: The indigenous population in Australia has a high level of mental health problems and illnesses, making it a group highly at risk. It’s a group that have gone through many struggles and challenges within history of the nation, beyondblue says the “impact of colonisation, legislation and the stolen generation created significant hardships for Aboriginal Australians. These problems continue today and impact on Aboriginal people and their mental health.” The transgenerational impact of poverty, high premature death rates, substance abuse, loss of identity, broken connections with culture and family has developed extreme cases of anxiety, post-dramatic-stress and suicide passed down through the population. These impact on the Australian indigenous as it develops low self-esteem and degrading values to one’s self. Indigenous Australians are a group greatly at risk of the priority issue of mental health problems and illnesses, because it is passed down through generations making a cycle of mental health within the population and therefore making any indigenous person at risk of the issue due to the exposure caused by a damage identity in society.
2.3 Explain how the health and social care practitioner own values, beliefs and experiences can influence delivery of care.
Mental Health Funding Mental health is a subject a lot of people prefer not to talk about, which is a main reason that it is so underfunded. The severe underfunding affects not only the people suffering from mental illness, but also the government, the economy, and society as a whole. It is in the government's best interest to put more funding into mental health due to the health consequences on patients, including weight issues, drastic effects on bodily functions, and difficulties in pregnancy. As well as this
Guerin, B. & Guerin, P. 2012, 'Re-thinking mental health for indigenous Australian communities: communities as context for mental health', Community Development Journal, vol. 47, no. 4, pp. 555-70.
Disparities in cancer are caused by the complex interaction of low economic status, culture, and social injustice, with poverty playing the dominant role (Freeman, 2004). So I ask the question: Does socioeconomics impact a man’s prostate health?
Mental health and mental ill health is a wide subject that includes many different categories of mental health problems. According to the organisation Mind, mental health problems affect one in four people in Britain (Mind, 2013). Although, that is a big number it still is a sensitive topic for many people.
In the United States, many would believe that all individuals have a right to health care. These citizens believe that everyone should have access to health care and that everyone should have an equal opportunity to get the care they need for themselves and their family. The United States of America has been built with many documents that can be interpreted to support the belief that health care should be a right for everyone.
Mental Health is a very important, in depth study that needs more support. Identification of mental stressors is a skill everyone should to have to live with increased mental health. New York State Healthy People 2020 has placed Mental Health as a priority, increasing awareness for mental health illness and prevention. Providing care for Healthcare workers is a small fraction of the entirety of mental health issues. Working in the hospital is stressful, caring for others takes a huge mental and emotional toll on providers. Identifying who is most at risk and understanding what is needed to prevent mental disorders is imperative as a healthcare worker. Mental Health is defined by Healthy People 2020 as having participation in productive activities,
Access to health care refers to the ease with which an individual can obtain needed medical services. Many Americans face barriers that make it difficult to obtain basic health care services. These barriers to services include lack of availability, high cost, and lack of insurance coverage. "Limited access to health care impacts people's ability to reach their full potential, negatively affecting their quality of life." (Access to Health Services, 2014) Access to health services encompasses four components that include coverage, services, timeliness, and workforce
Mental disorders are rapidly becoming more common with each new generation born in the world. Currently, nearly one in two people suffer from some form of depression, anxiety, or other mental health problem at some point in their lives (Editor). With so many people suffering from their mental illnesses, steps have been taken in order to get help needed for these people but progress has been slow. In the medical world, hospitals are treating those with physical problems with more care than those with mental problems. Prescription drugs can only do so much helping the mentally ill go through their daily lives and more should be done to help those who need more than medicine to cope with their illness. Mental health should be considered just as important as physical health because of how advanced physical healing is, how the public reacts to those with mental illness, and due to the consequences that could happen if the illness is not correctly helped.
...ue to numerous medical errors. With the amount of medical errors that currently do occur which is a current health care issue it cost the health care billions of dollar each year to fix the mistakes that were made.
Health care has always been an interesting topic all over the world. Voltaire once said, “The art of medicine consists of amusing the patient while nature cures the disease.” It may seem like health care that nothing gets accomplished in different health care systems, but ultimately many trying to cures diseases and improve health care systems.
It is deeply alarming that ignoring mental health is systematically ignored as an important part of health promotion. This is shocking because, in theory, mental health is recognized as an important component of health, the close link between physical and mental health is recognized, and it is generally known that physical and mental health share many of the same social, environmental and economic components. We know that facilities dedicated to those with mental health problems are more vulnerable to the resources of physical diseases in many parts of the world, and it is essential that mental health promotion should not be equally affected
There are numerous public health problems that can be addressed in my Southside of Chicago community. Among the several public health problems facing my Southside of Chicago community there are two that are more urgent. Health education or one might say lack thereof is a problem that needs to be addressed. My community is plagued with many of the residents suffering from high blood pressure, diabetes, and the killer virus known as HIV. In most cases these conditions can be prevented with healthier lifestyles and access to nutritious organic foods. In addition, environmental health is another urgent problem my community is facing. Access to clean, safe water and air is supposed to be a fundamental human right aimed at a healthy environment. Yet, my community consists a waste contaminated beach, numerous deteriorated building that are still occupied, and a countless number of restaurant and stores supplying our residents with services that are endangering their health.
Today, the numbers of people with mental health issues are considerably high. The problem increases the national and global social and economic burdens as governments try to find means of empowering the people with the issue and solve the problem. Today, one in five adults in the United States has a mental health problem (“Mental Health Facts,” 2016). “Mental Health Facts” (2016) also states that the adults that received mental health services are about 60%. Only 50% of the youth with mental health issues received mental health services in the previous year. Further, mental health issues are also related to drug use and addiction. Of all the mental illnesses and disorders, depression affects the most people and has the biggest burden globally. Due to the increasing burden and the gap in service utilization, the mental health policy seeks to address several factors. Some of the key issues to address include early diagnosis of mental disorders, provision of appropriate and adequate intervention a particular problem, education and counseling for the family members, and research to help reduce the numbers and reverse the trend. Another key area of focus is the use of mass media to create awareness about mental health issues and help clear the
Personal health is extremely important to everyone around the world. But it is especially important to citizens of the United States of America. Being one of the leading countries in Health technology and also in food and beverage leaves most people choosing between living a healthy lifestyle and indulging in the varieties of food we offer. Across the country, many people are living with pre-existing conditions, living in food deserts, living below the poverty line and a long list of other factors that either hinders them from eating healthy or force them to eat healthily. When trying to live a healthy lifestyle in this country not only does the promotion of prevention matter, but also the promotion of Career and job opportunities matter just as much. In the United States, Money equals Power and money also equal the opportunity to create and live a healthier lifestyle.