Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care, Research Paper Example

Sociology examines the relationships between various aspects of the human existence and how these factors determine our life experiences.  One of the greatest influences on our lives is our economic security, as this creates our social and lifestyle stability, which in turn determines whether we can afford to maintain our health through preventative healthcare benefits.  Knowing the beliefs and practices of different cultures is necessary because medical practitioners must develop a plan of care to assist each individual patient according to their wishes.  It is the duty of the coverage provider to explain all the options available to the individual, listen to their wishes, and create a plan that will honor those wishes according to all known best practices (Spector, 2009).  Sociology helps policy makers establish relevant criteria for development of a successful diversity inclusion strategy to ensure that the plan will be effective at overcoming barriers, both real and perceived (Barton & Swider, 2009).

Options for Health Insurance, CC, and History

In the U.S., the Medicare and Medicaid programs generally offer healthcare servicesto those that lack the capacity to maintain independent coverage, but there are still over 50 million individuals that are uninsured as of 2010, which primarily includes the elderly and those that are underprivileged or disadvantaged.  The Medicare and Medicaid healthcare systems do not provide comprehensive health coverage to all citizens, health expenditures in relation to the GPD are higher in the U. S. than any other country worldwide, accounting for roughly 14% of the country’s GDP in 1997 (Stiglitz, 2000; WHO, 2009).  Currently, an estimated 43% or 32 million U.S. children currently have a minimum of 1 out of 20 chronic health conditions and this percentage increases to 54.1% when conditions such as obesity, beingoverweight, or at risk for developmental delays are included(Bethell, et al., 2011).

Despite having the most complex healthcare system in the world, the U. S. has poorer health status than many countries that spend much less, while expenses continue to rise annually as the country’s overall health continues to decline (Stiglitz, 2000).  Overall, most health insurance in the U.S. is provided through the employer, which leaves nearly 1/6th of all Americans uninsured or underinsured.  The U. S. government covers about 45% of health care costs with consumers paying only 19% of the direct costs of healthcare(Barton P. , 2010).

Major U.S.Health Insurance Programs

President Obama and the U.S. Congress have built upon the legacies of former presidential healthcare policies with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care (PPAC) Act, which requires the Federal government to work in conjunction with the American people to make America the healthiest nation in the world(Healthy People, 2010).Another beneficial insurance establishment that was constructed is the American Health Benefit Exchanges (AHBE) this component relatively was created to make the coverage more available and inexpensive for individuals that demanded this particular policy for themselves(HealthCare.gov, 2012). The PPAC developed this specific element for persons who normally cannot meet the expense and availability regarding the employer coverage, as well as minor organizations that can primarily pay for the insurance(HealthCare.gov, 2012).

The alterations of the Private Health Insurance Coverage was also formulated by the PPACA to necessitate that health plans and the supporters of this specific coverage had been structured to increase availability to inexpensive policies and also stop people from being unable to maintain their insurance coverage (Healthy People, 2010). One of the major reasons for the PPACA developing this factor was to considerably expand Medicaid programs by instructing coverage of particular populous members, which are not formerly required. This specific policy essentially covers low-income people, unproductive, deprived individuals and people who cannot afford regular insurance on their own.

History of Health Care Policy Development

The ethical values of social work contribute to understanding the nature of diversity and how it relates to the successful treatment of patients.  Knowledge regarding the beliefs and practices of the cultures in the U.S.provides the necessary data to create a relevant plan of care to assist each individual.  There are numerous cultures in the U.S. that do not believe in various forms of medical treatment that many Americans think of as common. The development of emerging standards of care enables medical staff to provide culturally competent care and makes them more effective in establishing rapport with patients so that they can accurately assess, develop, and implement medical interventions that appropriately meet patients’ needs (Lowe & Archibald, 2009). The main source of problems in caring for patients from diverse cultural backgrounds is the lack of understanding and tolerance. Very often, neither the nurse nor the patient understands the other’s perspective due to differences in cultural aspects (DNC, 2013).  Some of these elements carve out exceptions in cases of emergency and include provisions that require the dissenting physician to refer patients to another who is willing to deliver the service (DNC, 2013).

