Society is constantly changing and as society changes, so does the health of the population, including the primary causes of illness, disability and death. To find the most effective ways of treating health problems, which are often complex and difficult to understand, models are used to analyse them. These models must be updated so they stay relevant as society and health problems change. This assignment will examine why, over time, many healthcare systems have shifted to social models of health, rather than the biomedical model, by comparing their relative benefits and evaluating the effectiveness of two social models in explaining smoking, a current threat to health. Health, as defined by WHO in 1948, encompasses all the mental, physical …show more content…
More attention would be paid as to who contracted communicable diseases and how, as social models seek to identify the social and economic causes behind diseases and then manipulate them. In fact, the decline in communicable diseases is largely attributed to the social and economic changes during the late 19th and the 20th century (such as improved sanitation and sewage systems, increased purchasing power, more nutritious diets, better quality housing and general increases in living standards) (Cockerham; Ferrante). The effects on the patient’s social and mental health would also be discussed (Engel). Meanwhile, a health system using a social model for a non-communicable chronic disease would be better placed to identify and understand the factors that lead people to make unhealthy choices, which would mean that policy-makers could design interventions with the knowledge of the issues and causes, resulting in effective, targeted policies that may prevent others from also making those choices (Borrell-Carrio, Suchman, & Epstein). On an individual level, the social model would lead to better clinical outcomes for patients, as the physician’s increased understanding of smoking-promoting factors enable them to support patients in making healthier choices, and also be better equipped to address social and psychological problems associated with the disease, as these are incorporated in the model …show more content…
vaccinations or antibiotics, meaning treatment using the biomedical model can have a significant effect (Mishra, Oviedo-Orta, Prachi, Rappuoli & Bagnoli, 2012). However, the best way to improve population health outcomes in the case of non-communicable diseases is prevention as many are not easily curable or incurable (Cockerham). This means those who have not yet been identified as “sick” but are at risk of making unhealthy choices, and damaging their health, cannot be effectively treated using the biomedical model, as it is not designed to prevent disease but rather act in a purely reactionary way. The biomedical model focuses on proximal causes of disease (causes that are “close” or an immediate precursor to the disease), which hampers it from causing widespread change and subsequent improvement in health. In contrast, social models act as tools to identify causes of illness at both the proximal and distal level (distal factors are structural aspects of society that influence prevalence of disease, for example, income inequality) and therefore inspire health-promoting interventions and policies (such as progressive taxation) which protect those who are not yet sick but may make unhealthy choices (Viner, Ozer, Denny, Marmot, Resnick, Fatusi & Currie, 2012). Ergo, social models are more effective at preventing non-communicable diseases from
According to the World Health Organisation (2017) the social determinants of health are defined as the conditions where people are born, grown, work and live, which also includes the health system. The social determinants of health determined populations health’s outcomes and therefore linked with health inequalities (WHO, 2017)
I chose not to use any of the prompts provided, but instead connect the article to what I learned in my sociology class lass quarter. In class we watched part one of film series of Unnatural causes, titled Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making us Sick "In Sickness and in Wealth". While reading the article this reminded me about the cases studied in the film to see whether wealth inequality contributes to making people sick. In the film they focused on the social determinants of health, wealth and education. In both the article and part one of the film Unnatural Causes they focused on three different individuals and how their health are affected by they choices they make and the access they have to care.
Wilkinson, R. G., & Marmot, M. G. (2003). Social determinants of health: The solid facts.
Social determinants of health (SDOH) are increasingly becoming a major problem of Public Health around the World. The impact of resources and material deprivation among people and populations has resulted in an increase in mortality rate on a planetary scale. Social determinants of health are defined as the personal, social, economic and the environmental conditions which determines the health status of an individual or population (Gardner, 2013). Today’s society is characterized by inequalities in health, education, income and many other factors which as a result is becoming a burden for Public Health around the world. Research studies have shown that the conditions in which people live and work strongly influenced their health. Individuals with high levels of education and fall within the high income bracket turn to have stable jobs, live in the best neighborhood and have access to quality health care system than individuals who have low education and fall with the low income bracket. This paper is to explain different social determinants of health and how they play ...
Wilkinson, R. M. (2003). Social determinants of health - the solid facts. [S.l.]: World Health Organization.
