Free Health Dissertations - Health And Social Policy And Inequalities The World Health Organisation
Health and Social Policy and Inequalities
The World Health Organisation Constitution (WHO, 1946) defines health as a state of complete mental, physical and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. This appeared overly optimistic and was defined by the WHO in the 1980’s to be a state whereby the individual was able to function normally in their social setting without disease or disability. This too is problematic. The term being healthy means different things to different people. An individual with a chronic disease may still consider themselves as healthy and an individual who is very old may be free of disease yet not able to function as normally as they would like.
Stigma may be attached to certain groups e.g. the gay population may be perceived by some as responsible for the AIDS epidemic. The high prevalence (currently 8% in sub-Saharan Africa) of HIV in asylum seekers may lead to prejudice against them. The vast effect of socio economic forces on health means that to study health and effect change it is necessary to take a wider concept of health; the health of a society rather than of an individual.
The holistic view of health incorporates the physical and mental, emotional and spiritual elements and encompasses the whole person. This holistic view bringing all these aspects together and is a more useful way to think about health (Ewes and Simnett, 2003) although the interaction of the different components is complex. It is important to address the holistic view since social policy needs to include the whole issue to be effective.
Poverty is associated with a higher prevalence of ill health and a shorter life expectancy (Benzeval, 1995). The Black Report (1980) examined the differences in health by social class. In the UK there is an increasingly ageing population. The difference in heath between the wealthiest and the poorest in the population is widening. Health Authorities have a role in assisting community development of health care. People in the UK from ethnic minority groups have poorer health as a whole. There is much data concerning the prevalence and incidence of various diseases in relation to ethnicity on the statistics section of the research page on the Commission for Racial Equality. Rates of diabetes and coronary artery disease are higher in ethnic minority groups. Reasons for the effects of race on health are multifactorial (Smaje, 1995). The fourth national survey of Ethnic Minorities, 1994 (Commission for racial Equality) found that self reports of health were lower for non-home owners relative to those who owned their home. In the UK there is a North South divide with regard to health, the industrialised North appearing to have a higher prevalence of ill health (Sidell, 2003). Homelessness and social isolation influence health adversely (Benzeval, 1995).
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