...Health disparities of the LGBT community Darlene Poer Grand Canyon University Minerva Gonzales May 15, 2016 Health disparities of the LGBT community Many factors contribute to a person’s health status. Among them are, limited access to care, socioeconomic, and environmental factors. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), “the social determinants of health as well as race are ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, age, and disability” (Myers, Yoon, & Kaufman, 2013). The Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community falls into this category. The individuals that belong to this group come from all ethnicities, races, economic and social statuses throughout the United States and the world. The Institute of Medicines report in 2011 states, “lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals have unique health experiences, but as a nation, we do not know exactly what these experiences and needs are ("LGBT health report," 2011, p. 4).For this reason their needs and health care inequities and inequalities should be addressed. The health promotion goal of the LGBT community is to “improve the health, safety, and well-being of lesbian, gay, and transgender individuals” ("," 2014). To understand the current health status of the LGBT community, one must understand some basic definitions. 1. Gender identity-A person’s basic sense of being male or female. 2. Gender expression- Manifestations that are defined as masculine or feminine. 3. Gender role...
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...1 HEALTH DISPARITIES 2 The Health of Hispanic and Latinos Health disparities in the diverse American demography creates challenges in the overall health status of ethnic minorities. Tragic disadvantages on obtaining optimal health care can be linked to variables such as being from a specific socioeconomic status, race, geographic location, age, gender, mental health, genetic background, or having a disability. This injustice on how health care is being provided is debilitating for patients and the communities that they live in. Statistics Reviewing the statistics for Hispanics in the community against other groups indicates that the overall health of ages is fair or poor health in 9.6% of the population (National Center for Health Statistics, 2015). Another alarming statistic is that 16.4% of men and 7.4% of woman above 18 smoked cigarettes (National Center for Health Statistics, 2015). The rate of people under the age of 65 who did not have health insurance was over 25.5 percent (National Center for Health Statistics, 2015). Many of the diseases in the top categories that caused death in this population were cancer and heart disease (National Center for Health Statistics, 2011). Ethnic Disparities The racial ethnic disparities was greatest in both income and education for Hispanics and Non-Hispanic American Indians/ Alaskan Natives in the year 2011 (Disparities in Healthcare Quality Among Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups, 2014). Hispanics struggle...
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...Health disparities are not uncommon to those of a lower socioeconomic, racial or ethnic group. At increasing and alarming numbers, the minority population are hit the greatest. It is a major challenge each group faces in their daily lives. Programs such as Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) was put in place to end health gaps in the United States. REACH tailors specifically toward the African-America/Black, American Indians, Hispanics/Latinos, Asian Americans, Alaska Natives, and Pacific Islanders that provides programs and interventions. Health disparities are quite prevalent amid these groups of people. Heart disease, obesity, and diabetes rank higher within these communities (National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention...
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...Socioeconomic Status and Health Disparity in America Over the years, researchers have uncovered a strong link between socioeconomic status and one’s risk for being affected by healthy disparities (Ethnic, 2015).When examining the relationship between socioeconomic status and health, evidence shows those with the lowest income and education are the unhealthiest, while most advantaged individuals are the healthiest (Braveman, et al, 2009). It is possible through continued research and broadened knowledge surrounding different cultures and biological factors, we may be able to close certain gaps that exist today and reduce the risk for healthy disparity in America. There are many factors that are used today to measure diversity in socioeconomic status. For example, the relationships between demographics, income, and health help us understand what elevates risk for disparity. Some of the demographic factors include: race and ethnicity, gender, sexual identity, special health care needs, and geographic location (Disparities, 2015). While some groups are impacted greater than others, it is important to acknowledge that these inequities are affecting our society as a whole and should be a priority of concern for all (Ethnic, 2015). When considering how a higher income could produce a healthier future, we see that wealthier people have greater accessibility to key resources. Someone with a high income is more likely to have sufficient health coverage and live in a safe neighborhood...