Although very divergent in their focus, the existing theoretical models seem to have some similarities and differences. This is especially true in regard to their factors of analysis when considering social determinants of health. For example, Krieger’s ecosocial theory encompasses and acknowledges the roles of social and psychosocial processes of disease process (WHO 2010).
Wilkinson, R.G. & Marmot, M.G. 2003, Social determinants of health: the solid facts, World Health Organization.
Social determinants of health has been a large topic for many years and can have a positive and negative effect on individuals, families and communities. (World Health Organisation, 2009) The social determinants of health are the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age, including the health system. These circumstances are shaped by the distribution of money, power and resources at global, national and local levels, which are themselves influenced by policy choices. Social determinants have many factors and in this essay education will be the main social determinant of health discussed and how this could have an impact on the physical and mental sides of health.
Human behavior is a vital component in the sustainment of health and the prevention of illness. For some decades now there has been an increasing attention to the contribution of psychological and social components to improving and changing health. Health specialists have used the help of models of behavior change in order to reduce health risks. Through all these years psychosocial models have been a leading influence in predicting and explaining health behaviors. The most accustomed are the social cognition models. A central principle of social cognition is that people’s social behavior is comprehended by examining their perceptions about their own behaviour
...an, P., Egerter, S., & Williams, D. R. (2011). The social determinants of health: coming
This model considers other aspects of an individual 's life such as their culture and environment. Unlike the biomedical model, the social model tries to prevent the disease in the first place, so it focuses more on educating people and health promotion. The biomedical looks at an individual’s physical disease but the social model also looks at a person’s well-being. According to Stephan Sutton, Andrew Baum and Marie Johnston (2004) the SAGE Handbook of Health psychology ‘a combination of high psychological demands, such as time pressure and low decision latitude increases the risk of psychophysiological stress reactions and subsequent ill
Epub 2006 Jan. Pincus, T., Esther, R., DeWalt, D.A., & Callahan, L.F., (1998) Social conditions and self-management are more powerful determinants of health than access to care. Ann Intern Med., Inc. 1998 Sep 1;129(5):406-11. Vest, J.R., & Gamm, L.D., (2009)
Over the years, the social determinants of health (SDOH) have been receiving more attention due to its importance in determining peoples’ health access, health quality and health outcome. The social determinants of health have been described by various scholars as the situation or environmental condition in which people are born, or where they grow, live and work; unfortunately these conditions have continued to affect and determine people’s ability to access proper care.1-5 In other words, the SDOH continues to consciously and unconsciously influence people’s access to most opportunities in life including access to healthcare services both in developed and developing countries.2 This issues have continue to deteriorate in most developing countries increasing people’s susceptibility to multi-morbidity among different age groups, with a slight increase among the elderly.6
This essay is aimed to explore, analyse and discuss smoking in adults. Smoking is a public health issue as such is one of the major contributors to high mortality and ill-health in the adults which is preventable (Health and Excellence Care (NICE) (2012). The United Kingdom (UK) is known to have the highest number of people with a history of smoking among people with low socio-economic status (Scriven and Garman, 2006; Goddard and Green, 2005). Smoking is considered a serious epidemic in the UK and the National institute for Health and Excellence Care (NICE, 2012) stated that 28% of adults with low economic status are tobacco smokers compared with 13% of those with economic status or having professional incomes. Furthermore almost 80,000 people died in England in 2011 as a result of smoking related issues and 9,500 admissions of children died due to being second hand smokers (WHO, 2005). This essay focuses on definition of smoking, the aim is to underline the relationship between smoking and the determinants of health and then, the size, prevalence, and morbidity trend of smoking will be explored. Furthermore, some public health policies introduced to confront the issues around smoking will be investigated and finally, the roles of nurses will identify health needs the public so as to promote good health and their wellbeing.
Smoking cigarettes is a detrimental practice not only to the smoker, but also to everyone around the smoker. According to an article from the American Lung Association, “Health Effects” (n.d.), “Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S., causing over 438,000 deaths per year”. The umbrella term for tobacco use includes the use of cigarettes, cigars, e-cigs and chewing tobacco. While tobacco causes adverse health consequences, it also has been a unifying factor for change in public health. While the tobacco industries targets specific populations, public health specifically targets smokers, possible smokers, and the public to influence cessation, policies and education.