Unnatural Causes

The term unnatural causes relates to the root causes of the alarming socio-economic and racial inequities or disparities in health (California Newsreel, 2008).Due to many technological advances in modern medicine, numerous major elective surgical procedures have increasingly been unavailable to those without comprehensive healthcare coverage.  Furthermore, under certain circumstances, surgical skill becomes the most significant factor in the success of any major surgery.Following a model for promoting cultural competence within the workplace should include cultural tools to develop cultural awareness, knowledge, skill, and desire (Flowers, 2004).  The policies, procedures, and attitudes of professional organizations, especially healthcare facilities should have developed adaptations of service delivery reflecting an understanding of cultural diversity that permeates all aspects of their organization (Cultural Competency, 2008).

Conclusion

Cultural competence is a developmental process that evolves over an extended period and, although individuals and organizations are at different levels of awareness, knowledge and skills along the cultural competence continuum, it remains a cooperative process (AHRQ, 2009).Understanding that health care is a cultural construct, arising from beliefs about the nature of disease and the human body is an important aspect in moving forwards towards establishing emerging standards of care, and cultural issues are actually central in the delivery of health services treatment and preventive interventions (Wolff, 2010).  By understanding, valuing, and incorporating the cultural differences of America’s diverse population and examining one’s own health-related values and beliefs, health care organizations, practitioners, and others can support a health care system that responds appropriately to, and directly serves the unique needs of populations whose cultures may be different from the prevailing culture (Wolff, 2010).

References

AHRQ. (2009). Activities to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in health care, Program Brief. Rockville, MD: Agencies for Healthcare Research and Quality. Retrieved from Agencies for Healthcare Research and Quality: http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/disparities.pdf

Barton, A., & Swider, S. (2009). Creating Diversity in a Baccalaureate Art and city branding Program: A Case Study. International Journal of Art and city branding Education Scholarship, 6(1), 1-14; Article 14. doi:10.2202/1548-923X.1700

Barton, P. (2010). Understanding the U. S. Health services system (4th ed.). Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press.

Bethell, C. D., Kogan, M. D., Strickland, B. B., Schor, E. L., Robertson, J., & Newacheck, P. W. (2011, May-June). A national and state profile of leading health problems and health care quality for U.S. children: Key insurance disparities and across-state variations. Academic Pediatrics, 11(3-Supplement), S22–S33. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2010.08.011

California Newsreel. (2008). About the series: Unnatural causes. Retrieved from Unnatural causes: Is inequality making us sick?: http://www.unnaturalcauses.org/about_the_series.php

Cultural Competency. (2008). Retrieved from Cultural Diversity: http://www.culturediversity.org/cultcomp.htm

DNC. (2013). Isues: Healthcare. Retrieved from Democratic National Committee (DNC) Services Corporation: http://www.democrats.org/issues/health_care

Flowers, D. (2004). Culturally Competent Nursing Care A Challenge for the 21st Century. American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, Critical Care Nurse, 24, 48-52. Retrieved from http://www.cconline.org

HealthCare.gov. (2012, August 7). Providing Clear and Consistent Information to Consumers About Their Health Insurance Coverage. Retrieved December 5, 2012, from HealthCare.gov: http://www.healthcare.gov/news/factsheets/2011/08/labels08172011a.html

(2010). Healthy People 2020: An opportunity to address societal determinants of health in the U.S. Secretary’s Advisory Committee on National Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Objectives for 2020. Retrieved from http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/about/advisory/SocietalDeterminantsHealth.pdf

Lowe, J., & Archibald, C. (2009, January-March). Cultural diversity: The intention of nursing. Nursing Forum, 44(1), 11-18.

Spector, R. (2009). Cultural diversity in health and illness (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

Stiglitz, J. (2000). Public Sector Economics (3rd ed.). New York: W.W. Norton & Company.

WHO. (2009). Maximizing positive synergies between health systems and Global Health Initiatives. Geneva, Switzerland : World Health Organization (WHO). Retrieved from http://www.who.int/healthsystems/GHIsynergies/en/index.html

Wolff, A. (2010). Beyond generational differences: a literature review of the impact of relational diversity on nurses’ attitudes and work. Journal of Nursing Management, 18, 948–969.