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...Health Care Disparities Latanya Breeden Capella University Health Care Disparities America benefits when everyone has the opportunity to live a long, healthy and productive life, yet health disparities persist. A health disparity is a difference in health outcomes across subgroups of the population, often linked to social, economic, or environmental disadvantages (less access to good jobs, unsafe neighborhoods, and lack of affordable transportation options). Health disparities adversely affect groups of people who have systematically experienced greater obstacles to health on the basis of their racial or ethnic group, religion, socioeconomic status, gender, age, mental health, cognitive, sensory, or physical disability, sexual orientation or gender identity, geographic location, or other characteristics historically linked to discrimination or exclusion. The issues that involved in education and lifestyle choice disparities are the socioeconomic circumstances of persons and the places where they live and work strongly influence their health. In the United States, as elsewhere, the risk for mortality, morbidity, unhealthy behaviors, reduced access to health care, and poor quality of care increases with decreasing socioeconomic circumstances. This association is continuous and graded across a population and cumulative over the life course. Educational attainment and family or household income are two indicators used commonly to assess the influence...
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...The Department of Health and Human Services (2000), defines health disparities as unequal burdens in disease morbidity and mortality rates experienced by ethnic/racial groups as compared to the dominant group (USDHHS, 2000). The organization asserts that the causes of health disparities are multifactorial which includes poor education, poverty, inability to access health care, limited health coverage ,health behaviors of the minority group, and other environmental factors (USDHHS, 2000). Most of these factors are related to access to health care. According to Cohen (2007), the elimination of health disparities requires attention to the physical, mental, social as well as political context in which health occurs or is threatened...
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...Health disparities are avertible divergences in the burden of disease, injury, violence, or opportunities to resolve optimal health that are experienced by socially disadvantaged populations (CDC.gov). African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, and Asian Pacific Islander, together with immigrants, the poor, and mentally retarded, have encountered inordinate burdens in health and health care mirrored by high morbidity and fatality rates. Origins of these health disparities include poverty (inadequate financial resources), poor education, health behaviors of the minority group and environmental factors. The most frequently disclosed are seen in cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer. There has consistently been existing resolutions....
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...Health disparities among racial and ethnic groups present a complex national issue. ….Health disparities are the differences in frequency, commonly occurring, raising the death rate, diseases that are difficult to bear, and other adverse health conditions or outcome that exists among specific population groups in the United States. …The specific population groups can be based on gender, age, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, geography, sexual orientation, disability, or special health care needs. Health disparities occur among groups who have persistently experienced historic trauma, social disadvantage, or discrimination. They are widespread in the United States as demonstrated by the fact that many minority groups in the United States have a higher incidence of chronic diseases, higher mortality, and poorer health outcomes when compared to whites.” ( Multicultural Health. n.d., p.14) …The causes of health disparities are due to both voluntary and involuntary factors. Voluntary factors are related to health behaviors, such as smoking and diet, and can be avoided. …Factors such as genetics, living and working in unhealthy conditions, limited or no access to health care, language barriers, limited financial resources, and low health literacy skills are often viewed as being involuntary and unfair, because they are not within that person’s control.”(Multicultural Health., n.d., p.19) From the research reported by the institute of medicine an overwhelming body of evidence in the...
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...Healthcare disparities This article entitled; Racial and ethnic disparities in health care, updated 2010, written by American College of Physicians, presents the reality of the racial and ethnic disparities in health care and made some recommendations to reduce this gaps. Although improvements have been seen in health care quality and some disparities have been reduced or eliminated, differences persist in health care quality among members of various racial and ethnic minority groups. Irrefutable evidence indicates that racial and ethnic minorities are subject to quality care less healthy than white Americans, even when factors such as insurance status are controlled. Since the population continues to grow and diversify the health care system must change and adapt to meet the needs of a patient more and more multicultural. In 2003, the American College of Physicians, which is now the greatest medical specialty society in the United States with physicians and medical student members, published racial and ethnic disparities paper Healthcare (www. acponline.org / ppvl / policies / e000904.pdf). The document provides some recommendations on how the gap between patients’s racial and ethnic minorities and their white counterparts can be reduced. Unfortunately, even though progress has been achieved in some areas the question of the racial and ethnic disparities remains a difficult and complex problem to tackle. This update of the 2003 document adopts recommendations that still...
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...Health Disparities Solutions: Nurses Can Make a Difference Can Nurses make a difference in reducing health disparities? I believe we can make a big difference, Nurses can work with communities in a “grassroots” type movement to bring attention to the gravity of the inequities built into our current healthcare system. Healthcare is first and foremost about people, and care should be directed by the needs of the people it serves. Secondly, caring is foundational to nursing and this is a concept must be deeply woven throughout all points of health care. The third aspect is the vast pit of inequalities in healthcare; the injustices, denial of treatment and quality healthcare to minorities and the disadvantaged poor. Nurses are known patients advocates, therefore nurses are well equipped, to become leaders, in constructing equitable changes in the system and improve the model of care. Nurses are well- appointed in their understanding, negotiating skills, knowledge of healthcare and patient centered care, to provide guidance and direction to implement meaningful changes. Research in health disparities has identified, that the U.S is burdened by huge social and economic inequalities; it identifies, discrimination, social status, income inequality, and policy decisions as the principal causes of health disparities. The nursing profession needs to reconsider its role and its purpose in reducing health disparities, they need to be proactive in establishing...
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...Health Disparities in Maternal Health and Birth Outcomes of Women in the United States The Health Resources and Services Administration, defines health disparities as “population-specific differences in the presence of disease, health outcomes, or access to health care” (Mandal, 2014). This paper will focus on the health disparities existing within the United States between women of various ethnicities. Specifically, the disparities we will discuss incorporate preterm births, low birth rates, and infant deaths. First, a brief background will be presented, followed by two solutions to combat the issue, and finally I will conclude with my recommendations for the foremost beneficial approach to combat these distressing disparities. Background...
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...Heath disparities, Within the several studies applied by sociologists and economists in order to provide a general overview of the phenomenon related with the heath situation, a focus on the differences between the population in terms of health conditions is the component that mostly emerges and has to be deeply understood. Differences are to be classified as social advantages that an individual has in comparison to another one with a worse health situation. In this context many are the social economic variables influencing the individual’ s health level, such as education, income, occupation and race combined with the public health policy characterise the socioeconomic individual status (ses). Ses Definition: Robin Morris, 2000: “socio economic status refers to components of economic and social status that distinguish and characterize people”. The SES is the combination of socio-economical parameters which shows the individual’s position in the society in relation to the variables above mentioned. Before starting by plotting the relation within education and ses, it would be more useful to analyse the factors influencing the level of education and how these are effecting the quality and the expectancy of life. In particular lower ses affects negatively the student’s academic achievements because more educated individuals report better health and face lower mortality risk. Therefore a higher educational level causes better heath (Grossman 2006). Education...
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...Health Care Disparities: Central of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defined heal disparities as “the differences in health outcomes and their causes among group of people.” These differences are closely linked with some racial and ethnic minorities, such as social, economic, and/or environmental (CDC, 2011). Health disparities are the metrics used to measure the health equity, where health equity represents providing qualified health care services for different groups of populations regardless there race, ethnicity, sex, sexual identity, age, disability, socioeconomic status, and geographic location (Georges, Benjamin, 2015). In the U.S. health care disparities is one of the longstanding health challenges with severe influences not only...
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...MPH 5220 U02D1 Barriers to Reducing Disparities in Health Care July 17, 2013 The purpose of this post is to disseminate the learners view regarding the barriers to reducing disparities in health care. The National Library of Medicine defines Healthcare disparities as a “differences in access to or availability of facilities and services,” and “Health status disparities refer to the variation in rates of disease occurrence and disabilities between socioeconomic and/or geographically defined population groups” (U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2013). A barrier to reducing disparities based on race and ethnicity is to increase education related to those chronic diseases that most affect communities of color. Community Outreach and Public Engagement/Cultural Competencies are used within the public sector; however, the effectiveness of these programs must be questioned. Rebecca Voelker (2008) states, “Not only did treatment disparities persist; the magnitude of the disparities did not diminish” (Voelker, 2008), the ineffectiveness of health care programs persist and perpetuates the cycle of health care disparity and health status disparity. Voelker references the Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH 2010) a pilot program in South Carolina and Georgia, which are examples of effective outreach to communities of colors, these programs were managed effectively and precisely, thus they were able to reduce the disparity gaps per disease (Voelker, 2008). Voelker’s...
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...Introduction Despite all the approaches, disparities still exist as one of the major concerns in health and health care today. We made a little progress comparing to the years before in addressing this issue. In addition, the Affordable Care Act offer opportunities to tackle this issue vigorously. I firmly believe that it will be a much bigger issue if we do not eliminate the disparities now it will be very challenging when the US population becomes much more diverse. However, this policy memo addresses this particular issue, summarizes the causes or issues known about health and health care disparities, and provides recommendations and approaches to confront it. Causes Healthcare disparities are references to the differences that exist...
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